Magyar Egyház, 1997 (76. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
1997 / 2. szám
Won,/ 8. oldal MAGYAR EGYHÁZ DEBRECEN IS WELLPREPARED TO RECEIVE THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE 23RD WORLD MEETING Bertalan Tamas, minister, in charge of the Foreign Relations Department of the Synodical Office, and head of the organizing committee of the world meeting said the following: “The opening church service of the Reformed world meeting will take place on August 8, Friday, in the Debrecen Great Church. The Word will be preached by Dr. Abival Pires Da Silvera, pastor, one of the vice presidents of the World Federation. For this occasion a special liturgy was prepared in cooperation with an international committee. On behalf of the Reformed Hungarians Zsigmond Vad, pastor of the Great Church, also took part in the work The choice of Debrecen, the “Calvinist Rome”, was fortunate because from here the participants can easily reach the Reformed congregations of the neighboring countries in Transylvania, Vojvodina, Subcarpathia and southern Slovakia. This will take place on August 16 and 17. During the August 10 morning services in Debrecen, pastors from the neighboring countries will serve in several congregations. The closing service will also be held in the Great Church on August 19. It will be followed by a torchlight procession between 9 and 10 p.m. from the church to the University of Arts and Sciences. They wish to symbolize this way that Christianity should remain the “light of the world”. According to the plans at the end of the procession the message of the conference: “Break the Chains of Injustice” will be discussed in Bible Studies. Some 400 official delegates are expected to Debrecen. Together with the representatives of other churches and denominations some 800 to 1000 participants will come to the world meeting.” THE REFORMED WORLD IS COMING The 23rd General Council is fast approaching and excitement is building in Debrecen, in Geneva, and (we hope) throughout WARC member churches. From many different parts of the world, persons are indicating their appreciation for the theme already chosen in 1994, “Break the Chains of Injustice.’ Focusing on these words of Isaiah has had increased significance as one reads the daily newspaper or watches the news on television or faces the market place. What role can the church play in seeking to break the chains of injustice? This is the challenge before the delegates who come to Debrecen. Already we have registrations from 175 of our 208 member churches, and from 88 different countries. The delegates come from Australia to Zambia; from Kiribati, a tiny island in the Pacific, to the USA. Indonesia is the country with the most member churches and almost all 27 Indonesian member churches will be represented in Debrecen. Of the 378 delegates named so far, 249 are men, 129 are women, and 55 are youth. In addition to the youth delegates, we will have 50 Stewards, young people between 18 and 30 from 30 different countries. The youngest delegate is 18 and the oldest is 81, with the majority being ‘middle aged’. All participants and member churches will be receiving the Study Texts for Sections and Subsections and the Bible Studies within the next few weeks. We hope churches will study these documents in local congregations. Our host, the Reformed Church in Hungary (RCH), is making a tremendous effort to welcome the participants, to share with them its long Reformation history, and to undergird the General Council with prayer and financial sacrifice. The participants will have many opportunities to see the RCH in its ministry and through its mission. As they pray for the General Council during this time of preparation and especially from 8 to 20 August as the meeting proceeds, we covet also your prayers and support for the delegates, for the leadership of the Alliance, for the Reformed Church in Hungary, and for our member churches throughout the world. Robert C. Lodwick, General Council Coordinator of WARC
