According to Iványi, it was Orbán’s political maneuvering that drove them apart, as the pastor remained committed to progressive liberal values while Orbán moved to the right to consolidate political support.
The moment their relationship broke down came during Orbán’s second premiership in 2010, when he asked Iványi to publicly endorse him and have their photo taken together. Iványi refused, as he supported an opposition party.
“I was promised extra financial support for that photo,” he said.
And when he refused, “I was told [Orbán] was absolutely offended by that.”
From then on, Iványi’s Hungarian Evangelical Fellowship — a prominent religious dissident movement he founded under Communism — began facing problems.
In 2011, a new church law stripped the congregation of its official church status — a move the congregation is still fighting today, as it helped the authorities stir up financial and legal problems. As a result, the organization now has fewer resources and has had to close some of its schools and shelters.
Iványi recalled when a young Orbán, in 1989, stood in Budapest’s Heroes’ Square, demanding that the Soviets leave Hungary and allow free elections. It’s a moment he contrasted sharply with the prime minister’s current close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and news reports suggesting the Kremlin has sent agents to influence the April 12 election schedule.
“I was so grateful that there is a brave man with long hair who told Russians [to go] home, and I never ever thought that he [would] be the one who invites them back,” he said.