XVII. NAPS International Ecumenical Concert 2025
Welcoming the Rector of the University of Trnava in Trnava, His Magnificence Professor Miloš Lichner.
The Central Union of Jewish Religious Communities in Slovakia was represented by its Vice-Chairman, Mr. Pavol Breiner.
The mission of the concert was also supported by the Italian Ambassador to Slovakia, H.E. Mr. Gianclemente De Felice.
The guest of the evening was also the new Ambassador of Ireland to the Slovak Republic, H.E. Mr. Ian Devine.
The members of the NAPS Council had the honor of welcoming the Ambassador of Kazakhstan, H.E. Ms. Zhanna Saginova.
At the beginning of the festive evening, the national flags of several countries were brought to the concert hall of the Slovak Philharmonic, and then the national anthem of the Slovak Republic was played.
The ecumenical concert was hosted by the well-known Slovak presenter Karin Majtánová.
The Apostolic Nuncio and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps accredited in the Slovak Republic, H. E. Archbishop Nicola Girasoli, appreciated the importance of this event and conveyed a greeting from Pope Leo XIV to the guests present.
The importance of harmony, tolerance and brotherhood was also underlined by the Jordanian Ambassador, H. E. Mr. Mohammed Hindawi, testifying to the recent visit of Jordanian King Abdullah II. to Budapest.
The audience heard the singing of the Roman Catholic Church through a selection from the work Little Jazz Mass performed by the Children’s and Girls’ Choir of the Slovak Radio.
The young singers performed accompanied by pianist Tatiana Sedmáková, double bassist Ján Prievozník and drummer Jakub Valiček.
The songs of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession offered a selection from the spiritual composition Requiem by the Slovak composer Víťazoslav Kubička. The artistic director and conductor of the choir has been Mrs. Elena Matušová since 2003.
The Lúčnica Choir Members performed their singing together with soprano Marianna Prievozníková Geleneky and baritone Roman Kršek.
The profound atmosphere of the songs of Eastern Christians during the concert was created by the successful opera soloist Jozef Benci together with the members of the Cantica Istropolitana choir.
The media partners of the concert in 2025 were Television TA3, Television LUX and the Press Agency of the Slovak Republic.
The artists also celebrated the Heavenly Father with an artistic expression typical of the ceremonies of the Reformed Christian Church. They brought them closer with an organ recital performed by organist and teacher Marek Štrbák.
For the NAPS Institute – Our Activities For Slovakia, it is a great honor and sincere joy that this event has been supported for a long time by domestic and foreign authorities of religious, public, diplomatic and social life. The 17th year of the concert was held in 2025 in the Concert Hall of the Slovak Philharmonic in Bratislava with the participation of ambassadors and diplomats from 18 countries.
The opera duet was joined by soloists, soprano Marianna Prievozníková Geleneky and tenor Otokar Klein.
A personal message to the event was also sent by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, the 270th successor of the Holy Apostle Andrew on the throne of Archbishop of Constantinople and the spiritual leader of 330 million Orthodox Christians worldwide. His Holiness writes in his letter, among other things: “… We sincerely congratulate you and the NAPS Institute on entering the third decade of your ecumenical service, which is marked by your constant efforts to promote understanding and cooperation between Christian traditions. Your commitment to promoting the spirit of dialogue and fraternity among peoples is commendable and deeply in line with the vision and mission of the Ecumenical Patriarchate…”
Ady Naber, an accomplished opera soloist from Jordan, enriched the international ecumenical concert with Eastern Christian songs in Arabic.
Three Jewish songs were performed by the talented singer Karin Sarkisjan, who comes from Armenia.
“Today many people are talking about building bridges. I am very grateful that the NAPS Institute has been creating them for more than twenty years. And all of you who participate in the NAPS International Ecumenical Concert in any way are the pillars of these bridges,” said Peter Solej, the founder and director of the NAPS Institute and the scriptwriter of the event, during the concert. He thanked Pope Leo XIV for the greetings and emphasized that the current Holy Father is the third Pope, after Benedict XVI and Francis, who knows about this event and in June in the Vatican he gave the concert and all those who participate in it in any way, his apostolic blessing.
The entire evening was accompanied by the Slovak Symphony Orchestra under the direction of conductor Adrian Kokoš.
Blessing of His Excellency Mons. Nicola Girasoli, Archbishop, Apostolic Nuncio to the Slovak Republic in Latin.
Blessing of the Most Venerable Mr. Ján Bunčák, Director of the General Episcopal Office of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovakia in Slovak.
Blessing of His Eminence The Most Reverend Ján Babjak, Archbishop Emeritus of Prešov and the First Metropolitan of the Greek Catholic Church in Slovakia in Old Church Slavonic.
Blessing of the Very Reverend Mr. Róbert Géresi, Chairman of the Synod and Bishop of the Reformed Christian Church in Slovakia in Hungarian.
Prayer of the Most Reverend Mr. Míša Kapustin, Rabbi of the Central Union of Jewish Religious Communities in Slovakia in Hebrew.
Final song Agnus Dei performed by tenor Otokar Klein.
The dignity of the evening was enhanced by the presence of the Honorary Guard of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic.
The event was also attended personally by the Minister of Investments, Regional Development and Informatization of the Slovak Republic, Mr. Samuel Migaľ, and several personalities from the public, diplomatic, social and academic circles.
The organizers of the evening, Mr. And Mrs. Solej, with the Ambassador of Israel, H.E. Mr. Eitan Levon.
After the successful concert, the representatives of the NAPS Institute had the opportunity to informally greet several guests (from left): Peter and Lenka Solej, the founder of MICROCOMP and the Honorary Consul of Hungary in Nitra, Mr. Jozef Gál, the Director of the Office of the Minister of Finance of the Slovak Republic, Mrs. Zuzana Tureničová and her husband, the Royal Jordanian Ambassador, H.E. Mr. Mohammed Hindawi and his wife, and the Chairman of the Council of Slovak Exporters, Mr. Lukáš Parízek.