Magyar Egyház, 1957 (36. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1957-10-01 / 10. szám
MAGYAR EGYHÁZ 13 What Do American Protestants Believe? by Charles A. Darocy This is an unusual question, for the great majority of American Protestants believe whatever they please. Our historic denominations have creeds and confessions of faith. They all claim to use the Bible as a Book uniquely inspired. They all claim that Jesus stands in an unique relationship to us. Yet, when all is said and done, most Protestants don’t believe what their own denominations claim to believe and would be shocked if their ministers were to preach according to the confession they swore uphold at the time of their ordination. Who is God? The typical answer would be vague and skeptical. God is, for most Protestants, the spiritual equivalent of the “Man up there.” He is a great figure of mystery, whose judgments are pretty harsh, and who is prayed to as “The Father” but otherwise unknown. Who is Jesus? He is God’s Son. Not really his son as we think of a son, but a form of divine-human messenger who we really pray to. He died on a Cross, rose on the third day and is now on a cloud sitting on His Father’s right hand side. Who is the Holy Spirit? This is a real poser. He (not It) is really a mystery. Let’s leave it at that. What is the Church? It is of divine origin, but pretty earthly when you see how our churches really are run. It is either a building, a congregation or even a denomination. If it is a financial success, the right people go there, it’s a success. Otherwise, it isn’t. What is Holy Communion? Here answers run the gamut from the Episcopalians whose ideas coincide with the Roman Catholics to the Quakers who deny its necessity completely. At any rate, explaining what happens at Communion is best when left to professional clergymen. What is baptism? It means one thing to the Baptists, something else to the rest of the Protestants. Anyhow, its so greatly overshadowed in importance by Holy Communion that Baptism is a less important, but historic rite. What of the Resurrection? Some Protestants claim that it is enough to have lived a good life on earth. Others believe in a bodily resurrection. Many just won’t worry about it until it’s too late. Anyhow, its another unknown of Christian life. All of this sounds discouraging. It would seem that there is very little that can be claimed to be Protestant belief. And, what is even sadder, it does seem as if Protestantism is a very easy way of life, for it is entirely in the hands of the individual to decide about everything. Our Reformed Churches have a tremendous responsibility toward American Protestantism. We have preserved far more of historic Christianity than most other denominational bodies. Our witness has been consistent through the years. We haven’t been quite as willing to give up our beliefs in order to accommodate the many who want an easy type of religion. We know that one needn’t be a “Catholic” to know what one believes. For our faith is based on personal experience as well as the traditions of historic Christianity. What do American Protestants believe? Just about anything they please. But this very freedom leads to an abandonment of basic Christianity. Let’s know what we believe and serve as a witness for the faith to the confused Christians of our day who, like the Athenians of St. Paul’s time, believed in an unknown god. Our God is known. Our task is to help others find Him. THE CHURCH: INVISIBLE — VISIBLE — PERSONAL by Albert W. Kovács Americans are proud of their citizenship in a Christian nation, but if this pride is justified in practice is very questionable. The latest statistics show that about 60% of our nation’s people hold membership in some church. That is about 100,000,000 people. But if only 40% (which is no doubt quite high) worship on a given Sunday, that means that only 25% of American people care enough to worship God weekly, and the other 75% do not. Therefore, is the United States a Christian nation? Why do genuine Christian people go to church? For one reason only, to offer to God thanksgiving for what he has done for all men through Jesus Christ. Any other reason is secondary to this, and leads from it. God has given sinful man a second chance because of His great love. He has sent Jesus Christ, His Son, into the world to erase the slate, and offered happiness on earth and eternal life to all who accept his blessed gift. John Calvin, that great founder of Reformed theology, has ably described the Church of Christ. He has said the Body of Christ is primarily the Church invisible. God has elected sons and daughters to be its members, as the body of the Church spiritual. And the Church invisible consists not only of those who are its members today, but the faithful of all ages who have died in the Lord and now comprise the heavenly hosts surrounding us as a cloud of heavenly witnesses. Jesus Christ is Lord of the living and the dead, and the Church invisible is made of the souls of the living and the dead. Some people wish Calvin had stopped here. They are too lazy to awaken on the Lord’s Day
