“If one part suffers, every part suffers with it…” (1 Cor 12,26)
We were shocked and saddened by the news about the boat accident of 29 May 2019 in Budapest, in the consequence of which South Korean sisters and brothers of ours lost their lives and were injured. As we are in close sisterly and brotherly relationship with the South Korean Presbyterian churches and universities, we were deeply touched by this terrible accident. As the members of the Body of Christ, the Church, we share the grief and the suffering of our Korean sisters and brothers. We pray that God may give strength to the families that lost their beloved ones in these difficult hours and that He may give consolation in the hope of the resurrection. We wish speedy recovery for our sisters and brothers who were injured in the accident and we pray for families who are still worrying for their missing beloved ones. We pray for much strength for those involved in the rescue operations and for the authorities. We carry our Korean sister churches in prayer so that the Holy Spirit lead them in their ministry of comforting and pastoral counselling.
Prof. Dr. Zoltán Kustár, the rector of the Debrecen Reformed Theological University was on an official visit in Seoul, South Korea on the day of the accident and he thus had the opportunity to convey our expression of solidarity to our sister churches in person.
In the church service, to be held on Sunday, 2 June at 10 a.m. in the Reformed Great Church of Debrecen, we shall commemorate the Hungarian and South Korean victims of this boat accident and we shall pray the for the families in grief, for our sister churches and for our sister institutions. We ask our congregations to carry our suffering sisters and brothers in their prayers and to join the action of the Reformed Church in Hungary to support the families of the victims.
We believe that the Head of the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ sits on the right hand of our Heavenly Father and He intercedes for His suffering people. In this faith we wish the consolation of the Holy Spirit to the members of our sister churches.
Rt. Rev. Dr. Károly Fekete bishop, Transtibiscan Reformed Church District, Reformed Church in Hungary
Prof. Dr. Zoltán Kustár rector, Debrecen Reformed Theological University
Rev. Zsigmond Vad dean, senior minister of the Reformed Great Church of Debrecen