Calvin Synod Herald, 1999 (99. évfolyam, 2-4. szám - 100. évfolyam, 9-12. szám)
1999-09-01 / 9-10. szám
6 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD Synod Report Notes Displeasure with Bethlen Archives Transfer The Archives Committee of Calvin Synod registered its marked displeasure with the transfer of the Bethlen Museum and Archives collection from Ligonier, in its report to Calvin Synod at the last meeting. It noted that it agreed wholeheartedly with Bishop Louis Medgyesi over the strain upon good relations that has occurred over this situation. Its recommendations were approved by the Synod, as follows: RECOMMENDATIONS 1. We reaffirm the action of Calvin Synod at the Annual Meeting of 1998: “Calvin Synod does not concur in the decision of the Bethlen Museum and Archives Board of Trustees, that it is in sole ownership of the materials in its possession, and asserts that the materials placed at the Bethlen Home by the churches and officers of Calvin Synod are its own property and held in trust for preservation by the Archives.” 2. We are displeased with the disorderly and incomplete transfer of the archival collection, skimming a part so as to split the collection that was garnered over so many years, and leaving the rest of the valuable remainder virtually abandoned and without oversight, unsecured and uninsured, scattered about so as to be inaccessible for use; and that the BMA has not moved expeditiously to protect and oversee the leftovers of the collection; further, that the Bethlen Advisory Committee at this critical stage has not met more frequently to fulfill its mandates; that the Bethlen Home has not granted more cordial assistance in seeming the integrity of these archives’ materials; and that the business of cataloging the Archives materials at New Brunswick has not even begun, although thirty-thousand dollars has been allocated for the year alone. 3. We regret that at the end of the first four-year term of the BMA-AHF agreement the funds remaining with the MBA may be insufficient to properly house the collection, should it be necessary to reclaim it. 4. We seek the cooperation of the BMA’s Directors in reclaiming that portion of the remaining materials in Ligonier that were placed by our Calvin Synod churches, ministers and members, and our predecessors - photos, communions sets, churchware, cloths and garb, etc. - which have been left behind and unwanted. 5. We authorize the Calvin Synod Archives Committee, in cooperation with the Conference Council, to seek the ways and means to gather and provide security for the Synod’s own collection of Hungarian Reformed archival materials. 6. We thank the First Hungarian Reformed Church at Pittsburgh, PA for providing space for the Calvin Synod Archives. The committee currently is chaired by the Rev. Albert W. Kovács and its members are Rev. Dr. William Bonis, Rev. István Geczy, Rt. Rev. Louis Medgyesi, Rev. Joseph Posta, Rt. Rev. Dr. Stephen Szabó, Mr. Alex Kato, Mr. Nicholas Kovach, Mr. Franklin G. Nagy, Mr. Wilburn Roby. It received the report of the Synod’s representative to the Board of Directors of the Bethlen Museum and Archives, Inc., also Rev. Albert W. Kovács. He cited significant aspects, especially that the “Bethlen Collection” will be kept physically separated from the materials of the American Hungarian Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Should the agreement be terminated later, the ownership remains with the BMA. Should either body dissolve, ownership would reside in the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America, or revert to the churches thereafter. Local church accessibility is guaranteed, with “the right to copy or use their own materials without payment of royalties or infringement of copyrights.” Although the boxed materials took up less than half of the shelves in the room set aside, about eight or ten 16’ long, a large number of boxes of old newspapers were stacked on the floor of its garage entry. Further, it added, “a large amount of other materials, photos and church ware were left behind.” Since then the space has not been turned over for use by the Home, but filled with storage from the HRFA’s office in Washington. It was noted that the first year’s payment of $30,000.00 was paid on time, but no “serious work has commenced on the cataloging, which is to be completed in the four years of the agreement.” A joint “Bethlen Collection Advisory Board”, charged with its oversight and usage guidelines, met but once at the end of 1998. The Board of Directors met last May only briefly, and another session was scheduled after the Ministers’ Association meeting earlier this month. The Calvin Synod representative asked that a progress report be placed on the meeting’s agenda. THE BELIEVER IN GOD “You are the SALT of the EARTH” - Mt. 5:13 “You are the LIGHT of the WORLD” - Mt. 5:14 “You are the PILLAR of the CHURCH” (1) A “Man of Vision” (2) A “Man of Prayer” (3) A “Man of Good Humor” (4) A “Man of Peace” THE BELIEVER IN GOD IS: A MAN OF VISION, the person who in FAITH and in AWARENESS of God raises his mind heart - in words or wordlessly - to the heavenly Father. A MAN OF GOOD HUMOR, the person who in FAITH and in TRUTH has a sense of humor. A MAN OF PEACE, the person who in FAITH shows in daily life the reality of PEACE that was promised in the song of the angels in Bethlehem: “Peace on earth among men of good will.”
