Magyar Egyház, 1960 (39. évfolyam, 1-9. szám)
1960-01-01 / 1. szám
8 MAGYAR EGYHÁZ MAGYAR CHURCH cQook ing forward At the beginning of 1960 our hearts are filled with gratitude towards our Lord for His manifold blessings experienced by the whole fellowship of our denomination in the past year. Our Hungarian Reformed Church in America has ben witnessing to the need of unity among Hungarian Christian people in this country for 35 years. In 1959 our witness was rewarded by the great acts of union in Youngstown and Detroit. Blessed be the name of our God for them. As bishop of our denomination I have had the privilege to visit many of our congregations. Serving the cause of our oppressed Hungarian fellow Christians behind the Iron Curtain I brought the Hungarian question to the attention of President Eisenhower during a personal talk at a White House reception. In many organizations it was our aim to serve the cause of our Hungarian brethren in Europe as well as that of our own fellowship. The spirit of the Ligonier Conference has really penetrated our ranks. It was a great opportunity to witness personally to the need of our unity for which we shall never cease to pray and work. The tremendous distances burdening the work of the Eastern Classis and the special problems created by the missionary character of many of our congregations in New York State effected a very needed improvement dividing the Eastern Classis into two separate classes: New York and Eastern. Congregations of the new Eastern Classis elected the Rev. Dezső Ábrahám for dean and Mr. Albert St. Miklóssy for chief elder. Both are from Perth Amboy. The Rev. Gábor Csordás, New York, and Mr. Stephen Kiss, Poughkeepsie, were elected to the two top positions of the New York classis. May the Lord bless their new fields of service. In the new year we face tremendous problems, which are partially inherited from 1959. These problems are the concern of our whole fellowship. More sacrifice and more loyalty is a requirement to find solution which will be according to the will of God. Let us unite for this work and may the Lord bless our endeavors in 1960. DR. ZOLTÁN BÉKY, Bishop What Kind of Year Has It Been? National Council of Churches Reviews Work In 1959 It has been an eventful year for the cooperative work of the Protentant and Orthodox bodies working through the National Council of Churches. The year 1959 saw the launching of the first nation-wide Study Program for Peace ever undertaken by the churches. Under the guidance of the Department of International Affairs, the study programs are being carried on by churches and church councils in all 50 states. The year also saw the meeting with President Eisenhower of 100 denominational leaders, who aprised him of the peace study project. The year 1959 was one in which the churches not only spoke out on national and international issues but defended their right to do so. In the spring, members of the NCC General Board in Hartford, Conn., issued the Hartford Appeal to the Churches “to uphold the right and duty of the churches and their councils to study and comment upon issues of human concern, however controversial.” In this spirit, the National Council during the year pledged support of worldwide disarmament; went on record again as opposed to universal military training; and called for increased U.S. financial aid for the world’s refugees. The policy-making Board also urged the employment of older people and of the handicapped; opposed the so-called Christian Amendment to the Constitution; and condemned “violent coercion upon innocent peoples” in Tibet or anywhere else. Individual church leaders also warned during the year that ways must be found to curb the world’s “population explosion.” The concern of the churches for the effects on the nation of the steel strike was voiced by National Council leaders in personal letters to the opposing factions, and offers of assistance in mediating the dispute. Another area of national concern resulted in a significant survey of racial tension in 11 states, and the Council reiterated its demand for equal rights and privileges for all citizens no matter what their race or creed. During 1959, 25 million dollars’ worth of food, clothing and medicines were rushed abroad by the Council’s relief and rehabilitation agency, Church World Service, to meet “a constellation of emergencies” and to carry on the churches’ regular refugee work. CWS was the first to bring aid to the Tibetan refugees on their flight to India.
