Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims and tourists made the annual Pentecoste pilgrimage to Csíksomolyó (Şumuleu Ciuc), the biggest religious and Christian event in Transylvania.
Csíksomlyó became a pilgrimage site in 1567, when Hungarian king John II Sigismund Zápolya wanted to convert the Székely population of the upper Csík to Protestantism. The Székelys refused to abandon the Catholic faith and resisted. A battle took place on a nearby field, on Saturday before Pentecost 1567, from which the Székelys emerged victorious.
The monks saw this as a sign of the care of Virgin Mary, and since then, this event has been commemorated by a pilgrimage when the believers gather on Pentecost every year.
Nowadays, the pilgrimage is known and celebrated as a community event demonstrating spiritual unity of Hungarian people living in and outside the historical region of Transylvania. As every year, Hungarians from all continentes take the journey to the beautiful Transylvanian town.
“God wants us to live in our homeland and live there better”, said Laszló Csintalan priest of Csikdelne Saturday. He focused on the “importance of the territory” in his speech. President Janos Ader participated in the pilgrimage with his wife.
