Hungarian Studies Newsletter, 1980 (8. évfolyam, 23-26. szám)

1980 / 26. szám

The author is a former member of the parliament of pre-war Hungary, presently a chaplain to a Caritas home in West Germany.

Kozma, György. THE ECCLESIOLOGY OF THE HUNGARIAN BISHOPS AS EXPRESSED IN THEIR CIRCULAR LETTERS. Ungarisches Kirchensoziologisches Institut, 1010 Vienna, Grillparzerstrase 5, Austria, 1980.143 pages. $10.00 paper. (The publication is in lieu of UKI-Reports About Hungary\978A, 2, and 3.) General editors: Julius Moreland Emmerich András.

This study is based on the pastoral letters of the Hungarian Roman Catholic bishops, who function in a country under an atheistic government. The methodology applied was content analysis. The timeframe includes 16years, 8years preceding and 8 years following the Second Vatican Council of 1966. The author’s interest focuses on how the bishops view the church; whether this view conforms with or deviates from the principles enunciated at Vatican II, and if so, to what extent. He found that the bishops’ views exhibited three principal characteristics: they view the church as clerical, static, and concerned with its own survival. The bishops visualize the structure of the church in the form of a pyramid, at the top of which is the Pope, under him in descending order the Roman Curia, the bishops, the priests, and at the bottom: the laity. This traditional concept was modified both structurally and functionally by Vatican II. Nevertheless, the bishops seem to continually maintain a sharp distinction between priests and laity, and assign the latter a rather passive role. The bishops seem to be preoccupied with the maintenance of what there is. Development or expansion of the church is not even discussed. The Hungarian state agencies having properly assessed the bishops’ preoccupation with the status quo, concentrate on frustrating these efforts.

Miska, John. ETHNIC AND NATIVE CANADIAN LITERATURE, 1850-1979: A Bibliography of Primary and Secondary Materials. Microform Biblios, 3206 South Parkside Drive, Lethbridge, Alta. TIK OE2, 1980. viii + 355 pages. $20.00 microfiche.

This compilation includes 2,921 entries relating to ethnic and native Canadian creative writing, so that the vast amount of information on the subject can be made available to librarians and to students of Canadian cultures. The bibliography is arranged by subject and provides the following basic information: author, title, place, publisher, date and pagination. For periodical and newspaper articles the source of publication is also given. Brief annotations are provided if a title is not self-explanatory. Part 1, includes general works on ethnic and native Canadian literature. Part 2, gives the literature of 33 ethnic and native groups arranged in alphabetical order. Part 3, includes author, genre and chronological indices and a list of periodicals with abbreviations. Much of the material contained in this bibliography has not been listed in any compilation before. The volume is recommended for medium and large university and public libraries.

The compiler is on the staff of the library of the Research Station, Agriculture Canada in Lethbridge.

Nyerges, Anton N. GYULA JUHÁSZ THE BEARD SUNNER.

The author’s publication. 201 Langford Court, Richmond, KY 40475, 1980. 117 pages. N.p. (mimeo)

The author has enriched the English language literature of Hungarian poets and poetry by yet another volume, a biography of Gyula Juhász (1883-1937). Some of his earlier

volumes on Arany, Ady, and Petőfi were reviewed in HSN issues no. 6, 8, and 12. Morally, Juhász belonged to the Nyugat movement, “but as a provincial school teacher and journalist and victim of recurrent psychological ills he remained more or less on its periphery. In his role as a modernist and cultural traditionalist, he wrote works of great temporal and psychic depth and a certain quiet excitement... The most unsettling element in Juhász’s creative life was his reliving of the Hungarian pastoral past and mythical origins — the world of Mother Emese from whose womb the Magyar people once streamed westward. Still, Juhász strove fervently to harmonize his dream with his actual cultural environment — agrarian towns and villages, the neighboring Slovaks, the classical world, Catholic monasticism, and school life. But the conflicts of the identity quest appear to have led him, one of the most gentle of human beings, to suicide at the age of 54.” Nyerges goes much beyond writing a sensitive biography, he translated 66 poems of Juhász, all previously unpublished in English. The text is augmented by notes (glossaries) explaining Hungarian words, identifying actors, etc. A brief biography lists some 12 basic works, mostly in Hungarian. The appendix contains two autobiographical accounts by Juhász, translated by Nyerges. What the volume does not contain are diacritical marks. This is rather disturbing especially in such contexts as The Christof Tape. The volume certainly deserves publication in print, when this shortcoming can be corrected.

The author is prof, at Eastern Kentucky U.

Rajkl, Sándor ed. WORKSHOP ON FOOD AND NUTRITION.

Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1979. (Alternate title: Proceedings of a Workshop on Agricultural Potentiality Directed by Nutritional Needs.) 238 pages, tables, diagrams. $21.00 cloth.

A workshop on food production and human nutrition was initiated by the United Nations University and organized jointly by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Agricultural Research Institute, HAS, at Martonvásár between June 5 and 9, 1978. Participating in the workshop were representatives of five Nordic countries, eight socialist countries of East Central Europe, and five special agencies of the UN. The volume contains papers read at the workshop and transcript of the discussions. The four chapters of the report conform to the four major areas under discussion: nutritional needs of man; malnutrition; plant production; and animal production. The diverse cultural background of the participants accounts for different frames of reference and different attitudes to the principal questions discussed. (Incidentally, culture as an important determinant of food preparation and consumption was not on the agenda.) The volume is full of useful related data, and is well documented. Each paper includes a list of references used, and most papers are generously illustrated by tables, charts, and diagrams. The volume inlcudes the names and addresses of all participants.

Note: the UN University was first proposed by U Thant, then Secretary General of UN, and was accepted by the General Assembly. The plan lay dormant for several years, until the Japanese Government provided the necessary funds to make the university operative. It has its headquarters at Tokyo. According to its charter, the university should concentrate on the following areas of study and research: natural resources; human and social development; and world hunger.

The editor is member of the Agricultural Research Institute, HAS. (Continued on Page 4)

NO. 26, WINTER 1980-1981, HUNGARIAN STUDIES NEW5LETTER

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