A mirror that is good to look into – we celebrated the 800th birth anniversary of Saint Kinga with the Ambassador of Poland

"Look, a rainbow!" – I tap on the windowshield with a smile, because it seems that even the heavens say that today is a promising day! We are accompanying the Ambassador of Poland and Renata Winerowicz-Papp, an expert from the Embassy's Political-Economic Department, on their trip to the countryside. As part of the program, the diplomat and his companion will visit Veszprém and an Árpád-era village, Küngös, as the final episode of the St. Kinga 800 celebrations.

This journey is about a lot more than St Kinga, whose rich life and cult, especially in Poland, could fill pages. 

The most important thing is what the veneration of our common saints says about the friendship between our two nations, and how we can use these cults to keep the relationship alive and deepen it. 

"I wish that through her example you’d find friendship between the two nations" 

Our first destination is the Padányi Catholic School, where Ambassador Sebastian Kęciek meets not only the headmaster and teachers but also the students. The institution has a strong tradition of religious education, and Polish-Hungarian relations are also intensively cultivated. A good example of this is that Renata – who is Polish and, as she puts it, flew to our country "on the wings of love" when she was young – has worked for decades on the school's teaching staff, and by doing so she has deepened the love of Polish people in her surroundings and helped to organize Polish-Hungarian exchange programs.

Who was St. Kinga?
St. Kinga (1224-1292) is a prominent figure in Polish and Hungarian history, whose life is a good example of loving service and rule. Born the daughter of King Béla IV of Hungary and the Byzantine princess Mary Lazkaris, she became a major figure in Polish history at the age of 15. Her father married her to Prince Boleslav of Krakow, to strengthen the political alliance between the two countries, and they took a vow of chastity together, which later gave Boleslav the nickname 'The Pious'. The couple dedicated their entire lives to serving God. Legend has it that he brought the first salt miners from Hungary and introduced the art of salt extraction to Poland. She is credited with the famous salt mines of Wieliczka, one of the mine chambers is named after her, and this contributed to the country's economic boom. After Boleslav's death, Kinga entered the Monastery of the Poor Clare Sisters in Stary Sącz, which she founded herself. She served the needy until her death, for which she was venerated as a saint during her lifetime. Saint Kinga was beatified in 1690 and canonised by Pope John Paul II in 1999. Known throughout the world as the patron saint of Poland and Lithuania, she is particularly revered as the patron saint of salt miners and the poor.

On the way to the assembly hall, I immerse myself in the buzz of students, the nostalgic cacophony of squeaking shoes in the corridor, the chatter of recess and the laughter of teenagers. I wonder what St. Kinga would say to being known and loved by so many young people 800 years after her birth. And to what do we owe the enthusiasm with which a Catholic school in Veszprém cultivates the cult of our Polish-Hungarian saint?

"After 2005, I met the legends of Saint Kinga of the Árpád dynasty for the first time. Renáta's daughter was in my class, so when we chose a patron saint for the class, I suggested the Polish-Hungarian Kinga and the children accepted. After that, I began to get to know more and more about the holy life of St. Kinga, and I began to think that she was a truly great person who sacrificed everything for Polish-Hungarian relations, and her acting and serving love impressed me more and more as time went by." – says Katalin Kámánné Szőke, a teacher at the Padányi school, an active participant in the Polish-Hungarian twinning project and vice-president of the St. Kinga Association in Hungary.

The auditorium goes silent as the Polish ambassador enters, accompanied by Renata.

"Sebastian vagyok, és picit beszélek magyarul” ("I'm Sebastian, and I speak a little Hungarian,") – the diplomat begins his speech in Hungarian, with an accent, but nevertheless endearing.

In his greeting, the Ambassador underlines that St. Kinga has won the hearts of the Polish people not only through her donations and her efforts to boost the country's economy, but also through her work for the underprivileged. 

"I wish that through her example you would find the meaning of life and friendship between the two nations," said Sebastian Kęciek, delivering one of the most important messages of the day to his audience. 

The importance of involving young people in maintaining friendship

Katalin takes over shortly afterwards and introduces her presentation with a short Polish cartoon, and then shows the puppets that the seventh graders made to act out the legends associated with the saint. It is said that it was the prayer of Saint Kinga that saved Poland from the Tatar invasion. Legend has it that, fleeing from the Tartars, she threw a ribbon from her hair in the way of her pursuers, which became the Dunajec River. But the Tatars managed to cross the water, however, with great difficulty, so she threw her comb behind her, too, from which a forest grew so thick that the invaders could go no further. 

"We even made a brochure about St Kinga, illustrated by one of our teachers. The legend of St. Kinga is so alive that we can come across miracles that are attributed to her all the time," says Katalin, whose touching enthusiasm is clearly transmitted to the diplomats and the children.

So much so, that after her presentation, the students enthusiastically start asking questions from the ambassador, looking for links between the two nations. "For many people, such as the teachers present here and all those involved in some way in Polish-Hungarian cooperation, it is natural to talk about the friendship between the two nations. But when it comes to the new generations, it's a much more difficult question, because it's not sure that they show the same interest as the generations before them." 

"This is why it is important to talk in every forum possible about this friendship, our common heritage, our common saints, our historical figures, and the events that have linked us for a long time," the Polish ambassador said in response to a question. 

A senior asks how much Polish youngsters know about the story of St. Kinga and her Hungarian roots, to which the answer is that outside of Stary Sącz, if you stopped a Polish kid on the street, probably they wouldn't know who she was. However, the same could be said of Hungarians: few of us would know how St. Kinga lived and what she did. But this is not a problem, but rather a challenge, something that it is worth investing energy in. 
 

But how is it possible to raise high school students' interest in a pious saint in a world of influencers, celebrities, and TikTok? Katalin tells us that the secret lies in creating and nurturing living relationships. Travelling, doing things together and getting to know young Polish people is what this age group is really interested in. 

"We have two twin schools, both run by the Presentation Sisters, and we try to reach out to both institutions regularly with the help of various grants. Last year, we won a V4 tender (Petőfi 200), which helped us to send a class, some alumni and folk dancers, as well as the school's rock band. As a result of the friendships formed then, four students have just travelled to Krakow for a friendly meeting at the invitation of Polish students. And this year, we applied to the Wacław Felczak Foundation for a "St. Kinga 800" grant.  The grant enabled us to host the choir of the Krakow school at the end of October, with whom we went to Küngös and organized activities related to St. Kinga", shared Katalin Kámánné Szőke, who was in charge of writing the applications, organizing and implementing the projects.

Solidarity that connects us

At lunch – where Mónika Sótonyi, Deputy Mayor of Veszprém, will join us – we can talk more informally about our culture and customs. I am curious to know what motivates a young diplomat from Warsaw to move to Hungary. 

It turns out that it was not just a "wind in the sails" career move, but a conscious decision for him as a university student to focus on this region, and Hungary in particular, in the future.

From their conversation, it is clear that he has a deep sympathy for Hungarians, he is eager to learn the language, and they regularly do his daughter's Hungarian homework together. And as ambassador, he feels his task is to build channels of communication and seek points of cooperation between the two nations. "Solidarity" is one of the key concepts that connects us, he says. 

And now we're off to Küngös! This charming village is just three streets behind Lake Balaton, home to around five hundred people who are true local patriots, very proud of their home and famous for their hospitality. The Roman Catholic Church of St. Kinga of the House of Árpád was consecrated in 2013 by Dr. Gyula Márfi, Archbishop of Veszprém.  The church was built mainly from public donations by parish priest Zsolt Beke. The winged altarpiece is the work of the painter István Felhősi. The main central picture shows St. Kinga in the habit of a Clarissan nun, wearing a crown on her head and holding the church of Küngös in her hands. On the wings of the altarpiece, the artist has depicted the main events in the life of St Kinga. The church, built in 2013, is the only church in Hungary named after St. Kinga (the nearest one is in Transcarpathia), making it a unique site of religious and historical heritage in Hungary.

The church also has a reliquary, where a small bone of St. Kinga was placed, as well as a painting of her, which was donated to Küngös by the artist- graphic designer Gyöngyi Proksza. 

Several objects and a painting were donated by the partner association in Poland, and the President of the St. Kinga Association in Stary Sącz, Mieczyslaw Witowski, and his wife Ewa Witowski were invited to the closing program. 

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Photo: László Katona

"We could call her the queen of human hearts, whose main characteristics were not only that she was a ruler but also that she was a ruler who served. I wish you many blessings, long live Saint Kinga, long live Polish-Hungarian friendship!" – the Ambassador conveyed his good wishes to the people of Küngös.

The Polish-Hungarian friendship is a unique example of how two nations from different cultural backgrounds can support, respect and love each other for thousands of years. Our friendship has always been based on deep-rooted common values in which freedom, solidarity, loyalty, fighting spirit, faith, family, and mutual respect play a prominent role.

But it is not a relationship full of nostalgia that we only get together to remember, it is full of plans and promises. The aim now is to promote positive aspirations between the two countries and to fight divisions. Kinga is not "just" a saint with an interesting life, but also an important symbol of Polish-Hungarian friendship, who is thus actively working to strengthen the bond between us, not only in her past but also in her present and future.