Dénes Dienes: History of the Reformed Church Collég in Sárospatak (Sárospatak, 2013)
SECONDARY SCHOOL AND COLLEGE-THE COLLEGE AND THE DEVELOPING, MODERN EDUCATION SYSTEM - The region and the Church District - En Route to Differentiation
With the appearance of these complimentary “competitors” the Péter Pázmány University became an internationally recognized, significant scientific centre in the capital city. This convergence of science and cultural was advanced by the increasing number of visits of famous scientists from the length and breadth of Europe. The culture of scholarly and methodological work took on more solid proportions, the educational infrastructure expanded quite rapidly (buildings, libraries, laboratories) and a relatively wide autonomy on institutional and faculty levels was enjoyed amid the buzzing intellectual life which made its presence felt everywhere. The university in Budapest became unbelievably overcrowded so the question of establishing universities in the outlying cities of the land regularly figured on the agenda. Education and research was first launched in four faculties in Kolozsvár (Cluj, in Romania today) in 1872. At the same time, plans for a second such university began to be laid. There were many ideas for the location, but the decision was taken only in 1912, at which time it was decided to establish two more universities, one in Pozsony (Bratislava today, in Slovakia) and one in Debrecen. Later on it will be discussed how the university in Kolozsvár posed challenges for the College in Patak, especially in terms of a legal faculty. These problems multiplied exponentially when the university in Debrecen, with its embracing of the Reformed Church as founders, was established. The negative consequences of this for the people on the banks of the Bodrog River only surfaced later, between the two world wars. This particularly exciting and veritable golden age of Hungarian culture and history of education lasted until the end of World War I. It cannot be claimed that there were no mistakes committed or dark shadows cast during these decades but the Hungarian education system was well-established and in place with various types of schools consolidated and spread throughout the country and they were capable of veritably high-quality performance. It is no coincidence that, of all the Hungarian recipients of the Nobel prize, there is not one who did not study within this school structure and with this curriculum. There are but few exceptional periods in Hungary’s cultural history when scientific and cultural achievements were taught in schools at almost the same time that they were realized. This era was such an era, for the works of contemporary writers and poets were taught as curriculum in literature classes. During the developments of this period, the state and the churches, along with their church schools dating from historical times, neglected to form a common front of community or interest, something which proved to have serious consequences. This omission, when coupled with the increasing ethnic and social tensions, automatically foreshadowed the onset of a serious setback in the very near future - one which would equal the paradox duality of Dualism. 131 Minister of Public Works ar\d Transport, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tamás Péchy (1828-1897) studied in Sárospatak THE REGION AND THE CHURCH DISTRICT - EN ROUTE TO DIFFERENTIATION Zemplén and Sárospatak in particular, was a major regional centre during the struggles of the Reform Era. The region acquired a far greater significance both culturally and politically than for what it had been predestined relative to its size or economic development. In fact, it could be said that the loss in momentum for
