Reformátusok Lapja, 1971 (71. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1971-02-01 / 2. szám

Hungarian Reformed Religious Paper

Founded in 1900

OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE CALVIN SYNOD — UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST

CJl

urn to

When words are lost,

And you cannot speak; When something hurts You way down deep;

In your heart there comes A sudden pause,

Turn to God

To find the cause.

When Faith is lost,

And your soul has fear;

Of sudden parting

From someone dear;

When strength you lack,

Life’s hard to bear

Turn to God

In silent prayer.

When words are lost,

And you can’t explain;

The reasons for

Your inner pain;

The Bible answers

What you don’t know,

Turn to God

With every woe.

Margaret Fekete Csóványos

Ol'/cMCC

It does not come on angel wings Nor can it be seen by man;

Silence lives in a lonely heart Which from a loved one had to part.

It does not appear in any form Nor can it be touched by man;

Silence is there in a lonely grave Of the rich, the poor, the soldier brave.

It does not arrive with a trumpet call Nor can it be heard by man;

Silence thrives in an empty room Where memories always seem to loom.

It does not come with the fragrant air Nor can it be smelled by man;

Silence is in the starry sky And fleecy clouds all floating by.

It does not come by command of God Nor is it forced on man;

Silence is present and always there When one is deep in Holy prayer.

Margaret Fekete Csóványos

The Future of Hungarian Churches in America

Christian churches are religious organizations sharing common Christian beliefs and goals. Upon examining the life of our church, we find that our religions are inseparably interwoven with western culture. The social, political, cultural, and economic values of the 20th Century are dissolved into Christianity and create a great variety of differences within the Christian Church. National customs, heritages influencing the Hungarian churches make them noticeably different from American churches of other ethnic backgrounds, and different from the churches of Hungary. Though the main goal of the Hungarian American churches and the churches of Hungary is to proclaim the teaching of Jesus and create congregations living according to the Christian principles. In the U.S.A. the preservation of Hungarian culture is also a vital task of the churches.

The decreasing activities of the Hungarian churches are in equal proportion with the decreasing

social and cultural activities of Hungarian Americans. This means that without proper reinforcement Hungarian churches and organizations in America may experience a critical crisis within a few decades.

Is there a need or is there a future for Hungarian churches in America? There are many who feel that it is a useless struggle to continue the ethic role of our churches, because their mission is limited to a few decades. It is a good thing that people sharing this opinion do not work in hospitals, for they might tell the old people: “We feel it is useless to meet your needs because you have only a few years to live. So, you might as well die now.” We hope that this illustration will bring a few people to the realization that as long as there are Hungarians living in the U.S.A. there is a need for Hungarian churches. Our role is to seek out the most meaningful Hungarian mission for the remaining decades. Just as in our limited life we continuously work to meet our basic human needs,

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