Magyar Egyház, 1973 (52. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1973-03-01 / 3. szám
10 MAGYAR EGYHÁZ Survival Is Church Priority The new president of the National Council of Churches has a point when he maintains that America’s religious organizations too often employ a faulty sense of priorities. Many churches, he said in a speech in Cleveland, pay scant attention to poor and suffering people. “Churches want someone to preach the gospel, and by that they mean someone who will not confront them with the problems of the world,” he said. He cited instances where church boards avoided becoming involved in controversial subjects because these could be too divisive and therefore not in the best interest of the churches or of the communities which supported them. Churches, he complained, too often focus on survival and balancing the budget. Survival, in his opinion, meant putting up a shield against more pressing realities. There can be sympathy with the Rev. W. Sterling Cary’s rather pessimistic outlook because certainly if a church does not, in effect, practice what its spiritual leader preaches then the entire matter is a futile exercise. A church should be a type of open forum in which no sensible, timely subjects are forbidden. Nor should any church be beholden to business or any other source of financial support at the expense of its principles. But there is a less romantic side of the problem. It is less appealing because it is drudgery. It is the survival aspect of church activity. There is little glamour to it. But without serious concern for its financial position and its economic stability, no organization will last long or be a potent factor in the community or in the world. A newspaper may be an excellent crusader for good causes and a protector of citizens’ rights hut obviously it will have no impact if it cannot stay in operation. If it neglects its business program and throws all its resources into offbeat developments and philosophies and doesn’t attract paying customers, it will go out of business. Then, of course, it will he a failure because it did not survive. Any industry or any store with an ounce of civic responsibility in its make-up will be a good neighbor and promote, altruistically, the best interests of the community. But unless the industry operates in the black ink, and unless the store sells enough merchandise to pay taxes and expenses and make a profit, survival will be precarious. Survival, by necessity, has to be the top goal of any enterprise, big or small, whether the aim is the production of widgets or the saving of mankind. It is a dull but true fact of life that almost every person and every idea, to be successful, must have a base. This may not be the perfect setup. Perhaps in the case of noble works this rule should be waived. But no one yet has found a way to live on love and hope and so all undertakings, churches included, are obliged to put survival in first place on the list of priorities. Howard Preston ALLIANCE STAFFMEMBERS’ VISIT WALDENSIANS IN ITALY Rome — “The present time in world history, which is both exciting and alarming, constitutes an urgent challenge to the churches to join forces in witnessing joyfully to the living Christ”, said the Rev. Edmond Perret, general secretary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, to the Waldensian congregation in the heart of Rome on February 11. Mr. Perret, whose sermon was on the theme “giving account of the hope that is in us”, was the guest-preacher in the church on the Piazza Cavour, on the occasion of an official Alliance staff visit to the Waldensian Evangelical Church of Italy. During the preceding night, vandals had thrown paint against the doors of the church building and the windows of the neighbouring book depot, and defaced the walls with slogans: “Viva il papa” and “viva la madonna” (long live the Pope; long live Our Lady). Mr. Perret, accompanied by WARC staff executives, the Revs. Richmond Smith and Fred Kaan, also visited the Waldensian Theological Faculty, where they had talks with staff and students. The Waldensian Evangelical Church, one of the founder-members of the WARC in 1875, traces its origin to a 12th century movement, begun by Peter Waldo, which emphasized the right to freedom of preaching, voluntary poverty and a return to New Testament churchlife. The movement was excommunicated in 1184 by the Council of Verona. Today, the 30,000-strong church plays a leading role in the life of Italian protestantism, and belongs, with Methodists, Baptists, and Lutherans to the Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy. There are many Waldensian communities outside Italy, especially in Switzerland, Germany and the USA. In Canada a number of Waldensian congregations are integrated in the United Church of Canada. The largest concentration of Waldensians outside Italy is found in Uruguay and Argentina, with an independent synod of some 18,000 members. RPS
