Calvin Synod Herald, 1998 (98. évfolyam, 1-6. szám)
1998-05-01 / 3. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD- 3 -AMERIKAI MAGYAR REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA 1998 150th Memorial Year of the Great Hungarian War of Independence of 1848-49 The 42nd of its glorious 1956 repeat Fight for Freedom To be a magyar is not a word, a name, or ancestors. In life, Heart and Soul makes one a magyar. FERENC KÖLCSEY Away with you, you fainthearted, still doubting about our Nation, not knowing that mighty God Himself holds in His hand the Hungarian Nation! (D. Berzsenyi) HUNGARY'S WAR OF LIBERATION 1848-1998 By Rev. Nicholas Novak (Reprinted from the “Chaplain’s Corner” of the Bethlen Home Messenger) MAGYAR, ARISE! - Thy country calls you now! The hour of decision is here - or never: Should we be slaves or shall we be free? This is the question - You must decide it now! -By the great God of Hungary we pledge, we swear: “We’ll never be slaves again!" Verse after verse the solemn refrain grew into a thundering chorus on March 15, 1848, as the revolutionary poet Petőfi read this new Credo of Liberty to the demonstrating multitude, demanding the guarantees of an all-inclusive freedom from the tyranny of the Habsburg emperors. For the past 150 years, virtually all turn of events in Hungarian history have their roots - for better or worse - in these unforgettable lines of an eternal inspiration for the undiminished struggle and endless sacrifice to achieve the all-too-long denied freedom of the people of Hungary. For a moment, let us reflect on some of the features that characterized this monumental upheaval. First, it was not the lawless riot of an unruly mob, - as the secret police informed the young, inexperienced emperor, Franze Joseph I. From the beginning to the end, it was a spontaneous, patriotic uprising, in which the whole nation, people from all walks of life, stood up as one man to break the chains of oppression that crippled and humiliated them for centuries. Students and professors, rich nobles and poor peasants, Catholic priests and Calvinist preachers, former generals of the Imperial Army and Polish volunteers, Jewish merchants and Slovak insurgents - all marched together shoulder to shoulder to end the reign of police terror and heartless exploitation that had but one insidious aim: to turn Hungary into the personal colony of the Habsburg dynasty and of their brain-washed bureaucracy in Vienna. Secondly, no man of any consequence planned or promoted an armed conflict. It was forced on us. A motley band of marauders, led by the self-styled Croatian warlord Jellasich, crossed the Drava River, plundering, like ruthless bandits, the villages of defenseless peasants. His impudence enraged the whole country. In no time they were literally whipped out from the land, then Austrian troops marched on to Buda - only to meet defeat by the swords of an insurgent National Army, recruited virtually overnight by the passionate, town-to-town campaign of Louis Kossuth. The liberating forces defeated the Austrian mercenaries battle after battle. The Hungarian general staff gained a most capable ally in the Polish General, Josef Ben. By the summer of 1849, final victory was only a few weeks away. The emperor, who was declared formally dethroned at the Debrecen assembly, called into play the mutual assistance pact with the Tsar of Russia. Russian infantry and Kossack calvary was commandeered into the country, an army of 200,000 strong. Against these overwhelming odds General Görgey saw no point in prolonging the war. He, his officers and his exhausted army, laid down their arms in August 13, 1849. Kossuth and with him thousands of patriots, went into exile. Others, who naively believed the given word of the victors for safe-conduct, were arrested, tried as ordinary traitors, and executed. The day, October 6, 1849, when the 13 generals died a martyrs death at Arad, is ever since a National Day of Mourning. At our graves - "wrote Petőfi the prophetic words in the last stance - our children shall kneel and recall our names and bless our memory in prayer." Iynod HERfiLD--------------------Amerikai Magyar Reformátusok Lapja | Official Organ of Tha Calvin Synod - United Church of Chriat [ Founded in 1900 ANNIVERSARY No. 98 Born with the Century! Communicating, strengthening our living Faith for 98 years. May you live at least for another century! SARA is Sharing America’s Resources Abroad! SARA is a non-profit organization incorporated in the State of Ohio and is an ecumenical ministry affiliated with the Ohio Conference of the United Church of Christ, which distributes medical supplies and equipment throughout the world. SARA began by helping one child and one physician. Since that beginning more than $18 million of medical supplies have been sent to more than 10 countries. Dozens of physicians have been trained in the United States through SARA. SARA is governed by a Board of Trustees. SARA has no paid staff person, we are all volunteers. Our Executive Director and Founder, Rev. Stephen Szilagyi is a recently retired minister who gives full time to this program. For information about the SARA Mission and Medical supplies, please contact: SARA Rev. Stephen Szilagyi Executive Director 141 Cummins Avenue Conneaut, Ohio 44030 Tel: (513) 241-5244 For contribution information, please contact: Dr. Ralph Quelhourst President, SARA Ohio Conference of the United Church of Christ 6161 Busch Blvd., Suite 95 Columbus, Ohio 43229-2547 1-800-282-0740 Fax (614) 885-8824 Even as we, of Hungarian ancestry, do today.
