Calvin Synod Herald, 2005 (106. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2005-01-01 / 1-2. szám
2 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD calv'n urnAi n synod HtnnLU Official Organ of The Calvin Synod - United Church of Christ Founded in 1900 AMERIKAI MAGYAR REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA Volume 106 January - February 2005 No. 1-2 Official Organ of the Calvin Synod United Church of Christ - Founded in 1900 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD (ISSN 0161-6900) is published by-monthly for $10.00/year for individual subscriptions; $8.00/year for groups; $6.00/year for 50 or more copies. Please make checks payable to the Calvin Synod Herald Editor in Chief: Rt. Rev. Koloman K. Ludwig, Bishop Co-Editor: Rev. Dr. Edwin P. Elliott 9400 Fairview Avenue • Manassas, VA 20110 Tel.: 703-335-2844 Co-Editor: Rt. Rev. Joseph Vásárhelyi 220 Fourth St., • Passaic, NJ 07055 Tel.: 973-778-1019 • Fax: 973-778-1026 e-mail: vasarhel@optonline.net Newletters prepared by: Cathy Paksi 419-942-1763 Newletters printed by: Gazette Printers 724-349-3434 Periodicals postage paid at Butler, PA POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: CALVIN SYNOD HERALD 264 Old Plank Rd., Butler, PA 16002-3810 Manuscripts and photographs are not preserved or returned. Send all correspondence to the Editor. The views and opinions of the writers are their own and do not necessarily represent the position of the magazine or Calvin Synod. CALVIN SYNOD HEADQUARTERS: Rt. Rev. Koloman K. Ludwig, Bishop 7319 Tapper Avenue Hammond, IN 46324 Telephone: 219-931-4321 e-mail: KKLudwig@aol.com OFFICIAL COMMUNICATIONS Vacancies: Beaver Falls, PA Lorain, OH New York, NY The proper procedure is for all interested ministers to send their completed PROFILE (as provided by the United Church of Christ) to the Bishop’s office at Rt. Rev. Koloman K. Ludwig, 7319 Tapper Avenue, Hammond, Indiana 46324. Questions may be directed by telephone to (219) 931-4321. CONGREGATIONAL NEWS Dear Friends: My wishes to you for a blessed New Year, a gift of the Lord from his loving Grace. By now the Christmas celebrations are behind us. For some of us, the observance of Epiphany on the 6th of January marked the end of the holidays, when we also put away the Christmas tree and all the other beautiful decorations of the season. In some of our congregations, the celebration of the Epiphany of our Lord was the final high point of this beautiful season. We scoured the calendar for the next holiday. There’s only one in January - Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. So we look forward to February, when we have Valentine’s Day (not a real holiday, but an opportunity to show our love for those close to us by spending money), then finally President’s Day, our next 3-day weekend. A long two months. But wait - let’s not overlook another day tucked in early February - The First Sunday in Lent! Lent actually begins with Ash Wednesday on February 9th, and in our culture we are made aware of its coming by “Mardi Gras” and all it’s festivities. Beginning with Ash Wednesday, some of our Christian Brethren will begin their time of fasting in observance of this time on our Christian Calendar. But even for us, this is one of the most important times in our Christian Year! Lent is the time of preparation for the greatest celebration of Christianity - the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus the Christ! And the time of preparation is indeed, very important. We prepare for the celebration of The Resurrection because of it’s tremendous importance in our relationship with God, and the great gift he has given us - the gift of Eternal Life in the presence of our Lord: the promise that we are valuable in the eyes of God our Father, our Creator. Preparing for this gift involves examining our own lives, and how God has blessed us, and what we are doing with this gift. It involves reflecting on his many blessings, and contemplating how we could better use them in the service of our Savior. As the days of Lent become six full weeks, we begin to appreciate the importance of Christ’s tremendous gift and the beauty of the life which he gave us. Without reflection, without preparation, Easter will come with Easter bunnies, Easter egg hunts and new, Spring wardrobes - and bills! Without proper preparation for an important event in our lives, the event loses its significance and tends to become meaningless. And then we wonder, after all the hoopla, “Is that all there is?” Easter becomes meaningful if we prepare ourselves for the gift of Christ’s resurrection as a “new birth” in our lives. Christ comes to us, asking that we allow him into our lives. We must prepare a place for Him, or when he comes we will have no place for him. Let the time of Lent be a special time this year, allowing the Giver of Life to also be the one who renews us with his presence. Rev. Koloman K. Ludwig, Bishop
