Churches of Eastern Europe - I

As I mentioned in a previous post, when I started up again this blog, eight friends of mine and I went on a seven day Viking River Cruise on the Danube River April 25-May 3.  Three of us added an excursion to Prague on the conclusion of the cruise.  It was a fabulous trip, with some wonerful friends, great food and beautiful sights.

Rather than bore anyone with "...and on Wednesday our guide took us to..." stories, I thought I'd highlight a few -- six? -- of the very special churches we visited.  Lots of pictures, a few words of history.  Today I'll begin where our westbound cruise began, in Budapest, Hungary.

THE MATTHIAS CHURCH

The official title of this magnificent building is "The Church of Our Lady of Buda Castle".  It sits atop the Castle Hill of Buda, on the southern shore of the Danube River as it bisects modern Budapest.  

As with so many of the huge churches we saw in this part of Europe, it has a tortourous and winding history.  The first church on the site was founded by King (and Saint) Stephen, in the first decade of the 11th century.  Another church was built there about 1250, imploring God to spare the residents from a plague.  A major reconstruction of this building was done around 1370 in high Gothic style.  In 1526 Sultan Suleyman conquered the Kingdom of Hungary, and turned Matthias Church into a mosque.  For over 150 years the muezzin called to the Muslim faithful from the tower.  After its recapture in 1686, the Jesuit Order took it over and surrounded the church with a school.  Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria and his wife Elizabeth were crowned King and Queen of Hungary in 1873, and began a major reconstruction.  By 1896 it assumed the form it has today.

You come upon the church from a small alley, and the church unfolds before you.  There is a high statue of the Holy Trinity from 1713 in the square.  As you walk towards the front of the church, the sweep of the Danube river, and the Pest portion of Budapest, are displayed in front of you from the Fishermen's Bastion.

Note the roof  was proudly redone after World War II damage with 150,000 colorful Zsolnay tiles.  

On August 19, 1991, Pope John Paul II prayed in Matthias Church with Hungarian seminarians.

I have to confess that these interior photographs (which I got from the internet) put the church in much better light than I remember.  Maybe because like all European churches, they never turn on all the lights, to show of the brilliance of the painting and windows, until five minutes before a major liturgy.  It saves money, and saves wear on the painted surfaces. 

A special chapel for me was one known as St. Emeric's chapel, after an early (12th century) king of Hungary.  There is a lovely triptych of Francis preaching to the birds, his first Nativity scene in Greccio, and Francis with the stigmata.  

Praying in Matthias Church was a wonderful way to start our cruise.  Next is St. Martin's Cathedral in Bratislava, Slovakia.