Hungarian Cardinal Peter Erdö, in his titular church in Rome on Sunday morning, May 4. His homily was brief, clear, and profound. The papal conclave begins tomorrow…
Letter #36, 2025, Tuesday, May 6: Peter Erdö
There is now less than one day — from this afternoon until tomorrow morning — before the beginning of the papal conclave on Wednesday, May 7.
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Sunday morning in Rome, Cardinal Peter Erdö, 72, archbishop of Budapest-Esztergom, Hungary, celebrated Mass and delivered a homily in his titular church in the eternal city.
Here is a video clip of the celebration.
And here is a brief, standard biography of the cardinal (link):
Hungarian Cardinal Péter Erdö celebrated Mass in his titular church in Rome on Sunday, days before attending the conclave that will elect the successor of Pope Francis.
During his homily, Erdö asked the faithful to pray for the new Pope, who he said “will have to fulfill his mission in a dramatic phase of human history.”
Known by his peers as a serious theologian, scholar and educator, Erdő, 72, is a leading contender among conservatives.
He has served as the archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest since 2002 and was made a cardinal by John Paul the following year. He has participated in two conclaves, in 2005 and 2013, for the selection of Benedict and Francis.
Holding doctorates in theology and canon law, Erdö speaks six languages, is a proponent of doctrinal orthodoxy, and champions the Church’s positions on issues like abortion and same-sex marriage.
Erdö opposes same-sex unions, and has also resisted suggestions that Catholics who remarry after divorce be able to receive communion.
He stated in 2015 that divorced Catholics should only be permitted communion if they remain sexually abstinent in their new marriage.
An advocate for traditional family structures, he helped organize Francis’ 2014 and 2015 Vatican meetings on the family.
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And here is the full text of his homily:
Holy Mass was celebrated on May 4 in the Basilica of Santa Maria Nova (also known as the Basilica of Santa Francesca Romana al Palatino). This church is the titular church of the Cardinal.
by Card. Péter Erdö
Homily in the Church of Santa Maria Nuova, Rome, May 4, 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today we celebrate the Third Sunday of Easter at a significant moment in the history of our Church.
The See of Saint Peter is vacant.
Let us pray for the Cardinal Fathers who will soon have to choose the successor of Saint Peter who will have the task of continuing the mission that Peter received from the Lord on the Sea of ​​Tiberias.
Three times, Jesus asks Simon, son of John: “Do you love me more than these?”
And Peter, despite the remorse of conscience that he perhaps still had for that night when he denied his Master, responds three times: “You know that I love you.”
And after each of Peter’s responses, Jesus responds: “Feed my sheep.”
Three times denied, three times forgiven, three times professed love, three times received the mission.
The triple question and answer was a form of contract at that time, in the Roman world.
The profession of love, of Peter’s devotion on the one hand, the manifestation of the trust of the risen Jesus, of forgiveness and of the great task on the other hand.
What a magnificent contract!
What an attractive and alarming task!
The Shepherd of Israel, according to the Old Testament, is God himself.
Christ will receive and has already received universal dominion, but he is the shepherd in a special way of the messianic
People renewed in his blood, of the community of his disciples, of the Church.
If the Roman Pontiff is the successor of Saint Peter, he is necessarily also the Vicar of Christ, because he must shepherd his flock, his people.
The mission goes beyond human strength, but Jesus promises the gift of the Spirit and his personal presence that will be with the Church until the end of time.
In this dynamic today lies the mission of the Church and that of the successor of Peter.
Jesus Christ is the head of the Church.
The Church today must first address the question of its own mission.
We Christians are disciples of Jesus of Nazareth, crucified and risen.
The relationship with Him is the source of life for us.
This relationship is twofold:
On the one hand it requires a historical connection.
Jesus Christ, in fact, is a historical person, even if he transcends the limits of our earthly history.
We can know his life, his teaching — even if his speeches were not recorded — and all his saving work.
The main basis of our knowledge of the historical Christ is the Holy Scripture, but also the tradition of the Church.
This tradition is not exhausted in a historical story: it is testimony.
According to a thought attributed, perhaps erroneously, to the first director of the Budapest Opera, Gustav Mahler, “tradition is guarding the fire, not worshiping the ashes.”
On the other hand, our relationship with Christ is also direct and immediate and is realized in the sacramental life, in prayer and in Christian spirituality in general.
Perhaps one of the signs of the times is the flourishing of spiritual movements and new communities that are a gift to the Church if they act according to authentic faith, lived with balance and maintain a lively relationship with the dioceses and parishes.
From all this derive criteria and tasks for the life and mission of the Church.
Christ gave his disciples a great mission, that of announcing the Gospel and making disciples of all peoples, baptizing them and teaching them to observe all that He has commanded us (see Mt 28.19-20).
This mission is the organizing principle of the Church itself.
The distribution of the main tasks dates back to apostolic times.
Baptism, confirmation and especially the sacrament of orders in its various degrees entail the special grace to carry out the services entrusted to them.
Since the priestly mission also has a community aspect in the particular Church, the respective institutional forms, such as the diocesan presbyteral council, are important in the mission of the Church.
Regarding the episcopate, the Second Vatican Council emphasized collegiality, which also has various institutional expressions, such as the Ecumenical Council, the Roman Curia and, according to current legislation, also the College of Cardinals and the Synod of Bishops.
It is significant that Pope Francis in his apostolic constitution on the Synod of Bishops starts from the very accentuated theology of episcopal collegiality.
In order to carry out the common mission of announcing the Good News of Christ, the role of local bishops seems decisive.
Let us pray for the conclave, for the new Pope who will be elected as well as for the Church that will have to carry out its mission in a dramatic phase of human history.
This humanity needs Christ!
It also needs us, if we belong to Christ!
Amen.
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