The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, 1984 (11. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1984-07-01 / 7. szám

THE EIGHTH HUNGARIAN TRIBE (ISSN 0272-1341)

(LISPS 046-310)

Editor .................. Sándor E. Chomos

Managing Editors:

New Jersey Section .... Paul Pulitzer P.O. Box 2203 Union, New Jersey 07083 Tel.: 201/964-8464 Western Pennsylvania Tri-State

Area........................... Dr. Bela Biro

5600 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15217 Tel.: 412/421-8384 California Section ... Joseph Szurcsik P.O. Box 2425 Menlo Park, CA 94025

Columnists:

Andrew Haraszti:

Cultur-historical Essays László Könnyű: Review Victor Molnár: Hungarian Varieties Ferenc F. Sajgó: Hungarian Life-Line Assistant Editors:

Editorial: Nancy J. Chomos Boeche, Raymond W. Boeche Features: Sándor Emery Chomos, Rhonda Ahl Chomos, Bob Chomos

Art ............................ Elias C. Chomos

Published monthly by the Bethlen Press, Inc. — P.O. Box 637, Ligonier, PA 15658, U.S.A.

Editor’s Home Phone: 412/834-0169 Second Class Postage paid at Ligonier. PA 15658, U.S.A.

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Opinions expressed in any signed column appearing in this publication, including those of staff members, reflect the view of the writer only. They may or may not be in agreement with the editorial policy of this magazine.

— Editor

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THE EDITORS CORNER:—

REMEMBERING THE BIRTH OF A NATION

FOURTH OF JULY for most Americans means picnics, fireworks and vacation. Walking down the street one might see the American flag on some of the front peches. But is this the way to remember the Birth of a Nation we now call our own? Shouldn't we, who enjoy the freedom, the prosperity, and all the things God bestowed upon us here in America, bow our heads in prayer to the Creator of the Universe, in our schools, places of work, churches, or just under the starry night sky in our backyards, whether it is permitted by the Justices of the Supreme Court dr not.

The last paragraph in the Declaration of Independence states: “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of DIVINE PROVIDENCE, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” Will our Justices on the Supreme Court define for us “The Divine Providence” the authors of our Constitution referred to! Did they mean the Supreme Being we call God, Jehovah for the Hebrews, Allah for the Arabs, or what ever name He is being given in different religions. Isn’t He the same person mentioned in the Declaration of Independence? Isn’t He the same person whose name we placed on our money “In God We Trust”? For almost two hundred years (actually from the day the Pilgrims stepped on the shores of this land) the creed that served as foundation for American law was Christianity, and a rather stern Protestant Christianity based on the Ten Commendments.

The Supreme Court has misinterpreted the intent of those who wrote the Constitution, namely the “Separation of Church and State” -- they did not mean separation of God from our schools or from our public or private lives. For they all were Godfearing, religious men. Article One of the Bill of Rights states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise there of.” -- Any one, who knows European History, will grasp and will understand the real meaning behind these words. But at present, the majority of our citizens, including our learned Justices, Members of the Congress, our eager journalists and our clergy do not have the faintest idea to the meaning behind these words.

In Europe for centuries some countries had their own state religion; if you did not bow your head, or proclaim your allegiance to that religion you were an outcast, deprived of your citizenship’s rights. This is what the authors of the Constitution wanted to avoid. But unfortunately it was misinterpreted by most of our judicial minds.

When we removed God from our public schools, what we actually did was accelerate the moral decay of our country, which is clearly visible to all of us. One of the problems is the lack of knowledge of God. Two thirds of the population have never been inside a church, except maybe once when he or she was baptized, but that practice is to old-fashioned for the modern generation.

One of our distinguished Senators said that, in his school years, he stood in the halls while inside the schoolrooms the other students listened and participated in Bible reading and prayer. He missed the greatest education one can receive: the brotherhood of men, which starts in the schoolrooms amongst the children.

Over a half-century ago, there was a German-Jewish-lady schoolteacher in one of the high schools in New York. She understood the reason why she was there: to teach her students, to prepare them mentally and morally for the life ahead of them. Each morning, as it was required in almost every school, the day started with reading a short passage from the Bible and reciting the Lord’s Prayer. For her it was not just a routine, go-through-the-motion procedure. She turned it into the learning of history, geography and literature. Reading from the Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, or passages pertaining to high religious Holy Days, her students learned about the men who wrote these literary treasures. They learned about God, but they also learned who these people were, where they lived, what nationality they belonged to. They learned that David, Solomon, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, all were of one nation: Israel. No Christian students were offended, and she made her Jewish students proud of the legacy their ancestors gave for all humanity. She was forming young minds into a brotherhood of men. Her students, of different nationalities and different faiths, learned of the invisible bind that blended this nation’s people into one. Today’s children are missing out on the greatest education they can receive, but now it is forbidden because of a misunderstanding, or a misinterpretation.

Some people object to the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer, although it is the most nondenominational prayer to God. But we have many patriotic hymns, from which we can choose one verse, that would praise the same DIVINE PROVIDENCE referred to in our Constitution. No citizen of the United States of America should have any objection to this practice.

Sándor E. Chomos

(Permission for reprint granted by acknowledging origin: Eighth Hungarian Tribe, Ligonier, Pa.)

Eighth Hungarian Tribe