The 1,151st anniversary of the arrival of Saints Cyril and Methodius to the territory of present-day Slovakia was celebrated in Nitra on Saturday with thousands of pilgrims from right across Slovakia.
The national celebration featured a ceremonial mass, which was celebrated by Metropolitan Archbishop of Lublin Stanislaw Budzik on Svatopluk Square in the centre of city. Budzik emphasised the importance of the mission of the two Byzantine brothers for the whole of Europe.
On the occasion of the Day of St. Cyril and St. Methodius a discussion topic arose in Slovakia about the recent importance of such a mission. According to the bishop of Prešov, Milan Lach, Slovaks are losing their Christian faith; therefore if the missionaries were to come to Slovakia today, they should bring back the faith, together with love, forgiveness and empathy. Moreover, the Slovak National Council vice chairwoman Renáta Zmajkovičová thinks the brothers, St Cyril and Methodius, could teach Slovaks some politic culture and diplomacy. The Slovak president Andrej Kiska perceives the personal story of St. Cyril and St. Methodius as highly inspirational. On the other hand he complained that Slovaks have a tendency to perceive this state holiday only through the prism of a day off from work. In Slovakia the feast of Saints Cyril and Methodius is celebrated on the 5th July. On this day, Slovaks celebrate the Slavic missionaries who created the Glagolitic alphabet and translated biblical texts into the Slavic language. The brothers, Saints Cyril and Methodius were also declared as patrons of Europe.
