Reformátusok Lapja, 1970 (70. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1970-04-01 / 4. szám
14 REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA TEN RULES FOR TEENAGE CHRISTIANS DISCOVER . . . God’s will for your life through daily Bible reading, prayer and Christian service and strive to become “doers” as well as “hearers” of God’s will. ACCEPT ... all persons, regardless of race, color, creed or economic status as children of God, remembering God’s love for all mankind. HONOR . . . and respect your father and mother and all who have authority over you, for in so doing you will be keeping one of God’s Commandments. SEEK . . . the truth wherever you may find it. Do not be bound by the terms “conformity” and “non-conformity.” Live according to the truth as you discover it. PRESENT . . . yourself at all times and in all places as acceptable to God and His teachings. Reveal your Christian Principles in your daily life. ATTEND . . . regularly the church of your choice and give allegiance to the God of your faith, always respecting the faith of others. BE TRUE .. . to yourself and to all who put their trust in you. MAINTAIN . . . an open mind and willing spirit, trying always to better understand the faith you profess. HUMBLE . . . yourself in the sight of God and your fellowmen, for humility before God and men is the Christian attitude to develop. DEDICATE . . . your time, talent and treasure to the high calling of God for your life, putting God first and self last. Used by permission. Church World Press Inc. Cleveland, Ohio. Peter Biro and Sons, Inc. Insurance—Real Estate Airline and Steamship Reservations 109 FRENCH STREET NEW BRUNSWICK, N. J. 08901 846-1000 The President's Page What Is The Complaint Of The Calvin Synod* I would like to expres our sincere appreciation that you honored our request and gave us an opportunity to present our case to you at this meeting. I know that by providing this opportunity in your busy schedule you were courteous, concerned and constructive. While it was not easy for you to arrange this meeting, let me add that it was not easy for us either to be here. As you all know this is a busy season for any minister when Palm Sunday and Holy Week demands our full attention. In addition to our business, warning voices also tried to discourage us from this trip. “You have tried enough,” they said. “Don’t you see that it is futile and useless to find a reasonable solution in the present situation. Don’t go if you do not want to be humiliated and crucified . . .” Despite these warnings, we came. How could we stay home when in these days we remember Him who rode to the capital knowing well what awaited Him in the city?! Do not misunderstand me! I do not claim to be the innocent victim as our Lord was. But I want you to know that we are here because of our faith: with our Reformed forefathers we believe that the proper exercise of our faith is not only in the solemn assemblies of the worshipful congregation, but primarily in the struggle of public life where we all are beset with various forms of *This was the opening statement of Synod President Dr. Butosi at the Board of Directors Meeting of the Federation, held at Washington, D. C. on March 19, 1970. sin and disobedience. As I indicated in my letter to Dr. Beky, we are here because we believe that as members of the same Reformed faith we should reason together if we have complaints against each other (Isa. 1:18, Mt. 18:15,16, I. Cor. 6:1-6). Because the very purpose of the Federation is to encourage and foster unity and fraternity, according to our Constitution, we came here in this spirit and with this conviction. What is our complaint all about? May I make it clear that primarily it is not a matter of losing an election, although the method of losing that election is certainly a part of the total picture. Had it been an election of unquestionable legality, we would not be here. Had it been only an election matter, you can be sure that it would not be I who would present our case... Let it also be clear that our purpose is not to embarrass or harm the Federation and the Bethlen Home as some assume. On the contrary, because we feel very much responsible for our public life and common tasks, this is why we are here. Would we ever ask for this meeting and other meetings if our purpose would be harm and embarrassment ... No, I do not want to hide myself in the rags of self- righteousness, but I must make it clear that not even group interests or church politics are our motivations now and if anyone conceives our attempts in these terms he makes a disservice both to our church communions and our public institutions. Friends, we are here because as members of the Federation and leaders of our churches we are deeply disturbed and seriously concerned about the present “mess” situation of our public life and the future of our institutions. Perhaps the best way of explaining this fact will be to sum- up briefly the events that took place between the leaders of the Federation and of the Calvin Synod. Because we had heard so much about the needed cooperation between church and Federation and because we wanted to be involved in this problem on account of our Reformed faith, our Conference Council invited the Officers of the Federation for an informal meeting which took place on February 18, 1969, in New York City. At this meeting, together we realized that both in our church and Federation work we face a very serious crisis.
