Amerikai Magyar Reformátusok Lapja, 1934 (35. évfolyam, 1-36. szám)

1934-01-06 / 1. szám

AMERIKAI MAGYAR REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA

7

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1 AZ IFJÚSÁG KÖRÉBŐL. 1

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Rovatvezető: Nagy Ferenc.

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C. E. Topic for Jan. 14.

UNDERSTANDING OURSELVES.

Lesson: Rom. 7:12-25.

To fully and efficiently tackle the puzzling problem of self, we must, first of all, collect and dust our mental faculties and keep them in readiness for use. I must confess that this is deep stuff, but a little deep thinking wouldn’t hurt any of you.

I shall dissect the human entity into three parts — mind, soul and body. These three make up self. The most important of these, of course, is the soul, and we shall point out why.

The soul — ego, spirit, heart, psyche, names for the same thing — is or at least should be the controlling force and the best in the human being. The will, I take it, is the agent of the soul and also the body, the power that carries out the wishes of both. The mind — intellect, reason, etc. — weighs, distinguishes between things and impresses the soul with the results. The body or flesh, of course, is always out to satiate its cravings, some of which we call evil.

Bishop Ravasz said once that the tragedy of man lies not in not knowing what is right or wrong, but in insisting on doing the wrong. The apostle in our lesson speaks along similar veins of thought.

To know one’s self, is one of the goals in life that ought to be reached, and as early as possible. Only those men can wield their destinies whose souls can rise within to captain the mind, rule the body and give orders to the will. These people never let their mind gallop off to doubt, skepticism or cynicism, neither do they permit their desires to run away with them.

Prayer, meditation and introspection are very helpful in understanding, sizing up ourselves.

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OH YES — NEW YEAR!!

The new year has been rung in — in all its conventional glory filled with bright promises for the ensuing year. But, for the young people scattered over the United States, these promises and predictions hold little if anything at all. Wd can look forward to another year filled with hardships, knocks and sufferings as the year 1933 had presented to us. It is also a custom among people to make resolutions for the new year. But I have yet to hear of any Y. P. or C. E. Society making resolutions as a unit in the preparation of their program for the coming year. Is it that the problem is too complicated, or is it a case of passing the “headache” on to a few members of the organization who, in their hasty attempts to present something before the club, sometimes

overlook the needs and the desires of the club as a whole. (Hence one reason for failure to hold interest in the club.)

The Hungarian C. E. Societies are more or less a failure if we consider the number that are existing in the time that was given over for organization and the possible numbers which could have been existing had they the interest and the willingness to organize and cooperate. I should like to say a word or two to those C. E. Societies who took the work seriously enough to organize, and especially to the Y. P. Societies who have yet a little spark of life left in them.

It might be smart to have leisure, but it is most certainly stupid to kill time and call it leisure. Unfortunately we are living in a generation where time was forced on our hands by mismanagement and greed of certain classes desirous of usurping power at all expense, disregarding religion, ostracising the future of the nation, forgetting the younger element which is the backbone of the nation, and joking with the principles of sane government. This group presupposes that the having of gray-hairs naturally interprests the having of gray-matter. Hence we have time, lots of time on our hands. This coming year will not be much of and exception.

Because of this condition, possibly there could be no better time than the present in which to collect the younger element of the church together and hold their interest and attention by the introduction of educational problems which have been heckling them and which they themselves have chosen. Know the true value of time: snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no laziness, no procrastination: that will help you. Make resolutions this year BUT carry them through! Ask all the members of the C. E. and Y. P. societies what they would like to discuss for the coming year. Have debates; have special speakers on special subjects. Ask those people who aren’t members of the society what they would like to have discussed. If it is evolution, give it to them and let them have differences in oninion. That is what’s going to bring about a debate and the showing of logic and interest. If it is psychology, history, political science, economics, music, the history of religion, or the origin of the different religions, let them have it. Center your program and make your meeting live with genuine interest. Organize a committee for the working out of the resolutions and the findings of the society for the coming year. In other words, make a plan; work that plan, and stop wandering about aimlessly. Eliminate petty quar-