The Eighth Tribe, 1978 (5. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1978-05-01 / 5. szám
May, 1978 THE EIGHTH TRIBE Page 13 Church Center May Be Reality In Iigonier Plans to convert Bethlen Children’s Home in Ligonier to a church center will be realized after all if a proposal by Calvin Synod of United Church of Christ is accepted by the Hungarian Reformed Federation. During a two-day meeting in Ligonier this week, delegates of the Synod, representing 15 congregations, voted in favor of the proposal which must be approved by directors of Bethlen Home and the federation. A decision on the matter will be made by May 25. One of the supporting bodies of Bethlen Home and a branch of the federation, Calvin Synod proposes “to create a Hungarian Reformed Center for the purpose of cultivating ecclesiastical, scientific, cultural, educational, social, and fraternal programs of our people.” The Rev. Arpad George, president of the federation, told the gathering that the proposed church center, would serve as a museum, be used for training programs for young people and laymen as well as a meeting place for branches of the federation, and might house a summer school. Operation of Bethlen Children’s Home was discontinued last fall by the federation which announced plans to convert the Fairfield Street building to a church center at that time. In February, the plans were abandoned for financial reasons and a decision to sell the building was announced. Unionvale Coal Co., a prospective buyer, then applied for a variance of the Ligonier Borough zoning ordinance, a requirement because the building is located in a residential area. The coal brokerage firm proposed a change to an office and professional building for its own use and for rental facilities. THE MAGYARS IN HISTORY by S. B. Vardy, Ph.D. Professor of History — continued — CHAPTER XVII HUNGARY’S EXPANSION TO THE BALKANS (Croatia, Byzantium and the Crusades) The Conquest of Croatia and Dalmatia The internal consolidation introduced by King St. Ladislas and continued by King Coloman was paralleled by the initiation of Hungary’s expansion beyond its original frontiers. This was particularly true in the southwest, where Hungary’s outlet to the Adriatic Sea was cut off by the Kingdom of Croatia. Having reached the apogee of its national development under Peter Kreshimir in the third quarter of the eleventh century (1058-74), Croatian power began to decline. This decline was halted for a while by the accession of Demetrius Zvonimir (1076-88), the Ban of Pannonian Croatia and the leader of the “Latin Party” versus the “Slavic Party” (Latin Christianity versus Orthodox Slavic Christianity) . But this success was achieved at the expense of making Croatia a fief of the Papacy, and the king of Croatia a vassal of the pope. King Zvonimir’s death in 1088 was followed by a renewed struggle for the throne. The Latin Party supported the king’s widow, Helena (Hona), who happened to be St. Ladislas’s sister. The Slavic Party, on the other hand, stood behind Stephen, a nephew of the former king, Peter Kreshimir. Stephen’s death in 1090, however, undermined his supporters, and left the door open for a Hungarian intervention (Preveden: Croatia, I, 85-87; Deér: Horvát-magyar.) Hungarian chronicles generally hold that St. Ladislas decided to conquer Croatia because he wished to support his widowed sister, Helena. While this was undoubtedly also a factor in Ladislas’s decision, it was far from being the only one. One should not forget that — in light of earlier dynastic ties between the Árpáds and the Tripimir Dynasty of Croatia — Ladislas could formulate a well-founded hereditary claim to the Croatian throne. His nephews, Coloman and Álmos — the former of whom became his successor — were the nearest descendants of the Tripimir rulers of Croatia. Thus, while Ladislas’s invasion and conquest of Slavonia and Northern Croatia in 1091 was motivated partially by the desire to help his sister, it was also impelled by the knowledge of the hereditary rights of the Árpáds, as well as by the goal to put Hungary on the Adriatic Sea. 101
