Magyar Egyház, 1960 (39. évfolyam, 1-9. szám)
1960-06-01 / 6-7. szám
8 MAGYAR EGYHÁZ a real contribution towards the spiritual and religious culture of this great nation. Just to put it into simple words: as the Iro-Scottish Presbyterians organized their autonomous and independent church body in the XVIIIth century in the American middle colonies, preceded by the English Reformed in New England, and the Dutch Reformed in the State of New York, and as the German Reformed Christians kept their rich piety and unique church life intact by being organized as an independent church body after the War of Independence followed by a great many Lutheran church bodies formed according to the old world religious beliefs and customs in the XIXth century, with equal rights the Hungarian Reformed people came with their own Hungarian Reformed faith and piety. Let us put one thing straight. It is quite ignorant to call the whole American church pattern of three centuries narrow-minded and nationalistic. It is the great tradition of this country that Church and State are separated. In this free atmosphere every religious culture, type of Christian piety becomes really living. In the old world, most of the Protestant Churches lost much of their vigorous spiritual life due to the burden of state interference. Like flowers receiving just enough water and light to keep on. The freedom of America, after a certain period of confusion and difficulty of the early settlement, has become sunshine, which makes the flower of every religious type flourish in its beautiful traditional colors, though in a completely new soil. While most of the American Protestant denominations, like Presbyterians and Lutherans are at least a century old, most of them much older, the Hungarian Reformed Church in America is just a beginner. I would say we are approaching the period of a complete adjustment to the society and nation in which we live and about from now on, instead of talking just about the preservation of our heritage we have to witness to the unique message God has given us in the Hungarian Reformed Church in America. In my life I have experienced this slow transition. It has meant a lot of sacrifice, work, even suffering for ministers and laymen alike. But I trust you will be the standardbearers of the vigorous new life of the Hungarian Reformed Church in America. And then no sacrifice was in vain. The simple existence of the Hungarian Reformed Church in America cannot be justified by any reasons of expediency. We are a small denomination. In financial or geographical aspects of mission and service we shall never be able to match the large and historically older denominations. Our significance to the American world in which we live and are proud to be an organic part, must be sought in the quality of our particular witness and service we can render. It has been said time and again that we are the spiritual offspring of 400 year old Hungarian Calvinism. But has this saying a real meaning at all to you younger generation? If our answer is only "we are Hungarian Reformed and we shall remain Hungarian Reformed” we aviod the real answer. The Hungarian Reformed Church has a unique tradition for it unites in its own constitution and typical piety many characteristics of different denominations separated because of the lack of one of these. The First Annual Conference of the United Church Women of the Hungarian Reformed Church in America held in Perth Amboy on June 12th turned out to be a great success. We have an excellent report by their secretary, Mrs. Priscilla Jenkins. Because of lack of space — and since we don’t want to abbreviate this report — we shall print it in our next issue. In Great Britain for instance, the Reformation divided the Church at least into three main divisions, which are not yet healed, even multiplied and you will find their offspring as separated here in America as it has taken place centuries ago. The main ones are the Protestant Episcopal Church, the Presbyterian Churches of this country and the Congregational Churches (offspring of the New England Puritans). The Protestant Episcopal Church has bishops as the highest spiritual authority, while the same prerogatives belong to the fellowship of the Presbytery in the Presbyterian Churches, and in the case of the Congregational Churches the final authority is vested with the local congregational meeting. All three claim that their pattern of church life is in accordance with the New Testament, apostolic tradition, and the first church of the disciples. Now the Hungarian Reformed Church is the only Reformed Church who has known the office of the bishop since Reformation times. (As you know, since 1958 our denomination has decided to complete the traditional church pattern also in these United States and we have elected our first bishop.) In this we show agreement with the Protestant Episcopal Church. But we have never said that a Reformed Church is not a real church without ministers ordained by a bishop or have never clamied any supernatural powers for our bishops as many Episcopalians claim for theirs. But the real engine of our church life is the “classis”, which is the continental equivalent of the Anglo-Saxon “presbytery”, thus being in complete agreement with our Presbyterian brethren, since the basic element of their unique church organization is also a very existential part of our Church life and organization. But even with the Congregational Churches we show similarity as the congregational meeting has such a great authority in our church life. And this authority is warranted by our Constitution and By-Laws. Now, it is one of the great contributions our Church may make in inter-church relations to point out that the three separate forms of church organizations, which divides Episcopalians, Presbyterians and Congregational Christians from each other are essential parts of our system. This unique character of our Church is recognized and it cannot be denied. We have been called as a possible pattern of the church of the future. A recently formed church bears these features already: the new United Church of South India formed on the very frontier of the missionary movement has a very similar church order as ours: bishops, presbytery and congregational freedom combined. {To Be Continued)
