Ezekiel 47:12
Budapest,
8th November 2002
Dear Friends and Family,
The weekend of the Reformed Gazdagret Church at the beginning of October was in many respects a sort of oasis. With more than fifty participants - over a third of the whole Church - it was a good opportunity to get to know one another better, to pray together, to share the fellowship of the saints in love and care for one another, and together to reflect on what it means to be a missionary Church. One song that was sung a lot was based on this verse from Ezekiel 47. Bear fruit! But what does this mean today?
Witnesses in the market place!
If you are concentrating on a certain task, then there is a great danger that your world will become smaller and smaller. For a short time, this may not be so bad, but as the Church of Jesus Christ, as followers of Him, we are called to live out the Good News in word and deed in our families, at our work (our 'market place') and in society. What does this mean in a society, which in so many respects is in a stage of transition?
Being witnesses in politics...?!
At the end of September when - a year after moving house - I finally informed the town hall of my change of address, to my great surprise an election card was pressed into my hand. I was suddenly confronted with the weighty question of what it now means for me as a Christian in Hungary to make a political decision. For months, this had been a subject of great debate among my friends, but as an 'outsider', I was not obliged to take sides. Now suddenly I was!
I have asked one of my colleagues, Mrs Veronika Hafenscher, in this Signs of Life to give an impression of what is going on at the moment in Hungarian society, with an eye to the key phrase in almost all news broadcasts, az EU csatlakozás, accession to the European Union, but also with regard to the present political situation. Parliamentary elections took place in April, which produced an almost fifty-fifty result for left and right. At the end of October, they were followed by municipal council elections. The result is a tense situation.
Political controversies are causing sharp divisions among Christians
Veronika tells: “since the political changes of 1989-1990, there have never been such sharp political controversies as now, and they are severely testing the Christians in Hungary and unfortunately are often resulting in sharp divisions. Consequently, many questions have arisen: Is it permissible for Christians to be involved in politics? Is it at all possible for Christians to play an active role in political life? Under the ‘old’ system, this was not even an issue, because Christians were an undesirable element in politics and social life. This is why the confrontation with moral questions of faith of this kind represents a completely new situation. We are in the middle of a learning process, but the problem is that by the time we have learned what it means to bear political responsibility in a way that is pleasing to our Lord Jesus Christ, it may already be too late to put it into practice. I believe we have a very great task to pray about these questions, so that we will gain insight into what we should do. I believe that there are many questions we cannot solve, but we can certainly be a ‘sign of Life‘ in society and in political life. We should demonstrate an attitude, a method of working, which brings something new, which is motivated by love for the good of society, so that the whole world can see...” (John 17)
Towards Europe???
“An increasingly tense issue is that of accession to the European Union. In the past year on many occasions and in many places, we have declared that we do not need to join Europe, because we already belong to Europe. The fact that we have been separated from it for the last fifty years and that our nation has been broken is a historical tragedy, but it does not mean that we are not Europeans. To join the EU, de facto we must submit an application, we must fulfil criteria, and we must lobby a great deal. This is why we are a bit frustrated. How we see it is that Hungary will actually remain what it has been throughout the centuries, that are the defence fortress of the West, and it is in precisely this role that our country has been destroyed, impoverished, reduced and later separated from Europe. We are a small nation, but with a rich European culture and our roots are in Christianity. In our Churches, we are praying and striving for the people of Christ to arise again from these roots, and for a new sort of moral, political and social atmosphere to be a 'sign', determining that the country will be built up again and will develop and in this way will really become 'European'. We are certain that there is much for us to do in this area as disciples of Christ today.
'As one of the older members of staff at the Missions Institute, I am convinced that the Missions Institute fits in well in the Hungarian reality of today. Our colleagues know the social concerns and problems, and this is why they are trying to address the questions of Church members about missions in theological education and training work. We are together seeking the guidance of our Lord Jesus Christ through His Word and Spirit with regard to these questions.'
An important footnote can be added to this. Precisely because many official representatives of the Churches and many ministers have not kept their party-political preferences to themselves - instead of giving an indication of which principles are important for Christians to keep in mind - it has sometimes become very problematic to be a missionary Church apart from party-politics. People of both the political left and the political right fall under the mandate of Christ to the Churches: to be witnesses to Him in word and deed among all people. Pray that the Spirit of reconciliation and love will bridge the gaps.
Setting to work again with great fervour
Veronika continues: “Coming closer to home, a few remarks about life at the Missions Institute. At the beginning of September, we started up again. We are very thankful, because our staff are full of enthusiasm and vision and really want to get to work. Every week, we have staff meetings in which we try to solve problems together, and in which we pray a lot, and intercede for many people, in which we study God's Word together, but in which we also have a lot of fun, and are really pleased that we can set to work again together.'
Praise and prayer
1. 'It is a great joy for us that Anne-Marie has finished her qualifying thesis, which not only turned into a 'weighty' book (of a mere 180 pages, AMK), but also contains a lot of interesting material and a new perspective, which in our changing world points to the work of God here, and also to the place of man in God's world. These new aspects of mission, which we have to learn, will also be important for the missionary workers of the future. I am convinced that this thesis, just like the first one, will become a text book.” (As you know, Veronika helped with the correction of my thesis, and she knows it better than anyone else. Pray for funds to publish the thesis in Hungarian and English, which many have requested already. Another footnote: at the moment it is not yet known when the defence of my thesis will take place. I think it will be at the end of January or in February, AMK).
2. “Teaching courses missiology has begun again in the seminaries. One of the most important tasks of the Missions Institute is to equip people for missions and evangelism, so that our Churches will not neglect this important task.'
3. “In the last Signs of Life, we spoke of the expansion project. We are thankful for the gifts from partner Churches and friends of the Missions Institute, which we received in September and October. We are almost there! This is heart-warming! In October, this project was started up again, which is very important in order for us to start the postgraduate course in missions and Church advancement next year. (Footnote: we would ask those who are interested to make this known to us already, rohn@pmti.edu.hu.)
In conclusion
In recent months, we have suffered a lot from illnesses. Our financial and administrative coordinator, Katalin Kerekes, had to undergo a serious emergency operation in mid- September because of a perforated appendix. For a time, her condition was very critical, but fortunately she is getting better. Veronika was recently told that in the near future, she must undergo two eye operations. She is suffering from a rare eye condition. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors and for healing.
In mid October, I was briefly out of action myself because of back problems. One morning, there was just no way I could get up. Normally you would then telephone your doctor, but I did not have one, because in the fifteen years that I have been here, I had not previously needed one. It was heart-warming how much help I received from all sides. Miraculously, I was up and running again within a week, just in time to receive the delegation from my home congregation in the Netherlands, the Reformed Sion congregation in Houten, and just in time to spend a few days with friends on an autumn tour of Austria, and to enjoy the many sparkling streams lined by magnificent trees, a reminder of Ezekiel 47.
Yours sincerely in Christ,
with thanks for your concern, support and prayers.
Anne-Marie Kool
