Amerikai Magyar Szó, 1985. január-június (39. évfolyam, 1-26. szám)
1985-01-24 / 4. szám
10. AMERIKAI MAGYAR SZÓ Thursday, Jan. 24. 1985. GLORY TO THE MESSENGERS OF PEACE IN MEMORY OF SÁNDOR RÁKOSI How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the memory of Peace. (Isaiah) I mourn Sanyi, whom I always considered a very special friend of mine, the sharer of my daily bread. I admired his outstanding talent as a journalist. I cherished his loyalty as a friend. Fate did not spoil him with material wealth but it enriched him with that supreme treasure that only the most outstanding people are endowed with. He was class-conscious in the fullest sense of the word and he stands as an example to future generations to the cause of progress. In the often changing camp of our paper the readers were close to his heart as if they all were members of his family. He was deeply conscious of and understood the tragic events of our age. They almost automatically became part of his view of the world. But outside of this and in spite of this no one could laugh as heartily over the foibles, inconsistencies of life as he did. Now my tears becloud his glorious figure in my heart and I wave to him like in the olden days, Sanyi, we'll meet tomorrow. Only there will be no more tomorrows and we will not meet ever again. Let me say goodby to him with the moving words of one great Hungarian workingclass poet, Lajos Kassák: "Let us therefore cry Peace And as we approach the end of the tunnel and step under the wide sky The cry will burst out and on our tongue Like fresh springwater on a rock, we say Peace, peace! Glory to the messengers of Peace! Glory to the guardians of Peace!" William Brandt "For i was an hungred, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me; I was in prison and ye came unto me.... "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren', ye have done it unto me." -ncof > Matthew XXV, ARMAGEDDON Frank F. Ehrenthal, Dr. Arch., Dr. Hum. Lett. Professor Emeritus, V.P.O. & S.U. Ronnie Dugger ( in "Does Reagan Expect a Nuclear Armageddon?" Washington Post, April 8, 1984.) cites a number of instances of Reagan publicly talking about Armageddon, and asks: "If this is something he does consider possible or probable, what does that mean in the practical world?" He quotes William Martin of Rice University wondering "If a president were to appoint one or more premillennialists to key foreign policy posts (who at the confirmation hearings would think to probe for beliefs about the Second Coming?), what incentive would they have to work for lasting peace in the Middle East, since they would regard a Russian-led attack on Israel a necessary precursor of the Millennium...?" and "if the nuclear destruction of Russia is foreordained, in some premillennial schemes, might not a fundamentalist politician or general regard his finger on the button as an instrument of God's eternal purpose?" In November 1983 The Jerusalem Post reported the October conversation of President Reagan with Mr. Dine of AIPAC about Armageddon. In an article in that paper the Israeli religious peace activist, Yehezkel Landau reacted partly as follows: "It is no doubt consoling to a political leader to identify himself and his nation with the people of God, and to demonize his political adversary so that the other becomes not only the obstacle to furthering the national interest but also Satan incarnate: the children of darkness versus the children of light..." And "In an age of ultimate weaponry, capable of annihilating the entire human family, such dualistic ideologies and apocalyptic fantasies are understandable - and terribly dangerous. They are symptoms of a mental disease that threatens to spread and become terminal. All of us would then fall victim to self-fulfilled nightmares, not prophecies." (Reprinted in Christianity and Crisis, December 12, 1983.) Is it not strange that our men in power wanting so much to appear religious, forever turn to the religious leaders only to urge at least tacit support for their Redbaiting? Not very successful there, they decide to send a permanent ambassador to the Vatican. Receiving the new ambassador, Pope John Paul II. said:"...Common concerns must necessarily embrace the global problems of world hunger, the arms race, human misery, the oppression of the weak, the plight of the poor, the condition of refugees, the violation of consciences and integral development of individuals, communities and nations." He called for conduct in international affairs in the "service of humanity." Apparently no encouragement for Armageddon. Liberation Theology: A Wind of Change The church is a blue-painted shed in the "favela", or shanty town, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. A wind has blown the cross off the rook and it has not been replaced. Three nuns live in two small rooms beside the church. On one wall of the kitchen is a crucifix; on the other, a photograph of Che Guevara. Sister Ana Marcia Alves told Jonathan Steele of the British Guardian: "To us, liberation theology means bringing God to the people. Our work is religious, educational and political, because everything is political. The time for charity and patronizing the poor is over. People must organize." The nuns are helping to organize and guide the 5.000 people of the favela who scratch a living by grubbing scraps from a nearby rubbish heap. Of the photo of Che, Sister Ana explains: "He was a man of the people and he fought for the people. Perhaps the methods he chose were not ideal,but he gave his life in the struggle. .. As one of our bishops said, 'Violence must be the people's weapon of last resort, but it is a weapon."' Liberation theology is one of the winds of change that periodically sweep the world, attacking concentrations of power, wealth and privilege. The winds arise almost mystically from the needs of the many, and have produced the Magna Charta, American independence, the French Revolution, the overthrow of the Russian Czar, freedom of colonial areas in Asia and Africa. Basically, liberation theology is a belief that Jesus was a revolutionary whose mission was not only to give the people a spiritual vision, but to liberate them from economic, political ánd social oppression. The main arena of liberation theology today is Latin America, where despotic regimes - often supported by the U.S. - resist democracy. One of the originators of liberation theology, Archbishop Dorn Helder Camara of Recife, Brazil, explains: "We consider it necessary to give moral support to the elementary defense of human rights, given the blind and heartless abuse of authority of some of those overlords. And if certain people have the audacity to pin the label of 'communist' even on the bishops of the holy church who devote themselves to the eminently Christian mission of defending abused human beings, what will become of our priests and especially our laymen, if we abandon them to their fate?" The archbishop is regarded by the military regime as such an enemy that the media has been ordered not to mention him favorably. His priests have been beaten and arrested; an aide was killed. The basic problem was outlined by Cardinal Paulo Arns of Sao Paulo. "In my city alone, three million people are without housing, food, schools, without participation in the city's life, or the possibility of practicing their religion in a free and integral manner." The existing order in Brazil is supported by U.S. policy, as in other Latin American despotic states. Latin America is overwhelmingly Catholic and many priests and nuns have long felt a need to give more than spiritual advice to people burdened with the problems of this world. Today about 60 of Brazil's 310 bishops support liberation theology. The Hungarian Post features industrial history not only on the special envelopes carrying stamps, but on the stamps as well.
