William Penn Life, 2017 (52. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2017-10-01 / 10. szám
1517 ~ 2017 Tlie P rotestant Reformation in Huligán] This October, Protestants around the world, including many WPA members and members of the American Hungarian community, will mark the 500th anniversary of the founding moment of their faith. According to History, com: "Tire Protestant Reformation was the 16th-century religious, political, intellectual and cultural upheaval that splintered Catholic Europe, setting in place the structures and beliefs that would define the continent in the modern era." In recognition of this historic event and the impact it had on Hungary and on Hungarians both at home and abroad, we publish the following brief history of the Reformation in Hungary, originally published by Magyar News Online. by Charles Bálintitt Jr. Magyar News Online The Protestant Reformation officially began on Oct. 31,1517, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses ("Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences") to the door of the Castle Church of Wittenberg, Germany (then part of Saxony in the Holy Roman Empire). Martin Luther may have done this merely to announce a discussion on the topic of indulgences at the university, but soon news and copies of the 95 Tlreses swept across large areas of Europe. Eventually, the official name of Wittenberg became Lutherstadt Wittenberg. The Reformation spread to Switzerland, beginning with the sermons of Ulrich Zwingli in 1519. Although very similar to Luther's 95 Theses, Zwingli's 67 Conclusions were apparently formulated independently. The two eventually met in 1529 at the castle of Philip of Hesse. This meeting, later called "The Colloquy of Marburg," did not go well. The main disagreement was over the sacrament of the Eucharist. While the Catholic Church believed (and still believes) in transubstantiation (that the bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of Jesus Christ during the Mass), Martin Luther preached consubstantiation (that Christ was present at the sacrament, but the bread and wine were not transformed). Zwingli, on the other hand, looked at the Eucharist as just a memorial, where Christ was not present. The first signs of Lutheranism appeared around 1520 in the northern parts of Hungary among the Martin Luther. German population of what is present-day Slovakia and in some larger urban areas. But the main thrust of the Protestant Reformation came to Hungary during the next generation, mainly emanating from the teachings of a Frenchman born in Noyon, Picardy, France on July 10,1509, who later moved to Switzerland. John Calvin published his Institutes of the Christian Religion in 1536 and became prominent in Geneva after 1541. His main variance from Martin Luther was his belief in predestination, that God has already chosen those who will enter into Heaven and no amount of good deeds will change that. It is possible that those who perform good deeds throughout their lives do so because they are among the ones already chosen. More than anything else, the major historical event that advanced Protestantism in Hungary was the Battle of Mohács in 1526. This greatest of Hungarian military defeats had a number of consequences. First, the young king and a large number of the leaders of the Catholic Church were killed in the battle. 12 0 October 2017 0 WILLIAM PENN LIFE Photo © Can Stock Photo Inc./nicku
