Charity and mission

One of the most important events of the season, the Transtibiscan Reformed Charity Ball, was held on February 15th in Debrecen. This year was the twelfth time this event was organized for Czeglédi Péter Reformed High School in Léva. Last year, the charity ball collected three million Hungarian forints which were donated to the Good Samaritan Children’s Home in Transcarpathia.

From March 22-24, Debrecen University Congregation will host the annual meeting of Reformed university congregations from the Carpathian Basin.

Hungarian and Reformed unity

Ten years ago, on May 22, 2009, the Hungarian Reformed Church was united once again when the Hungarian Reformed community, torn apart by the Peace Treaty of Trianon, reaffirmed its sense of togetherness. The jubilee presents an opportunity for thanksgiving, and, in its honor, several celebrations will take place: on May 17th, the Common Synod will meet, and on the 18th, ten to fifteen thousand people are expected to gather at a one-day festival in Debrecen, the city where this symbolic unity was declared.

The highlight of the celebration will be worship with Communion. Several cultural and religious programs for children, youth, and others who wish to celebrate will take place before and after the worship at various locations throughout the inner city of Debrecen.

On Sunday, May 19, the Hungarian Reformed Church will celebrate Unity Day. Other celebrations will resume after the 19th. The following week, on May 24th and 25th, Bridge of Love, offering volunteer opportunities for the Reformed communities, will take place all across the Carpathian Basin. That same weekend in May, the Reformed Music Festival will be held in Budapest.

Summer programs

On June 29th, the eighteenth annual Reformed Songs Festival will take place. With the participation of the United Choir of Carpathian Basin in the Palace of Arts in Budapest, this event will be one of the greatest highlights of this summer.

From July 23-27, the Starpoint Reformed Youth Festival will be held in Debrecen. Since its establishment in 2003, the festival is held every other year. During its fifteen year run, it has managed to grow into a truly Carpathian Basin-wide event. In 2017, 4000 young people gathered for the festival, a quarter of who were from beyond Hungary’s borders. This diversity was also reflected in the management team, including its volunteers and various presenters.

Adding to the variety of programs being held in Debrecen, the Collegium Doctorum, an academic circle of Hungarian Reformed theologians, will hold its annual plenary session from August 26-27.

Public life and worship

In 2016, the Reformed Church in Hungary and the Reformed Culture and Public Life Foundation restarted the Conference of Reformed Intellectuals in Balatonszárszó. From August 22-25, they will welcome all those who are interested in whether democratic and Christian values are compatible with the modern world.

The unity of the Hungarian Reformed Christians of the Carpathian Basin can be experienced not only verbally at gatherings and festivals, like the programs mentioned above, but also in prayer. In order to encourage prayer, held on October 25, the Youth Prayer Night of the Carpathian Basin encourages youth to experience unity in prayer by staying overnight in their congregation, sharing in community with thousands of other young people in unity under God. Additionally, the Carpathian Basin Prayer Day, organized by the Hungarian Reformed Women’s Association, will take place on the first Sunday of December.

Reformatus.hu

Translation by Kirsztina Schmidt

Photos: Archive