Magyar Egyház, 1958 (37. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1958-06-01 / 6-7. szám
10 MAGYAR EGYHÁZ TWO WCC HOMES FOR HUNGARIAN REFUGEE YOUTH OPENED IN AUSTRIA (Geneva)—Two homes sponsored by the World Council of Churches for Hungarian youth were formally opened in Innsbruck and Attersee, Austria. The homes, which have been in actual operation for several months, accommodate 110 boys and girls. Sir Cullum Welch, Lord Mayor of London in 1956-57, opened the girls’ home at Innsbruck. He was the chairman of the Lord Mayor’s Fund for Hungarian Refugees set up in London immediately after the October, 1956, revolution in Hungary. The fund was one of several which helped to buy the house last spring. “In opening this door,” he said, “may I say God bless all those who work in this house and may He give courage, fortitude and happiness to all who live in it.” Others taking part in the opening at Innsbruck included Princess Liliane of the Belgians, Dr. Leslie E. Cooke and Dr. Edgar H.S. Chandler, director and associate director of the WCC’s Division of Inter-Church Aid and Service to Refugees. The 70 girls at the home, whose ages range from 11 to 21, attend the Hungarian Grammar School in Innsbruck. About fifty per cent of the children do not have any relatives in Austria, while most of the others have only one relative there. The children are cared for by two social workers and two youth volunteers. At Attersee, Chandler House was opened on April 29 by Dr. Chandler, for whom it was named. “I open this home,” he said, “with the very deep prayer that every boy who comes here, everyone who works here, may know the blessing and empowering presence of the Holy Spirit. We pray that this home may be not only a place of shelter and protection for those who enter here, but that all those who have anything to do with it may grow in Christian fellowship and in those gifts of the spirit — courage, love of freedom and commitment to the service of our fellow-men — which we associate with our faith.” Forty boys between the ages of 15 and 25 have been living in the home since last July. E.P.S., Geneva MIXED MARRIAGES IN UNITED KINGDOM (Liverpool)—Marriages between Roman Catholics and non-Roman Catholics in the archdiocese of Liverpool will be celebrated at the high altar in the future, according to orders from Roman Catholic Archbishop Heenan of Liverpool. In the past, mixed marriages have been consecrated at a side altar or in the sacristy. Pointing out that the decision did not mean he favoured mixed marriages, the Archbishop said he wanted the marriage ceremony to be more dignified, and was especially anxious that non-Catholics should not feel any insult because of a lack of ceremony. E.P.S., Geneva STIFFER LEGAL MEASURES AGAINST CIVIL MARRIAGES IN SPAIN (Madrid)—The Spanish Civil Code has been modified to make it compulsory for non-Roman Catholics to prove they do not belong to the Roman Catholic Church. The insertion of this “burden of proof” into the law itself codifies recent administrative regulations, which demanded proof of non-Catholic status and acceptance of the evidence by the local bishop before a civil marriage licence could be issued. Recent practice under the regulations that were in force before the new legal measure indicates that Roman Catholics, or people baptised as Roman Catholics, are formally excommunicated by the local bishop if they become parties to a civil marriage. People who act as “witnesses” in furnishing proof of the non- Roman Catholic belief of parties to a civil marriage have also been excommunicated in some cases. It is not yet clear whether the evidence of Protestant ministers, or of Protestants not baptised in the Roman Catholic Church, will be accepted by the courts as sufficient proof that a party to a civil marriage is a non-Roman Catholic. E.P.S., Geneva “ENCOUNTER WITH FOREIGNERS” (Frankfurt)—In view of the growing number of foreign workers and students in Germany, the Foreign Office of the Evangelical Church in Germany has issued a brochure stressing the necessity for a more responsible attitude towards the newcomers. Among other things, the brochure, entitled “Nine Points Concerning Our Encounter With Foreigners”, contains the following statement: “Most non-Christian foreigners come from countries and areas where the churches have been engaged in missionary work for a number of years. In spite of all their sad experiences with European colonial governments, most of them are under the impression that in our continent there are only Christian countries and Christian people! “When, later on, they come to our countries they are very surprised that our economic and political life bear so little witness to the fact that they are part of the life of an almost 100 per cent Christian population. To start with, the only thing we can do in such a situation is to show these foreigners, by our simple human relationships with them and our readiness to help them and make them feel at home, that we are interested in them as persons and not as objects of our missionary activities. It means a great deal if, just through their personal encounter with us, these young people from abroad feel something of the power of love by which, almost two thousand years ago, the early Christian Church turned the world upside down.” E.P.S., Geneva * * * In Bolivia five Roman Catholic priests have become Protestants during the last 18 months and are devoting themselves to work in their new churches. One of them had been sent into a rural district to oppose the work of the Protestant groups there. To prepare himself for his task the priest undertook a systematic study of the Bible, and subsequently became a Protestant.
