Calvin Synod Herald, 2005 (106. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2005-07-01 / 7-8. szám
8 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD A Suitable Church C.S. Lewis inserts the following line into The Screwtape Letters. The senior instructor in evil argues “Surely you know that if a man can’t be cured of churchgoing, the next best thing is to send him all over the neighborhood looking for the church that ‘suits’ him until he becomes a taster or connoisseur of churches.” In his own way I suspect Lewis was reaching out for what contemporary Americans call “seeker sensitivity.” As a pastor I see the problem. Since the things which make my congregation so interesting present themselves over time in relationship to the people composing the congregation, we have a bit of a challenge with visitors and tasters. Those passing by have little or no opportunity to encounter the really fascinating features of congregational life. I do not know the answer, but I do know that the people of God are called “the sheep of His pasture.” Flocks grow from a certain internal harmony; they do not aggregate stray sheep day tripping about the hills. Without solid grounding in Scripture, people cannot know that a congregation’s utility lies in its faithfulness to Scripture. American churches grow more American and less Biblical steadily because people are drenched in the former and unaware of the latter. Dr. Edwin P. Elliott, Jr. Reformed Presbyterian Church Manassas, Virginia Guide me, O Lord, In Your Ways I wish to live a life with open eyes to see beyond the visible; to live a life with open ears to listen to unpronounced words; to live a life with a nose sensitive to the richness of aromas and smells; to live a life being open to the touch of others; a life not for myself but to share its wholeness with those who are in a reaching distance; a life being generous to myself and to others; a life to serve unselfishly and sacrificially. I wish to a live a life giving everything until it hurts; a life of openness to love and be loved unconditionally; a life living well, tasting and enjoying every moment as a non-returnable gift; a life on the boundaries of existence, enjoying the risks involved, being swept to the deepest depths and to unimaginable heights. I wish to live a life remaining cheerful through undesirable happenings and cry with freely flowing tears because of the overwhelming happiness; a life believing in indestructible goodness in myself and others, to be willing to tie the shoelaces of those who are not able, to steady the trembling hands. I wish to live a life being humble to admit that I am unable to achieve perfection and becoming joyfully confident that I am accepted as I am, and I will continue to live a life as an endless journey toward eternity. I wish to live with the assurance of an inner peace that, going home, I will be continually in my Savior’s presence. Rev. Dr. Zoltán Király 2005 Windwood Lane,Lakeland, FL 33813-4807 Phone: 863-619-5883 E-mail: rbzlyl9@juno.com Reflections on Costa Rica God must have hardwired me to love all of His creations because I just cannot get enough of them. I love exploring our planet, meeting the people on it and experiencing how living things live the lives God gave them. In April of this year, I was blessed enough to be able to make a 17 day visit to Costa Rica. From the friends who had visited before me, I knew to expect lush jungles, unspoiled beaches and a mind-boggling array of exotic birds, insects and butterflies. Costa Rica is the rare jewel of Central America. This tiny nation of 4.1 million people live in a land just slightly larger than New Hampshire, have few extremes of wealth and poverty, no standing army, and a proud history as Central America’s most stable democracy. The people pride themselves on having more teachers than policemen and an education and social-welfare system that could easily be the envy of many developed nations. As a whole, Costa Ricans have been blessed with visionary leadership. In 1970, the people of Costa Rican recognized that something unique was vanishing, so their government set aside nearly 11% of their country as a system of national parks, and another 17% as forest reserves. Butterfly in the Costa Rican Rainforest The country has problems for sure, and even with all of its protective measures, environmental degradation from the huge banana farms and deforestation due to illegal logging are some of them. But it is an astonishing place to visit and closely experience some of the things God has made. This beautiful nation has 12 distinct ecological zones and a remarkable diversity of terrain. A visitor will experience rainforests, deciduous forests, mountainous cloud forests, spewing volcanoes (the country has 9 active ones, more than 60 dormant ones), dry savannahs, pristine beaches, as well as rain-soaked jungles and mangrove swamps that teem with wildlife. Animals and birds are everywhere and usually easy to spot. This is a land that contains 10% of the world’s butterflies, more birds than all of North America and more than 2,000 species of identified orchids (the orchid is their national flower). The wildlife includes jaguars, two species
