Calvin Synod Herald, 1982 (82. évfolyam, 1-6. szám)
1982-04-01 / 2. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD — 6 — REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA BRIEF NEWS____________________________ RÁDAY COLLEGE—BUDAPEST, Dean Dr. Ferenc Bajusz reports that at the Theological Academy there were 102 students of the day-time section, and 73 in the correspondence division. The day-time division had 6 foreign students: 3 Ethiopians, 1 Dutch. 1 American and 1 Slovakian. 26 students graduated from the seminary last year. * * * LIFE IN DANGER—At the All-Hungary Presbytery of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hungary the Presiding Bishop, Dr. Zoltán Káldy said, “I believe that in our time the effort to preserve peace and to avert an atomic war should have top priority in the churches. Without saving life we can not proclaim the Gospel, for it can only be preached to living people." * * * BUDAPEST—Bishop Tibor Bartha speaking to the winter session of the Hungarian Parlament said, “The Christian churches consider nuclear war as sin against God and man. and hence strive that an international agreement categorically ban the experimenting with, and the manufacture and storing of nuclear weapons. One of the speakers of the Amsterdam forum voiced the opinion that nuclear war and, in general, war in the Atomic Age must be outlawed, just as many other inhuman and immoral practices, institutions and tendencies have been branded and eliminated in the course of history, such as cannibalism, slavery, fascism and racism.” (H.C.P.) Poverty, not Scarcity, Causes World Hunger A recent newspaper article on hunger points to an important, but little-known, fact: poverty, not scarcity, is cited as the chief cause of world hunger today. “On the one hand, enough grain is produced now to provide every man, woman and child on earth with some 3,000 calories a day. That is more than the average level of consumption in the United States... On the other hand, chronic malnutrition persists, often in countries where plenty of food is available, such as in India and Brazil,” the article says. Why then does malnutrition still exist? “The answer, according to a surprising number of international food experts,” the article says, “is that hunger is overwhelmingly the result of income inequality and poverty. Until these stubborn social and economic problems are solved, no amount of tinkering with relief programs or population control will eradicate world hunger...” While we in the church do supply badly-needed food supplies to those in emergency situation, it is important to keep in mind that systemic and legislative approaches to the hunger issue must be taken in order to effect long-term change. We help to support ecumenical efforts to empower the hungry in this way through our gifts to the UCC Hunger Action Fund. More for Your Dollar Ask a person cleaning a house, “Which would you rather use, a broom or a vacuum cleaner?” Obviously the answer would be, “A vacuum cleaner.” It is more efficient. There are many means of delivering compassionate assistance around the world. The most efficient way is through the church. Our cost is somewhere between 7 cents and 10 cents on the dollar for all promotional materials and administration. This is because church members do the same thing the world over. They band together and volunteer to get the work done. There are many “broom” methods advertising by non-church agencies. But the comparable cost of delivery is from 25 cents to 40 cents on the dollar. The church, through One Great Hour of Sharing, is still the way through which you deliver more of your dollar to the person in need. , A „ — adapted from the 19ö1 Report ot the Division ot World Service, United Church Board for World Ministries. College Heritage Day College Heritage Day will be celebrated on April 25th by many congregations in the United Church of Christ. Thirty colleges are related to our denomination through the UCC Council for Higher Education. * * * QUOTE “Who is more dangerous to society and who is less likely to go to prison—the kid from the wrong side of the tracks who robs a filling station at night... or the corporate executive who knows that the toxic wastes from his firm are being disposed of in a way which will poison all the water wells in the area?” —from LINKAGE, the publication of the New York Conference of the UCC. Abortion Controversy NEW YORK: Acknowledging that the abortion controversy “is not going to go away” and “freedom of choice is not a reality, ” over 50 leaders in the United Church of Christ began work on a more comprehensive approach to the issue in a three-day consultation last month. While praising the denomination’s General Synods for their early and consistent stands in favor of a woman’s right to decide to continue or terminate a pregnancy, speakers stressed the need for a stronger theological base to counter “prolife” postures and greater analysis of the economic and social underpinnings of a “pro-choice” stance. The Rev. Dr. Roger Shinn, professor of social ethics at Union Theological Seminary, accused his fellow religious abortion rights proponents of defending their position in a way that “reflects individualism which derives from the Enlightenment and not from the Christian faith.” Noting that United Church bodies have been opposed to freedom of choice when it comes to segregation or the busing of public school students to achieve integration, he called for more discussion of “why the Church wants to restrict some freedoms and enlarge others.” Echoing Dr. Shinn’s call for a deeper theological approach, Alfred Moran, president of Planned Parenthood of New York City, asserted: “The religious community has abandoned the moral high ground to the Roman Catholic Church. ” Contending that abortion rights “is a religious issue, ” he asked United Church defenders of the right to choose to come up with an “alternate ideology to that offered by one of the major religious groups in this country which sees the medical profession as murderers. ” Pointing the way to such a theological stance, the Rev. Dr. Avery D. Post, president of the denomination, observed that “there’s a word of God about creation: about humanness; about justice, and about freedom and responsibility. ” He advised participants to examine biblical commentaries and Christian values which deal with birth and life, with
