Calvin Synod Herald, 1977 (77. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1977-11-01 / 11-12. szám
2 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD The Editorial Board of the CALVIN SYNOD HERALD-REFORAAÄTUSOK LAPJA wishes all readers a VERY BLESSED CHRISTMAS and NEW YEAR! A Reformátusok Lapja szerkesztője és a szerkesztő bizottság ezúton köszöni meg íróink szíves szolgálatát. íróinknak, olvasóinknak és a Lap támagtóinak ÁLDOTT, BÉKESSÉGES KARÁCSONYT és BOLDOG ÚJÉVET KÍVÁNUNK) Szerkesztő és szerkesztő bizottság CALVIN SYNOD HEADQUARTERS: Rt. Rev. Dr. John Butosi, Bishop 963 Laurel Avenue Bridgeport, Conn. 06604 203-368-6358 calvin UCDÄI n synod ntnnLL/ Official Organ Of Tha Calvin Synod - Unitad Church of Christ Founded in 1900 REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA 0 ^^ November-December 1977 Volume 77, No. 11-12 Published bi-monthly. Editor-in-Chief: The Right Reverend Dr. John Butosi, Bishop 963 Laurel Ave., Bridgeport, Conn. 06604 EDITOR: REV. FRANCIS VITÉZ 493 Amboy Ave., Perth Amboy, N.J. 08861 201-826-3513 Subscription-Elöfizetés: yearly: individual: $5.00 group: $3.50 Printed by I. H. Printing Co., New Brunswick, N.J. Second class postage paid at New Brunswick, N.J. 08901 Send Form 3579 to Calvin Synod Herald-Reformatusok Lapja Circulation Department 493 Amboy Ave., Perth Amboy, N.J. 08861 Please make checks payable to the Calvin Synod Herald Send ail correspondence to the Editor Manuscripts and photographs are not preserved or returned. THE EDITORIAL BOARD: Editor-in-Chief ____ The Right Rev. Dr. John Butosi, Bishop Editor ________________________________ Rev. Francis Vitéz Board Members: Rev. Desmond D. Parragh, Rev. Zoltán Király, Dr. Joseph Piri, Rev. Arpad Antal, Rev. Zoltán Szabó, Rev. Victor Orth, Rt. Rev. Dr. Stephen Szabó, Rev. Dr. László Berzeviczy, Rev. Leslie Egry, Rev. Andrew Hamza. ON THE ROAD OF THE WISE MEN In this Christmas season let us celebrate the arrival of our Savior on the road of the wise men! In the Scriptures we read that “opening their treasures, they offered Him gifts: gold and frankincense and myrrh” (Mt. 2:11). That is to say: they offered to Him all that they were and all that they had. Evidently, there is no other way to celebrate true Christmas even today! Gold is the symbol of the outward treasures. We all have it. Some more, some less. But in every case: gold robs us if it becomes our master. It robs us of mother and country, plans and thoughts, God and faith, love and peace, our very self and life itself. And yet: man worships the idol of gold both in capitalist and communist societies, unable to do otherwise, until the living Christ liberates him. But the Son of God appeared to destroy the works of the devil. Thus the wise man is empowered to return the gold to its rightful owner, the living God. There is no Christmas where money is the Lord. Gold lies at the manger where Christmas is truly understood. Frankicense is the symbol of the inward treasures. It signifies knowledge and thoughts, feelings and emotions, spirit and devotion. The wise men offered to Jesus these gifts, too. O how relevant this is for us today! In our age, human knowledge grows by leaps and bounds, but every advancement brings newer fear to mankind. Here is, for example, the atomic research; the achievements are both marvelous and formidable. And this is the case with every human knowledge, feeling and thought. In short; human values cannot be a source of real blessings unless they are under the rule of the Lord. Finally, myrrh was offered by the wise men to the newborn King. In the Orient, myrrh is used for embalment, therefore, it is a symbol of pain, sorrow, bereavement, loneliness; the dark side of life. We all have our share in these unpleasant experiences. In themselves, they are undesirable, and yet we like to retain them. Especially we Hungarians like to pity ourselves, cling to our “ill fate” and show our wounds. God wants us to leave this myrrh at the manger of the Savior who came to carry our sorrows, heal the brokenhearted and comfort the desolate. Of course, to see and live Christmas in this light, we need faith. For only through faith can we understand that the wise men did what Jesus did first: He opened his treasures — both inward and outward treasures — and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Eph. 5:2) As a humble servant He emptied himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. (Phil. 2:7, 8)... May God grant us, then, living faith to celebrate Christmas on the road of the wise men. On behalf of the Conference Council of The Calvin Synod, Bishop John Butosi
