REFORMED PEOPLE IN HUNGARY [MAY]

Dear Pastor:

Will you please pass on the following is formation to the Rev. Vigh or make a supplement/addition in a next issue of Outlook.

There were a few things which were not correct in the last issue. The article itself was excellent, very commendable; be must have bad his finger on the pulse of the Ref. Church in Hungary. The article was very well written and the actual situation was realistically portrayed.

I was informed and did some history reading which resulted in:

1) Rev. Vigh speaks about closing of one (1) seminary; however there are two and both are closed.

a. Reformed Seminary in Papa (allegedly closed for financial reasons; Dutch Reformed Churches offered the money to keep it open, but this was not accepted).

b. Reformed Seminary in Sarospatak (was closed because an awakening of true Reformed Faith started to develop).

Both seminaries were closed in 1951 after having served the Hungarian Reformed Churches for 400 years.

2) 60% of the ministers are over 60 years of age. 20% of the congregations have no ministers.

A substantial number of churches have young student ministers who are supporting the orders of the communist government with regard to Church and religion.

3) I think that the year in which Admiral de Ruyter freed a number of Hungarian Reformed pastors, teachers, etc. was not correct. 41 Reformed ministers/teachers were brought on foot to Triest, Austria, there to be sold to slave buyers from Naples; some went to prison, and some on the galleys.

The Dutch Consul, Mr. G. Hamel Bruinink interfered on behalf of the ministers (better martyrs for the sake of the Reformed Faith) at the various courthouses and requested important government people from various countries to put pressure on the judges. On February 11, 1676, Mr. de Ruyter, with his small fleet, entered the harbour of Naples and shot the steeple off the Cathedral. He invited important priests and notables of the city on his ship for heavy negotiations and took them prisoner until they banded over 26 pastors from the galleys and five (5) which were in prison.

It is very interesting to read about this part of history. When Mr. de Ruyter was thanked by the representatives of the pastors who received their freedom he stated: “Do not thank me. I am only a tool in the hand of the God which you and I serve; He is your Liberator, together we may thank and praise Him for what He has done.”

Sincerely yours, Mr. P. Speelman,

Speelman’s Bookhouse Ltd .

Rexdale, Ontario, Canada