Magyar Egyház, 1962 (41. évfolyam, 2-12. szám)
1962-12-01 / 12. szám
MAGYAR EGYHÁZ 7 didn't forsake our good bishop. He brought him home on the wings of His mighty winds.” Nicholas opened his eyes. He realized that the chattering stoppped in the big hall and everybody rose from their seats. Some scattered cries in the front sounded like "Hail Ceasar!" Emperor Constantine entered the hall. Dressed in rich silk purple he walked up to his throne but didn’t sit down. And no soldiers followed him. What a difference, Nicholas thought and his memories brought back the vision of another emperor: Diocletian, the bloody Caesar. It was soon after his miraculous escape from the ship, in 303 to be exact, when on a dull February night all hell broke loose from Hispánia to Palestine: all Christian churches were to be destroyed, all Christian bishops and ministers imprisoned, all copies of the scriptures burned. Bishop Nicholas of Myra shared the fate of his brethren — he was thrown into the dungeon. Theen Diocletian resigned but the new ruler, Galerius was even worse. The prison doors opened only to let the Christians out in order to march to slave labor in the mines. The right eye of many was put out, their left feet crippled with hot iron. Nicholas shuddered from the memories and a sudden pain pierced through his right arm: it was broken by the sword of a Roman soldier. But times have changed. Constantine was standing before his throne-seat thus honoring the council members. His words came to Nicholas as if they were coming from another world — freedom for Christians seemed so unreal, so impossible. Free to preach the Gospel, free to baptize those who yearned after the fellowship of the congregation, free to sing the hymns, free to break the bread, free to minister to the needy. The Emperor spoke briefly. He mentioned how his mother, Helena, told him about her dream in which a radiant cross appeared and with it the words ‘In this sign thou wilt conquer!’ The Emperor also told that he believed God gave him his throne. He reminded the council fathers that since he has become emperor the Church and the Gospel enjoy full freedom throughout the empire. More than that, the Church must be the uniting spiritual force of the world. But only a united Church can be strong — therefore the council fathers must protect and restore the unity of the Church. Nicholas knew well what the issue was. The very thing for which he was almost sold as a slave by the wicked captain: is Christ God and Lord as the Church had believed from old, or is he just some kind of a semi-divine hero, neither quite god, nor quite man as the thundering Arius proclaimed? Yes, the question had to be decided, firmly, once and for all. Nicholas wasn’t interested so much in the problem of the Emperor about the strength of the world. He just couldn’t conceive of any other creed than one professing Christ as God and. Lord. He remembered just too well his prison, the pitiful procession of the prisoners into the slave labor mines and the cries of the martyrs never left his ears. Those suffered for what they believed and Nicholas believed with thm. He looked around: he had no doubts as to where the council would stand: there were hardly any who didn’t show some scars of the persecutions. The deliberations of the council began. There were arguments and fights, excited tirades by the Arians, firm stand on the part of the orthodox. Nicholas did not take a very active part. He didn’t have to be convinced — for him Christ was not a hero but born as the Son of God to save the world, and him, too. So when the debate grew too lengthy for him he slowly strolled away behind the pillars of the hall and left the place. One day he even went in to Constantinople, the new capital founded by the Emperor. It was a brand new city, most of the houses were still under construction — in the center the walls of a mighty cathedral were standing already. Nicholas was asking for the lady Lydia of Myra. He knew the woman since she -was a little girl. Her father used to be a rich ship-owner. His galleys sailed along the Mediterranean — grain from Egypt, wine from Sicily, cedars from Lebanon, they all meant business for him. He had three lovely daughters and for them he saved all his wealth. For a rich dowry was essential for a good marriage in that land. No dowry, no marriage. It happened all too suddenly. Three galleys sank in a storm, another was robbed by jnrates, the rest of the shipowner’s wealth went in paying for the loss of the cargoes. Overnight he became a poor man. His only concern were his daughters. How could they find a husband now, without a dowry? He told Nicholas about his worries for the Bishop was always ready to listen. He let the man go with the word: ‘‘Don’t worry my friend, the Lord will provide.’’ But the man was weary, "Oh but how could He? I can start all over again but by the time I build up my business again the girls will be old and nobody will want to marry them. O, I miserable man!” And then I.ydia, the oldest of the daughters had a suitor. They were in love but they didn’t know that her father lost all his fortune. The man dreaded the moment when he would have to tell her she could not marry him because there was no dowry. But the day was coming. On the feast of the Lord’s birth the betrothal was to be announced. How could he postpone it — what was he going to do? When morning came he entered the living room. And lo, in front of the fire-place there was a bag full of gold. Someone must have thrown it in during the night, because the bag was open, some gold pieces rolled out, one even found its way into the stocking the ship-owner hung up on the chimney to dry. Where did it come from? He couldn’t think of it — but there was the dowry for Lydia. He hurried lo tell Bishop Nicholas the good news. The Bishop slowly remarked, “I know it. I told you that the Lord would provide!” Lydia was married off — but then the second girl, Priscilla became of marriageable age. Nicholas assured her father: “The Lord will provide.” "But, Bishop Nicholas, you don’t think the same miracle could happen again?" "1 only know” — was the answer — “that the Lord will provide because He loves you and He loves Priscilla. Why should she suffer when her sister is so happy?” And, surely, the bag of gold was there in the morning of the feast of the Lord’s birth“Never doubt the love of God” — Nicholas warned the marvelling father. “But I am a practical man, Bishop Nicholas. Bags of gold don’t fall from heaven. The Lord works through people. Somebody put the gold in there. I wonder who?” “Well, wait until your youngest daughter grows up,” suggested Nicholas. And so he did. On the night before the feast of the Lord’s birth when the betrothal of the youngest daughter was to be announced, the father hid behind the fireplace so he could find out who had the hand of God. And, lo, as midnight passed, a man climbed up the windowsill and swung a bag into the room which fell jingling on the stone. The father jumped out from his hiding place, over the windowsill and managed to seize the man. It was Nicholas. “O, I should have known it all the time that it was you,
