Fraternity-Testvériség, 1988 (66. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
1988-01-01 / 1. szám
Page 6 TESTVÉRISÉG HUNGARIAN REFORMED DAY AT HOPE COLLEGE IN HOLLAND, MICHIGAN REV. IMRE BERTALAN'S HONORARY DOCTORATE On January 14, 1988, Hope College, a renowned establishment of Dutch Reformed origin, conferred an Honorary Doctorate on Rev. Imre Bertalan, the President of the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America. Hope College is situated in Holland, Michigan. Dr. Eugene Osterhaven has for over four decades been a professor at Western Theological Seminary, while also having been named an honorary professor of the Hungarian Reformed Theological Seminary in Sárospatak, Hungary. Dr. Osterhaven's loving concern and sense of mission toward the Reformed Church in Hungary can only be compared with that of Admiral Ruyter, who helped free Protestant galley-slaves. But Professor Osterhaven's dedicated service to the Hungarian cause is now approaching its fifth decade. It was he who arranged for "Hungarian Reformed Days" to be held at Hope College and Seminary on the occasion of the awarding of Rev. Bertalan's honorary degree. During the elegantly puritan academic convocation, Dr.. Osterhaven, at the request of Hope College's President, introduced Imre Bertalan, paying tribute to his achievements in service to the Reformed Church and in the study of theology. He described Reverend Bertalan as one of the most illustriously educated of American ministers, who began his theological pilgrimage in Sárospatak, where as the academy's best student he served as "szenior" (official liaison between the student body and the faculty). He continued his studies at Martin Luther's university in Wittenburg and then at Zwingli's university in Zurich. Later he became a student of Karl Barth and Oscar Cullman in Basel. He concluded his European theological studies at Calvin's Academy in Geneva. Between 1946 and 1950 he studied and taught New Testament subjects at Princeton, the twentieth century's most important Calvinist theological center. Dr. Osterhaven then detailed Rev. Bertalan's ministerial posts: Staten Island, NY, and Manville, NJ, followed by Passaic, NJ, and ending with New Brunswick, NJ. After 34 years of pastoral service, he was elected to the position of President of the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America. Dr. Jacobsen, Hope College's President, then declared Rev. Bertalan an Honorary Doctor, while Professor Nijenhuis, the College's Chancellor, placed the doctoral regalia upon his shoulders. During his short inaugural speech, Dr. Bertalan spoke of the timeliness of Calvinism. He also recounted how the long-standing bonds of friendship between the Dutch and Hungarian Reformed church communities had now broadened to new and global proportions. The honor which Hope College was bestowing on him, Dr. Bertalan noted, was an indication of the new willingness and obedience to the apostolic mandate that we have a special concern for those who are of the "household of faith." (Gal. 6:10). The following day, on January 15, 1988, at the University Chapel, Dr. Bertalan led a service, assisted in the liturgy by Dr. Aladar Komjáthy, minister from Montreal and his wife, Ilona Komjáthy, who had been one of Dr. Bertalan's confirmands in his Passaic, NJ, congregation. The students selected two hymns of special relevance to Hungarians: the 134th Geneva Psalm and the Protestant galley-slaves' psalm. At the request of the political science department, Dr. Aladar Komjáthy also held a seminar on current events in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe from the perspective of the Reformed Church. On the same evening, in the nearby city of Grand Rapids, MI, the Hungarian Protestants and Catholics from all over Michigan gathered for a church service which was followed by a reception graciously provided by Gyula Vig, manager of the Hungarian Reformed Federation's Grand Rapids branch. One of the key events of Hope College's "Hungarian Reformed Days" was a meeting in which representatives of the Dutch Reformed College and Seminary and Dr. Bertalan discussed ways to strengthen the religious education and the church school system in Hungary. We have strong hopes that these preliminary meetings will lead to the establishment of a formal organization dedicated to this important task. In our opinion, no one deserved this honor more than Dr. Imre Bertalan who has forged so many important and fruitful links with the Dutch Reformed Church. It was at Rev. Bertalan's inspiration that Dr. Osterhaven organized the performance of the Kantus Choir of Debrecen in the auditorium of Hope College. Dr. Bertalan has also been instrumental in organizing a tour for Grand Rapids Calvin College's choir throughout Hungary during the summer of 1988. The deep friendship formed at Princeton between Dr.
