Calvin Synod Herald, 1979 (79. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1979-09-01 / 9-10. szám

REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA

5

BISHOP’S REPORT

(Continued from, last issue)

Thus a meeting was held on Sept. 26, 1978 at the Landmark Inn, Woodbridge, N.J. Present were: the 4 officers of the HRFA, our Conference Council, four members of the Hungarian Ref. Church in America with Bishop Abraham, also present the Rev. I. Bertalan, a total of 14 persons. The meeting was a landmark for it became clear that the Board of Directors of the HRFA already decided to build on the hill, had no interest in the Children’s Home building except to sell it at the highest possible price, and if we wanted to buy it, they demanded the process contrary to the Synod’s decision and autonomy. If you call this “negotiation,” I do not know what negotiation is. Certainly we went through our memorandum/proposal, but not for the purpose of understanding, but to tear it apart with “impossibility thinking.” Thus, in evaluating the meeting, the Conference Council concluded that no true negotiation had taken place, much less was a “suitable agreement” reached that would warrant our referendum vote. The road seemed to end in nowhere...

However, when the pastors’ retreat on October 16 heard that one of the options still open to us would be to present a legal offer for renting the building under mutually agreable terms, the Conference Council decided to prepare such a proposal. Atty. Frank E. Babycos of Bridgeport, Ct. prepared this official letter of intent which was mailed to the HRFA before the Oct. 31 deadline. (See in Appendix) The highlights of this proposal were that the Federation was to rent the building to the Synod for $1.00 a year for a period of 5 years, but the Synod be given an opportunity to purchase it during the lease period; until purchase the Federation would be responsible for major repairs and mortgage payments, while the Synod would take care of maintenance, program, personnel, fund raising; as the terms, OR TERMS MODIFIED, had been agreed upon by the Federation, we were willing to submit them for referendum vote. In an unofficial, but reliable article, we spelled out the plans in details, including a plan to purchase the building. (See Our Bethlen Home Is Not For Sale.”)

Although the public response to this plan was enthusiatic on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, we were notified on January 8, 1979 that the Board of Directors of the HRFA rejected this proposal by a referendum vote (10:5) without negotiation or explanation. The door is locked before us; only outbidding other interested parties may unlock it...

Now the news is that on April 19, 1979 a sale contract was signed to sell the building for $190,000, pending on Zoning Board approval. Therefore we were notified on May 3, 1979 by the Administrator of the Bethlen Home that they are “not able to establish and operate an archive in the forseeable future, only a museum and library” and thus the Bethlen Home has to make some disposition of said materials collected and accumulated in the former print shop buildings, posing a fire hazard . .. “When your denomination and/or your churches claim ownership,” the letter states, “please specify where it is to be shipped and we will pay for the shipping. We would appreciate your answer at your earliest convenience ...” — At the same time we are asked to endorse and support the Eighth Tribe Foundation to purchase the Children’s Home building under the leadership of Mr. Sándor E. Chomos.. . This is where we are now ...

Two questions must be answered at this point: (1) How do we look at this situation? (2) What are going to do at this juncture?

Personally I am not sorry that we went through this process. Perhaps, at times, I was guilty of the “Moses-complex” (Acts 7:25), but — as someone phrased it — “I would rather attempt to do something great and fail, than attempt to do nothing and succeed.” However, this process brought to ligh‘t our basic shortcoming which I have called, after Rev. Robert H. Schuler as “impossibility thinking.” Let me use his words in describing this attitude. “Impossibility thinkers” — he writes — “are people who make swift, sweeping passes over a proposed idea, scanning it with a sharp negative eye, looking only for the distasteful aspects. They look for reasons why something won’t work instead of visualizing ways in which it could work. So they are inclined to say “No” to a proposal, never giving the idea a fair hearing. Impossibility thinkers are people who immediately, impulsively, instinctively, and impetuously r.act to any positive suggestion with sweeping, unstudied, irresponsible assortment of reasons why it can’t be done, or why it is a bad idea, or how someone else tried it and failed,

G. S. 12

The General Synod:

— Congratulated the Washington- North Idaho Conference for the highest per capita giving to Our Christian World Mission;

— Guaranteed $200,000 for the Council for American Indian Ministry from the annual Neighbors in Need offering or one-third of the net total, whichever is higher;

— Noted the 200th Anniversary of the Sunday school and the church’s teaching ministry;

— Recommended that both written and spoken quotations from Bible translations be identified and differentiated from paraphrases;

— Asked the Office for Church Life and Leadership to prepare resources to aid local congregations to deal with issues of Biblical authority;

— Supported the development of policy and program on immigration and the plight of undocumented workers.

— Opposed the convening of a new constitutional convention;

— Encouraged closer relations with Cuba and its churches;

— Requested consultations involving Jewish, Christian and Muslim leadership on the issue of the future of the City of Jerusalem;

— Directed the Executive Council to study, evaluate, and report to General Synod on the location of the national offices two Synods before the new leases expire;

— Asked the president to investigate UCC church-related colleges as locations for future General Synods;

— Supported legislation which would allow more refugees to immigrate and urged churches to sponsor refugee resettlement ;

— Affirmed membership in and support of the World Council of Churches;

— Referred to the Executive Council a resolution to encourage ministers to study the Hispanic culture and the Spanish language;

— Applauded the Honorable Mrs. Annie R. Jiagge’s statements that “anything less than justice is injustice”;

— Petitioned for the freedom of four nationalists of Puerto Rico in federal prisons for 20 years;

— Expressed deep disappointment at the recent refusal by a federal district judge in Raleigh, North Carolina, to grant a new trial to the Wilmington 10;

— Called for the placement of more women on seminary faculties;