Individuals like Kung and Zen, and without a doubt those Christians who continue to suffer in their testimony to the Christian faith, are today’s unrecognised saints.

Hungarian Head of State Katalin Novák was received by Pope Francis on 25 August. During their 40-minute talk, conducted in Spanish, they discussed, among other issues, the successes of the Hungarian government’s family policies.

Last week Pope Francis made an Apostolic pilgrimage to Canada to apologise for the Catholic Church’s cooperation with Canada’s ‘catastrophic’ policy of Indigenous residential schools.

With worrisome news circulating about the health of Pope Francis, many foresee the election of the first Hungarian pope in history, which could mean an important turning point for the whole Catholicism.

Ultimately, there is no Church legislation to remove a Pope from his Office, although that does not mean that a Papal law cannot be formulated to the effect. Until then, the principle of “the First See is judged by no one” remains fully intact. 

Pope Francis missed this opportunity to embrace a country that has charted a remarkably Catholic course in the heart of secular Europe.