Reformátusok Lapja, 1963 (64. évfolyam, 1-9. szám)
1963-11-01 / 9. szám
REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA 15 Foreword or Introduction to THE MARCH OF TRUTH By Dr. Stephen Szabó THIRD EDITION Why it took me almost twenty years to see a book written by my classmate at Central Theological Seminary, Dr. Stephen Szabó, entitled, THE MARCH OF TRUTH, is beyond my understanding. Reared as I have been in the Reformation heritage, volumes on this general subject have always intrigued me, but I must confess that I have been thoroughly fascinated by the sketches (he calles them miniatures), which Dr. Szabó provides concerning the men who played great roles in the Protestant Reformation. At the Seminary I first became acquainted with the history of the Hungarian Reformation as that movement was embodied in the students who came each year to study at Central under the Dr. James I. Good Scholarship. For these men the Reformation was not something that had taken place in the sixteenth century, but it was a living, vital struggle in the twentieth century. I came to have new appreciation for and understanding of the issues for which men lived and died. Dr. Szabó has made all of this live again as I have read these fascinating stories. The question, as I read the volume, that arose again and again in my mind was where he had uncovered such interesting material. Here is material made to order for a church school teacher, for a minister or anyone who wants to transmit the Reformation story to others. The Reformation, after one has read such a volume, can never be something enshrined only in the pages of history, but it becomes a struggle that has been incarnated in men. We see that we are all the more indebted to these Fathers who risked so much that we might enter into the freedom of our Protestant heritage. One word of warning, however, must be added in this year of 1963, concerning the change of climate that has taken place in Roman Catholic- Protestant relationships. While we must never give up the rights and freedoms bought at so great a price by our Fathers, we must at the same time never allow the cruelty, the bitterness and the unfairness of the sixteenth century to keep us from responding generously and in the Christian spirit to any effort toward rapprochement that now seems possible in the latter part of the twentieth century. As John Dillenberger writes, “In short, the theological and cultural dynamics of our situation demand of us courage, resolution and risks inherent in our time and its possibilities. Just as once before the same resolution, courage and risk brought us to separate existence, the same faith now calls us to express the total riches of God in Christ in forms appropriate and necessary for our time.” We owe so much to the Fathers of the Reformation. And I owe much to Dr. Stephen Szabó for bringing me these fascinating stories about the men who risked so greatly that we might be free to pray, to read and interpret the Scriptures, and in the light of those Scriptures to decide for ourselves the moral issues of the day. BEN M. HERBSTER, President United Church of Christ THE BOOK YOU’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR THE MARCH OF TRUTH is an ideal combination of biography and history. It is as inspiring as the former and as accurate as the latter. The historical miniatures making up this book have immortalized the twenty heroes of the great Reformation whose images are carved in stone in Rietchel’s monument at Worms and Bouchard-Landowski’s at Geneva. By presenting tid-bits of history not found in any other book, the author has given us the story of the mighty Reformation as mirrored in the character and purpose behind the lives of each of these men. Dr. Stephen Szabó is the pastor of the First Hungarian Reformed Church of Cleveland, Ohio, and President Emeritus of the Magyar Synod (United Church of Christ), preacher, lecturer, church-diplomat, author, polemic and traveler. In his travels Dr. Szabó has visited each of the twenty places where the historical miniatures in this book were enacted. He has passed on to us the vivid background and atmosphere of the Reformation period, describing the settings as they are in reality. These characters are made to live as active personalities on the stage before the eyes of the reader. Here is your opportunity to learn with real enjoyment what the Reformation means to us in our present-day liberty of worship, and access to the open Bible, and a faith in Christ. These privileges were bought for us by these heroes who endured torture, exile, fire and sword to obtain them. Here is the living story of the revolution against the forces of darkness in the Middle Ages as pictured in the lives of these great men. This book is published by W. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan. Beautifully illustrated with twenty full-page pen drawings by Reynold H. Weidenaar, Gugenheim Prize winner, one of America’s fine artists. Now the Third Edition is available in paper- cover. The same full size book of 296 pages for only $1.25. (Ten or more copies for $1.00 per copy.) ORDER FORM Dr. Stephen Szabó 2889 East Blvd., Cleveland 4, Ohio I wish to order___________copies of the “March of Truth”. ($1.25 per copy, ten or more copies $1.00 per copy.) $_______________is enclosed. Name Street City. State
