Magyar Egyház, 1966 (45. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1966-01-01 / 1. szám

MAGYAR EGYHÁZ

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there was no one who could make it one again. An outsider, perhaps an objective psychologist could see that in the Hungarian Reformed life in America there exists a constant sorrow, the sorrow of a longing for brotherhood. We can observe this at most of the conferences held by the elders of the church. How strange it is that when the battle is the hardest, when the hate has wounded the most, then the Hungarian heart sobs the most for his brother. We can trace back and find the cause for all our fightings, sorrows and mistakes in this fact that our brethren wanted brethren with whom they could have fellowship. There has been so much energy, knowledge and time wasted to try to make others understand that “the road we are traveling on is the only good road, and brother, your place is here with us.” How tragically sad it is that each time we sat down to the table to try to reconcile brother with brother we came away with the distance and the chasm between brethren still growing wider and deeper. There never was an era when the responsible leaders of the Hungarian Reformed Life in America didn’t want unity, and how tragic that after every attempt to unite the bitterness and the disappointments in the hearts became greater. Those who struggled for unity lost their reputation in the eyes of those on both sides of the issue. We have many bitter examples before us, and many mistakes and warnings cry out to the dreamers and Sisypheans of the Hungarian Reformed peace in America.

However, we must begin again, perhaps sometime it will come to life. We are quoting Elder John Szabó of Passaic, the son of old country Calvinism who grew up here: “There is no such thing as an impossible and unfeasable case if we believe in it with a Christian Hungarian Reformed heart.”

(To be continued)

THE SECOND HELVETIC CONFESSION

RENDERED IN QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS SECTION XIII

The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the promises and the “letter and the Spirit”.

1. How does the Gospel differ from the Law?

The Law brings wrath and curse upon the lawbreaker, but the Gospel proclaims mercy and blessing to the sinner.

2. Through whom did God reveal his Law and the Gospel?

God revealed his Law through Moses, and the Gospel through Jesus Christ.

3. Does this mean that those who lived before and under the Law were entirely without the Gospel? No. Even they possessed the Gospel as the promises of God concerning material and spiritual blessings.

4. What do we mean by the promises of God concerning material blessings?

We mean that God promised to bestow upon us all those material things we need in this world, like our daily bread.

5. What do we mean by the promises of God concerning spiritual blessings?

We mean that God promised even to Adam and Eve that a Savior will be born, who, if we believe in Him, will obtain the forgiveness of our sins and our heavenly eternal life.

6. How did our fathers who lived before Jesus Christ obtain their salvation then?

They obtained their salvation by believing the

promises of God concerning the coming of the Savior Jesus Christ.

7. Yet what is it that we call the Gospel today?

We call the Gospel the joyous news, announced first by John the Baptist, then Jesus himself and his apostles that God had already fulfilled his promise; He gave us his only begotten Son, and through Him God reconciled us to Himself, forgave our sins and made our eternal life certain.

8. Why do we call the Gospel the first four books of the New Testament and the writings of the apostles? We call them the Gospel because they tell us the life story, the teachings and doings of Jesus Christ; or in other words, as to how Jesus obtained the forgiveness of our sins and our eternal life.

(To be continued) Stephen Kovács

YOUTH WEEK — 1966

The picture on the cover of this issue is a reproduction of the 1966 Youth Week poster. In the artist’s interpretation, dynamic forces are pushing and pulling in every direction. But the cross is planted firmly and decisively in the midst of these twirling-twisting forces. This is a portrait of each one of us and of 20th century human society as well.

Youth Week is a nation-wide observance by Christian young people in the local church and community, emphasizing the ministries of youth in the total mission of Christ’s Church and affording an opportunity for youth to express themselves in their common unity in Christ.

This year’s theme is What In the World Are We Waiting for ... A book, recommended for Youth Week but also very appropriate for youth group study during the year. These Rebellious Powers, was written by Albert H. van den Heuvel, executive secretary of the Youth Department of the World Council of Churches. What are some of the powers that shape and mold our life today? — the book asks. Some are the visible ones: money, sex, religious observances, status. Others are invisible: parental pressure, nationalism, racial attitudes, conformity. Any of these powers may function as a servant of God’s purpose for human good. Likewise any of them grows corrupt and becomes an idol one worships. How we struggle or submit to these powers is the inescapable question.

How the mastering of these powers looks from the perspective of faith placed in a specific person, who lived long ago in a corner of the earth, who had very few followers during his lifetime, who was executed for both religious and political reasons, who died alone, yet who is very much alive — and whose name was Jesus: here lies the answer for today’s Christian youth.

Christmas Service Recessional

(Carteret, N.J.)

Photo: L. Harsanyi