Repentance and Credibility

József Steinbach, Bishop of the Transdanubian Church District, was unanimously elected by the Synod of the Reformed Church in Hungary in April 2024 as the Ministerial President of the Synod. He was interviewed by the Gustav-Adolf-Werk (GAW) Society, partner of the Reformed Church in Hungary.

14/08/2024

címkék: GAW, presiding bishop, Bishop Jozsef Steinbach, interview

Disenchanting the Earthly Ends in Themselves

“Karl Barth's lasting merit is that he firmly warned against any attempt to turn theology into a system of worldviews,” says theologian Sándor Fazakas, head of the Department of Social Ethics and Church Sociology at the Debrecen Reformed Theological University. This year, he was awarded the prestigious Karl Barth Prize, founded in 1986, by the German Union of Protestant Churches (UEK).

31/07/2024

címkék: karl bath prize

On Revised Route

He loves sports, gardening, art, but most of all, life. From a young age, he trained to be a minister, and after thirty-five years as a minister and sixteen years as a bishop, he was planning to retire. But the Lord had a new chapter in store for him: Bishop József Steinbach of the Transdanubian Reformed Church District was elected as ministerial president by the Synod of the Reformed Church in Hungary at its spring session.

02/06/2024

címkék: interview, Bishop Jozsef Steinbach

Living Church in Living Congregations: the Reformed Prayer Chain Begins

"A congregation is not alive because it organizes programmes, but because what happens there points to Christ,” says Levente Zoltán Hajdú, head of the Mission Service of the Reformed Church in Hungary.

16/05/2024

címkék: year of the living word, prayer chain

Constant Conditionality in Transcarpathia

“Reserves are dwindling both spiritually and physically; women left at home are facing more and more tasks, families are torn apart, and peace is still a long way off,” - this is how the Reformed people of Transcarpathia sum up their current situation.

04/03/2024

címkék: war, reformed church in transcarpathia, ukraine

Reflecting the Light of God - A Year of Charity

“The most important thing is that all people know the Good News and we pass on the love we have received” emphasized Márton Juhász, Executive Director of the Hungarian Reformed Church Aid (HRCA). In addition to talking about the HRCA’s services in the past year, he encouraged that anyone can help in their own environment. This interview was conducted before Christmas.

28/12/2023

címkék: hungarian reformed church aid (hrca)

God’s Living Word Shall Be Demonstrated, Move and Guide

The Reformed Church in Hungary has declared 2024 the Year of the Living Word, which is closely linked to the Year of the Pastoral Profession, proclaimed in 2023. Interview with the Head of the Mission Service of RCH, Rev. Levente Zoltán Hajdú.

04/01/2024

címkék: mission service, interview, year of the living word

Census: We Cannot Deny Our Own Responsibility

According to census data published last week, 943,982 people in Hungary declared themselves Reformed last year, which is 200,000 fewer than ten years ago. On this occasion, we spoke to Károly Fekete, Bishop of the Transtibiscan Church District about the reality of our congregations, the role of institutions, and authenticity.

20/10/2023

címkék: interview, census, Transtibiscan Reformed Church District

The Teacher Plays a Prophetic Role in Communities Where Children Grow Up

A meeting of inclusive Reformed schools was held at the Scottish Mission in Budapest, with the primary aim of developing the Network of Inclusive Reformed Schools, sharing good practices and training in methodology. In two training blocks, participants reflected together on the possibilities of interviewing and factors influencing student success. An interview with Kriszta Naszádi, project coordinator of the Inclusive Schools Programme.

29/11/2023

címkék: roma ministry, inclusion, scottish mission, HEKS

There Is Also Healing in the Lord for Pains

Three thousand prisoners of Roma origin were executed at the Auschwitz Gypsy camp on the 2 of August 1944. On this day, the Roma of Europe commemorate the Holocaust, the porajmos as they call it, or in the Lovari dialect, the pharrajimos, the destruction.

02/08/2023

címkék: roma holocaust, pharrajimos

"The nation lives in church and school"

We talked to Sándor Fábián Zán, Bishop of the Hungarian Reformed Church in Transcarpathia (KRE), candidate of the 2022 elections. Among other things, he talked about the past 16 years of his term as Bishop, his current life situation, the present and the future of the Reformed Church.

07/12/2022

címkék: reformed church in transcarpathia, ukraine, bishop zan fabian

From assimilation to inclusion

We come across the concepts of assimilation and integration on a daily basis, but few people understand the meaning of the word inclusion. The term, which is primarily used in education, means ‘I will get to know your characteristics, and you will get to know mine, and this is how we form a community,’ explains Krisztina Naszádi, the coordinator of the Inclusive Education Program of the Swiss Church Aid (HEKS) and the Reformed Church in Hungary. We asked the specialist about the background and practice of inclusive education.

18/03/2023

címkék: integration, roma ministry, HEKS

Canaan in Göncruszka

This September will be the second anniversary of the opening of TejjelMézzel (which translates as ‘With Milk and Honey’), a Reformed restaurant in Göncruszka maintained by the local reformed congregation. Interview with Rev. Levente Sohajda.

08/06/2022

címkék: roma ministry, göncruszka

Decision Made at the Right Time

The leaders of the Church can perform exceptionally well if the organization behind them works seamlessly – professes István Mózes Mező, the head of the Office of the General Synod. He sees the office, established in the current synodical term as a separate organizational branch, as a tool which, with the effective use of resources, can affect not just the Church, but the whole society.

20/04/2022

címkék: Synod office, istván mózes mező

“If I Do Not Have Love, I Am Nothing”

It was humility that God has thought him lately. He fled from Transcarpathia, Ukraine, but now he receives himself refugees in his home in Hungary. After crossing the border, he immediately started to volunteer; interpreting, transporting, and trying to be God's instrument. Interviwe with Zoltán Szabó, an elder from the Ukrainian village Sernye.

19/03/2022

címkék: relief, ukraine

Shaping an Audience into a Community

“To my mind, the church lives in congregations that perform their ministry with conscious and committed faith – not only within the community, but also when it comes to the outside world, to society.” Interview with the new head of Mission of RCH.

17/03/2022

címkék: mission

The calling of the church – being present among those on the periphery

Eszter Dani was appointed as head of the Synod’s Mission Office in 2012, and she played a pivotal role in strengthening the national Reformed Roma ministry. Rev. Dani, who is also a pastor in Solymár, has been senior advisor of the Mission Service since 1 January this year.

22/01/2022

címkék: interjú, missziói iroda, cigánymisszió, missziói szolgálat, dani eszter

The Two-Fold Mission of Károli University

At present, the question is not whether there has been a Christian Europe, a Christian Hungary, but whether it will exist in the future. It is up to us to achieve that through value based education - says Prof. László Trócsányi, new Rector (President) of the Károli Gáspár University of RCH.

04/02/2022

címkék: interview, Karoli Gáspár Reformed University

“Two Worlds Converge in Me”

Márta Sebestyén is a household name in Hungary, but why was she chosen by the leadership of the Reformed Church in Hungary to be one of the faces introducing the new Reformed Hymnal? An inspiring and thoughtful interview.

06/01/2022

címkék: hymnbook

„If the church is not willing to help those in need, who will be?”

Interview with Józsefné Tóth about the disadvantage-compensating and status-management significance of the so-called “Complex Instruction Program” (CIP).

18/12/2021