Calvin Synod Herald, 1996 (96. évfolyam, 1-6. szám)

1996-05-01 / 3. szám

CALVIN SYNOD HERALD AMERIKAI MAGYAR REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA- 6 -"Years of Transition: A Brief History of the Hungarian Reformed Church in the United States from 1918 to the Tiffin Agreement" Fragments from recent lecture given by Rev. Dr. Anthony Szilágyi of Bridgeport, CT before Historical Society (Carefully selected to preserve the continuation of historical events) The present status of Hungarian Reformed congregations within the United States is one of fragmentation. These congregations trace their begin­nings to the numerous charitable efforts carried out during the last decade of the nineteenth century by various American Protestant denominations. Today Hungarian Reformed congre­gations continue to be disbursed among these numerous denomina­tions. The two largest clusters are the Calvin Synod Conference of the United Church of Christ and the Hungarian Reformed Church in the United States. There are additional congregations associated with the Presbyterian Church, while other individual congre­gations fall under the jurisdiction of vari­ous United Church of Christ confer­ences and associations. There have been numerous attempts to organize these congregations into one group. It is ironic, however, that while these attempts were intended to be instruments that would bring unity, they actually contributed to further dis­unity. The attempts and events that took place between 1918 and the ratification of the Tiffin Agreement are a few ex­amples. Between 1904 and America's entry into the First World War, the majority of Hungarian Reformed congregations in the United States were directly linked to the Reformed Church of Hungary through its American Eastern and West­ern Classees. This was a period when almost every aspect of the Hungarian immigrants' secular and religious lives was being influenced directly by the General Conventus located in Budapest. This control, which reflected official Hungarian governmental polity, was launched in 1902 and was in­tended to address the crisis caused by Hungarian immigration to the United States. In December of 1902 a number of highly confidential reports, dealing with the immigration issue, were compiled under the auspices of the Hungarian Prime Ministry. The reports revealed, among other things, that the number of Magyars leaving the Hungarian con­trolled portion of the Astro-Hungarian Empire, had reached 33%. These re­ports raised the fear that if this trend was not reversed, Magyar control within Hungary would be threatened. In the years before 1917 many Hun­garian Reformed congregations, along with other immigrant institutions, were acting as surrogates for Hungarian political interests. A shift in character and emphasis for these congregations would, however, take place during the war and after. In the first instance, the atmosphere in the United States would cause these congregations to seek a new direction and identity. And sec­ondly, the Hungarian government itself would change its emphasis in how it utilized these congregations. By 1918 the immigrant congrega­tions in the United States knew that they had to free themselves from the grip and influence of the general Convectus if they were going to have any future. They were faced with basically two options. One was to cut themselves off completely from Hungary by forming an independent Hungarian Synod in America. The second option was to seek separation from Hungary by affili­ating with an American denomination. In any case, they realized that the conventus would be actively involved in the final pact. I have already alluded to one rea­son why affiliation was preferable to an independent synod: Hungary's finan­cial plight after the First World War. The political and religious authorities in Hungary often stated that they desired affiliation with an American denomina­tion because of the financial aid Hun­gary might receive through appeal made on its behalf by its former mis­sion churches. The conventus would use every method possible to aim the Magyar congragations in this direction and away from the notion of an inde­pendent synod. The conventus rea­soned that an independent Hungarian synod in America would be valueless to them. A second reason why an indepen­dent synod was rejected stemmed from the political atmosphere in the United States. As the red-scare was spread­ing across Europe and America, a num­ber of immigrant pastors, as well as secular leaders, were apprehensive that an identifiably ethnic synod would continue to be perceived as a foreign body on American soil. In 1010, the Dean of the Eastern Classis wrote in a personal letter that an independent synod "would not be looked upon fa­vorably by public opinion." Thirdly, there was the question of how an independent synod would sup­port itself. Even a cursory examination of the economic condition of the Hun­garian congregations shows that many of them were still dependent upon some form of financial assistance. 1918 was the last year that full salaries were being paid. By 1919, however, the po­litical turmoil in Hungary, caused by the quarrels between various political par­ties, translated into an end of financial support. In that same year, the situtation became so precarious that a number of Hungarian pastors were in favor of any plan, no matter how outrageous, that satisfactorily guaranteed their sala­ries and pensions. Most of the other pastors looked upon this approach with contempt. The Hungarian Reformed Church newspaper, Magyar Egyház, reported that, "some pastors would join a Hottentot church, if they were prom­ised a greater salary." It was apparent to many that an autonomous Hungar­ian synod in the United States would be dubious enterprise with so many pastors and congregations being un­able to support themselves. Therefore, for these primary rea­sons: pressure from Hungary to use

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