Magyar News, 1996. szeptember-1997. augusztus (7. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1996-12-01 / 4. szám
written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present} nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. ” After the service a commemorative program took place. It started with Krisztina Beres singing Hungary You Are Beautiful. Then Bela Szekcsi Lakatos, an outstanding virtuoso pianist played a medley and an improvisation on We Wonder Where (Ki tudja merre...). Csaba Ratkay recited the Hungarian Anthem. The guest speakers were Dr. Balazs Somogyi and László Papp, president of the American Region of the World Federation of Hungarians. Dr. Somogyi spoke about History of repeated “re-conquest of the Hungarian soiL Here are excerpts. “The Hungarian tribes entered the Carpathian Basin in 986 A.D. The initial conquest of the territory of Hungary took place in that year; as the result, in 1996 we are celebrating the millecentenary 1100th anniversary/ of that significant historical event. If we accept that the definition of final conquest of the motherland also implies the independent activity of a nation to build, strengthen and responsibly inhabit the land she calls her own, it becomes immediately obvious that the conquest of Hungary only began in 896 A.D.; the process has had a number of phases, and still has not reached its completion. One hundred years of Hungarian plundering of the Western European countries followed 896 A.D. The warfare our ancestors employed had proved to be highly effective in the beginning; the Magyar armies reached as far west as the Atlantic seashore of France and Spain, and they also threatened Attica and Constantinople. But in 955, King Otto German Emperor soundly defeated the Hungarians, and the period of ransacking the western lands came to a sobering end. Hungary attempted to complete the conquest of the Carpathian Basin during the reigns of King Stephen the First and the kings of the “House of Arpad. ” After a promising start, this process was violently interrupted by the Tartars, in the middle of the thirteenth century. A “reconquest " of the Hungarian land became necessary after the Tartars had retreated. The rule of the House of Anjous and King Matthias represent a highly promising and successful phase of “re-conquest”. Hungary had become a strong European country; her influence was far-reaching and significant. By the beginning of the 16th century, ominous historical storms started to threaten the success of this phase of Honfoglalás. The Battle of Mohács took place in 1526, and the overwhelming Turkish force defeated our armies. One hundred fifty years of Ottoman domination followed. After the defeat of the Turks, the House of the Habsburgs came into prominence and stayed in power for three hundred years. The Revolution of 1848 and the War of Liberation of 1848-49 attempted to establish Hungarian national independence and to create a bill of rights for the citizenry. The armed conflict was brought to a bloody end by the armies of the Czar of Russia. The execution of thirteen generals on October 6th, 1849 represent the end to another unsuccessful phase of “reconquest" of Hungary. The Austro- Hungarian Monarchy dissolved at the completion of World War I. The Treaty of Trianon decreed that Hungary was to lose 71.4% of her territory and 61% of her population. Not exactly a successful “reconquest" of the motherland, more likely a “negative Honfoglalás". A few decades of consolidation followed. However, Hungary became subjugated by the the occupying Soviet Army at the end of World War II. Eleven years later we were to witness a great historical wonder: the Revolution of October 1956 lit up the drab political horizon. Hungarians attempted to conquer Hungary once more. The revolutionaries demanded national independence and civil rights of freedom of press, assembly, religion and conscience. Ruthless revenge and reprisal followed the heady days that memorable October and November. 350-400 people were sentenced to death. The Prime Minister, the Defense Minister and two of their associates were ambushed and executed in June of 1958. 25,000 Hungarians were charged with crimes against the “state" - 22,000 of them were sentenced and imprisoned. Another unsuccessful attempt of creating a Hungarian Hungary? Probably so, although temporarily only! Historical justice prevailed this time: practically from one-day to the next, suddenly and dramatically the Soviet Union fell apart in 1989. A glorious new “re-conquest” of Hungary may begin this time; as the result, separation from the East and “joining" the West may finally become historical reality. 1 am convinced that , this time a successful attempt of Honfoglalás will emerge. The present situation in our mother country is full of disappointing characteristics, both politically and economically. At the same time, let us not forget that the Republic of Hungary is an independent state. It has started on the road of democratization, the rights of citizens are constitutionally guaranteed, and no foreign troops are maintained on Hungarian soil. Hungary has expressed her desire to become a partner in the European Union and has requested NATO protection. The road to the new Hungary will be difficult. Never should we forget, however, that we are at the beginning of this new journey: only seven years have passed since 1989. We have to learn to believe that we are a nation capable of new beginnings. All Hungarians living in the western world are to take part in this hopefully last “re-conquest” of our country. It is time for all of us to develop a psychological make-up appropriate to this promising new historical undertaking. Tolerance toward each other 's person and opinion, love for each other, perseverance and a readiness to start anew should characterize our behavior. I am fully aware of the fact that these are not “typical", much practiced Hungarian values necessarily. I am convinced, however, that the time is ripe to learn, practice and employ these values. It appears that our Hungarian “microcosmos" here in Connecticut could and should serve as a model for large-scale Hungarian behavior and creativity, hopefully connecting and combining states and countries in the future. We may achieve goals that presently we do not even dare to dream about - as long as we succeed in combining our forces and develop confidence in our strength and ability. This kind of behavior is our most important historical responsibility." We were very happy to hear Reka Leszay sing two songs, one, the Ave Maria, in the memory of the thirteen martyrs of Arad who were executed after the 1848 Revolution. The other song was MY Country from the famous Hungarian opera, the Bank Ban. She was accompanied by Tellef Johnson, who also gave an outstanding performance playing Franz Liszt’s Ballad N. 2. Naturally this uplifting event ended with the Hungarian Anthem and with tears gathering in many eyes. Following there was a delicious Hungarian lunch at the Calvin Hall Page 3
