On September 30, 2025, the Hungarian Parliamentary Prayer Group held its 180th prayer breakfast.
Imre Vejkey, leader of the prayer group, quoted the daily Gospel, which spoke of Jesus condemning the spirit of vengeance.
"When the days of Jesus' suffering and glorification were near, he decided to go to Jerusalem. He sent messengers ahead of him. They set out and entered a village of the Samaritans to prepare lodging for him. But they did not welcome Jesus because he was going to Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this, they were indignant and said, "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to destroy them?" But he turned and rebuked them, saying, "You do not know what spirit you are of. The Son of Man did not come to destroy people, but to save them." Then they went on to another village.” (Luke 9:51-56)
In his reflection, he emphasized that Jesus did not want to avoid anyone, not even the Samaritans. However, the Samaritans did not want to see Him, they did not want to see Him on His way to Jerusalem. All this raises the question of who was the enemy of Jesus Christ and who was his friend, that is, who is my enemy and who is my neighbor. If we assume that there are only two sides: the side of light and the side of darkness, then my enemy is the dark side and its army, and my neighbor is everyone on the side of light. The apostles James and John, true to their name as "sons of thunder," wanted to take revenge on the Samaritans and bring about the end of the world, referring to the story of the prophet Elijah, who called down fire from heaven on his enemies. But in the end, nothing came of the destruction of the Samaritans, because Jesus did not cry out for vengeance, but exercised mercy.
What is the message for us today? That we should not call down fire, but give light. Let us not forget that the mission we carry out is not vengeance, but invitation.
Father Pál Reisz OFM, former director of the Pelbárt Ferences Secondary School in Esztergom, who currently serves at the Saint Peter of Alcantara Church in Ferenciek Square, participated in the morning prayer. In his reflection on the Gospel of the day, he emphasized the main message of the passage, namely that Jesus Christ considered not only the Jews as his neighbors, but all people in need. At the Last Supper, he sets the bar as high as possible for us when he says, "I give you a new commandment: love one another! As I have loved you, so you also should love one another" (Jn 13:34). People in today's world often find themselves overcome by anger and, like James and John, desire divine punishment for their enemies. However, this is not what we need in order to find inner peace. What we need is the grace of Jesus Christ and an understanding of his greatest commandment, namely, the message of love for our neighbor. As today’s Scripture passage says, “The Son of Man did not come to destroy people, but to save them.”
Dr. György Bakondi, emeritus chair of the board of trustees of the Hungarian Parliamentary Prayer Group Foundation, explained that in today's world, Christian-Jewish culture is under attack, and we must fight back. However, this fight cannot be successful without prayer. Strengthened by this thought, Dr. Ádám Berniczei-Roykó, a member of the prayer group, referred to the prayer written by Pope Leo 13th to Archangel St. Michael, which those present prayed together. "Archangel St. Michael defend us in battle; be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. " Archangel St. Michael defend us in battle; be our protection against the wicked temptations of Satan! We implore you: "May God command him!" And you, commander of the heavenly armies, cast Satan and the other evil spirits who roam the world seeking the ruin of souls back to their place of damnation with the power of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ! Amen."
