Magyar Egyház, 2000 (79. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
2000 / 4. szám
8. oldal MAGYAR EGYHÁZ (Prov. 8:15). So even Ceaucescu and his secret police had to perform what the Lord willed. That gave me strength.” In spite of that encouragement, the minister relates that in that autumn he was afraid more than once. The political situation in Romania was particularly volatile. In the surrounding countries the communist system collapsed. In Romania Rev. László Tokes tenaciously resisted the discrimination of the Hungarian minority. “There was something in the air. Through western radio transmitters we heard of the upheaval in the DDR. Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria. We hoped that the turning point would come in our country, too. But a protest can just as well turn into a bloodbath. Both my wife and I realized that I would be one of the first to be rounded up. I was undoubtedly an undesirable person.” Speaking the Truth The anxiety dissipated on the first Advent morning when Rev. Horvath Leventhe stood on the pulpit of the small village church. His text was: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord” (Rev. 1:8). “I very clearly saw the presumptuous character of the Ceaucescu regime. Spontaneously, I said, ‘Many people, including Ceaucescu, think that this government is primary. But the Lord Jesus Christ is the First. And He will also be the Last. He will judge all creatures, including the leaders who are too arrogant to surrender their position of preeminence to Him.’ “Everyone understood what I meant. After the service a few elders warned me of the consequences. They were afraid. I was still calm at that moment. I knew that I couldn’t have preached otherwise. “That afternoon everything changed. At dusk the village was suddenly without electricity. This was not unusual, but yet noteworthy, considering the event of the morning. Half an hour later an official car drove into the village. The agents — including those in plain clothes — came to the manse door. We had expected them. Just before the lights went out, my wife said that she had suddenly become frightened. That was a shock for me as she is usually more levelheaded than I am. We prayed together then and together we could find peace in the knowledge that we were in God’s hands.” Knife through my Heart In spite of this, Rev. Horvath Leventhe honestly admits that “when I heard that knock at the door, I knew it was the Securitate and it was as if a knife went through my heart. I had to go along. The argument that my wife had just come home from the hospital made no difference. Before we left, I was given the opportunity to read the Bible and pray. That alleviated some of the tension and fear had welled up in me, but it didn’t make parting with my wife and children any easier. “We both realized that we might never see each other on earth again. When you hold your own son - not even two weeks old - in your arms, the ground beneath you seems to sink away. Stammering, I asked my wife if she would tell our children of the riches in Christ if I did not return. “My wife reminded me that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. With that message I left.” Continuous Prayer The minister characterizes the trip to the neighboring city as one of “continuous prayer”. Finally the fear lessened as he recalled the time he left home to study. “My father read from Romans 13 that morning, the chapter about submission to authority. Suddenly it came to me how he had read the fourth verse with emphasis. ‘For he is the minister of God to thee for good.’ That took all my fear away. I came to see that Securitate’s interrogation — which I had already experienced after other arrests — was not the worst. I thought of how I would have to answer to God. I felt my personal guilt in a powerful way. I had to remain faithful. The Lord had evidently sent the Securitate to teach me something.” At the Securitate bureau Rev. Horvath was left to wait for several hours, during which public servants and officers walked around him. This is nothing less than “psychological warfare”, according to Rev. Horvath. Then came the interrogation with its trick questions and insinuations. “The usual of course. I practically knew it by heart: ‘You are insane. You are an enemy of the regime. You are a spy because you have contacts with foreign countries. You receive literature from outside the country in exchange for information. You criticize our government in your sermons. You are part of a conspiracy.’ “What was new to me were the questions about my father. This was ironic actually, since my father had died several months earlier and now I was being crossexamined about his friends in the West. Apparently my father, although deceased, still posed a threat to Ceaucescu’s system.” Uncertainty For hours, this emotionally exhausting interrogation continued. “I was so tired, “Horvath says. Suddenly he remembered the lesson taught him by an old preacher who had spent many hours in the office of the secret police. “He once said, ‘Try to break through the hard facade by asking a caring
