National Marriage Week begins this Sunday and will feature events and activities in over 50 cities in the country as a result of the broad cooperation of churches and civil groups in Hungary. The organisers stated to the Hungarian state media on Wednesday that the main goal of the week is to show the ways in which even during hardships, people can cling on to love and evolve together.
‘Clinging on to Love’
The motto of the Week this year will be ‘Clinging on to Love’. Kornél Herjeczki, the coordinator of the Marriage Week movement said that the fate of a marriage is decided on an everyday basis, by what couples do regularly, without thinking. The organisers want to cater especially to those who grew up in families where conflicts dominated throughout generations, and therefore did not experience harmonically working familiar or spousal relations. ‘The events will mainly focus on how our loved ones can empower us during hardships, and how the trust between spouses allows them to cling onto love and harness its power to help them overcome the hurdles life throws at them,’ the coordinator said.
Marriage Week Launched in Miskolc
- The week will begin on Sunday with a celebratory service in Miskolc.
- On Monday, psychologist Emőke Tapolyai will hold a live online presentation on the Facebook page of Marriage Week.
- On Tuesday, married couples will receive a blessing at a service that will take place in Budapest, at the Lutheran Church of Deák Square with the participation of the Zelzah Youth Band. Lutheran Bishop Péter Kondor will deliver the sermon at the service.
- On Wednesday, open discussions will be held in the Ráday House of the Reformed Church, where public figures and their partners will share insights about their marriage. Among those invited are Szilveszter Ókovács, director of the Hungarian Opera, Zsuzsa Máthé, director of the Szent István Institute, actress Ildikó Hűvösvölgyi, András Kisfaludy, producer and director and Lajos Tolnay, chief gynaecologist, and their respective spouses.
- On Thursday, a conference will be organised at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences about balancing family and work.
- Friday will have Zsuzsanna Farkas Géber, a relationship coach hold a presentation on Facebook about the seven habits of successful marriages.
- On Saturday István Gödör and Zita Csontos will give a presentation about relationships and how they protect us at the Pasarét Reformed Church.
The week will conclude with a celebratory Holy Mass at the Budapest Inner-City Parish Church of the Blessed Virgin. Bishop of Vác Zsolt Marton will deliver the sermon during the service.
15th Marriage Week in Hungary
During the week, many other events, presentations and services will be held in Hungary and in cities beyond Hungary’s borders as well. The settlements where various programmes will take place include Győr, Eger, Szeged, Pécs, Kaposvár, Zalaegerszeg, Temesvár (Timisoara), and Komárom.
The official patrons of the events are President of Hungary Katalin Novák and her husband, István Veres.
National Marriage Week was first organised over two decades ago in the UK, intended as a celebration of the commitment of two individuals to spend the rest of their lives together. The purpose of the initiative is to popularise and strengthen marriage in communities. Hungary joined the movement in 2008.
