Calvin Synod Herald, 1989 (89. évfolyam, 1-2. szám)

1989-07-01 / 1. szám

CALVIN SYNOD HERALD- 6 -REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA

funds, and the economic condition of the country is such that the congregations of the Reformed Church cannot bear the burden of maintaining the school alone. Outside help is an absolute necessity. Therefore a Committee for the Re-establishment of the Sárospatak Reformed Academy has been formed to head up a drive for funds to enable the school to function as a Christian institution again. A charitable foundation is being set up in Western Michigan where there is a strong Reformed community and an interest in fellow-Calvinists in Eastern Europe. The trustees of the foundation will be officials of the Christian Reformed Church, the Reformed Church in America, and the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America. Bishop László Kürti of the Cistibiscan Synod, within which Sárospatak is located, has suggested that major funds be held in this country with the interest going to Hungary for the maintenance of the school, and that is also the committee’s intension. A campaign for funds will be launched this autumn, and the target date for the transfer of the school to the church is the year following. Both Dr. Imre G. Bertalan, at whose invitation this is being written, and I plan to be in Hungary this October to help in the realization of this long-awaited occasion.

News of the proposed change in the life of the school has been widely acclaimed. Dr. James I. McCord, president emeritus of Princeton Theological Seminary and a member of our committee, has declared:

Sárospatak is one of the most famous names in education throughout the world. Being solidly Reformed, it is equally ecumenical and historically has reached out to both the East and the West. The time has come to work for the reopening of this great center and to relight the torch of Truth.

The American ambassador to Hungary, the Honorable Mark Palmer, has similarly endorsed the work of our committee. Calling the college at Sárospatak one of the most “prestigious” in Hungary, he writes:

7 am quite familiar with the project and wholeheartedly support it because it is a perfect example of the many opportunities we have in East Central Europe today ... I strongly urge foundations and individuals to support this effort in concrete way. There is no more deserving project of this kind in this part of the world. / would be pleased to provide personal and direct assurance by phone or in writing should anyone wish to contact me directly.

Bishop Elemér Kocsis, newly elected president of the Reformed Church in Hungary, has expressed the “deep thanks” of the General Synod in its meeting of

January 19, 1989, and “on behalf of the Praesidium of the General Synod” he asks our committee to help in the realization of their plan for the school. Dr. Kálmán Űjszászy, sole surviving member of the Theological Faculty at Sárospatak, has urged us “to serve this matter, praying, working, even fighting for it.”

While there has been high interest on this side of the Atlantic in the restoration of the Sárospatak Reformed Academy, action has lagged behind that of our friends in Hungary. A foundation was established there on March 22 of this year, and a half million forints was collected within two weeks. Although that amount may not seem impressive in terms of American

currency, it represents sacrificial giving there, some persons having given a month’s wages as their contribution.

Those interested in this project believe that it is moving from the planning stage to reality. The cooperation of the whole Reformed/Presbyterian community will be necessary to its successful completion. The goal is some millions of dollars in a foundation for the future maintenance of the school plus a cash contribution to show our serious intention and to get things rolling. With all the needs there are at home this will not be easy, but the cause is not ours; we serve the Lord of the church, and his power is infinite.

M. Eugene Osterhaven

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CALVIN SYNOD!

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into this place with a purpose to help those who can’t help themselves! We North American Hungarian Christians have a vision to be leaders of the Hungarian Reformed Ecumene, and active participants in the discourses of world Christian assemblies. What a fantastic vision we have! On the congregational level, sound preaching, taking a stand on the issues facing our people, providing loving and caring leadership, and a nurturing fellowship, if these are not part of your church life then I urge you, beg you, admonish you to make them visions for your congregation. These are our potential visions for the next fifty years! Only God knows our future but we can project forward with confidence if our driving visions are hopefully of God, from God, and by God. Habakkuk assures us that the right God-inspired visions will come through. Again I quote the living Bible: "But these things I plan won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day!"(LB)

It was vision that maintained this Synod for half a century. But we cannot live on the visions of past generations or past church leaders. New times require new dreams, new visions, new perspectives, new goals. Today, however, vision alone is not enough. We need to learn how to communicate it to our people. Habakkuk advises us even in this respect. The Modern Language Translation so reflects the Hebrew text: "Write the vision! Make it plain upon tablets so he who runs by may read ft. "(ML) Our modern people are in

a great hurry. We have them mostly on Sunday mornings only. It is the preacher’s responsibility again to use his watchtower time efficiently. Communicate a vision! Lift up your people! Show them God’s mercy!

In our many family journeys to the West I remember how often we encountered in South Dakota a drugstore, Walls Drugs. Several miles before the establishment there are billboards advising you that you are only so far from this famous place. As you get closer the number of billboards increases, making it virtually impossible to miss Walls Drugs. As I try to understand Habakukk, perhaps our Sunday morning services should serve as billboards on the way to eternal life. They could be signs of directions, encouragements, a listing of promises, signs that will help us to not make a wrong turn. It would be wonderful if after every Worship Service each of us could say, I am closer to God’s Kingdom now than I was before this Service.

I am convinced that even these Annual Meetings could be tell tale signs, tablets that even we hurried and tired people can read from them that God is among us and leading us. I am also convinced that the Calvin Synod today is closer to God’s kingdom that it was fifty years ago, and that this Anniversary could take us one step closer to God. This is why the passing of even fifty years, in Habakkuk’s opinion, is not lost time but a range of milestones, a series of billboards on the way to heaven.

Congratulations, Calvin Synod! Happy Birthday! Amen.

Cleveland, Ohio, May 23, 1989

Rev. László M. Medyesy Ph. D.