The Church in the Storm of Time [antikvár]

INTRODUCTION A MESSAGE MADE QUESTIONABLE "We do not see our signs, there is no longer any prophet and there is none among us who knows for how long,"1 — this anguished cry of the Psalmist be-hooves us, Reformed people in Hungary, in the summer of 1957. Our church "has become a spectacle to the world,"2 during the last twelve years, but especially now. "There was such a religious re-awakening in Hungary during all the íime of Communist rule that it was regarded as a miracle in the West or wasn't even believed. The numerous visitors from abroad were amazed seeing the crowded churches, the praying, singing peasants and labourers, who contributed to the church profusely," — a Swiss religious authority wrote.3 And what is the position of the Church now, after the "great events?" Seemingly everything is in good order again, unless we look at Church leadership. But is it possible to disregard it? Western religious opinion is perturbed because although at all levels Church bodies one after the other express their loyalties towards Bishop Albert Bereczky.the President and Bishop János Péter, the Vice-President of the General Synod, they decline to accept the requests of various meetings of deans and curators (lay presidents of the seniorates) asking thera to resume their episcopal offices, without waiting for the resolution of competent district assemblies.4 Even greater uneasiness followed the statement of Professor Hromádka, made after personal experiences on the spot, i. e., that "Church leadership enfoyed a much greater authority and trust on behalf of the con-gregatijns than this was thought to be the case in ecumenical circles, as against this, the leaders of the so-called movement of re-awakening broke the work, intended to bring order in Church life and re-awakening, in two, last year."5 Other foreign sources, on the other hand, point out with gratification that another movement of mass evangelization has begun in the Hungárián Reformed Church. A small group is trying to revive the nation-wide movement of evangelization of 1945 — 1949, in which all trends of the missionary movement were united, and which— together with the unbelievably quick rebuilding and reno-vation of more than five-hundred Protestant churches damaged during the Second World War-led to the spiritual regeneration of most of ministers and congregation.