Calvinist Conference in Szárszó: “Blessing and joy, that we are Calvinists”

No matter how strange it may sound: Calvinists form a national strategy of Hungarian Calvinists in the Carpathian Basin. In mid-August, the draft was proposed for discussion at the Conference of Calvinists in Szárszó, so that everyone was given the chance to say how Calvinists can contribute to the life of the Hungarian nation.

According to Reformátusok Lapja, the first conference in Szárszó was held in August 1943, during the Second World War, in the summer camp of the Soli Deo Gloria Association. Many intellectual young people gathered in the open air to discuss the future of the Hungarian nation. Almost eight decades later, it seems unbelievable how many sacrifices young people have made to get to the meeting in Szárszó. There were some youngsters who could only get there by working and saving money for two weeks. The words of Németh László, speaker at the 43rd conference are still actual. The doctor and writer set the goal of “inoculating” Hungarians against the “saviours” sent to us from abroad, whichever part of the world they had come from. According to him, we must choose our own Hungarian way. Some participants were brave enough to express their disagreement, as they were driven by the desire to find the best way for Hungarians.

After seventy-nine years, this question still concerns Calvinist church members. More than 300 people gathered in Szárszó to express their views on the forthcoming national strategy. The Calvinist Public and Cultural Foundation has been hosting this forum for intellectuals for five years. This year, dozens of lectures and round table discussions could be attended by the participants. In addition to the strategic plan, they talked about God and self-awareness, and there were also discussions on the nation-preserving role of the Calvinist education,  the family, the congregations and Hungarianism. Among the speakers, there were László Trócsányi, rector of the Károly Gáspár Calvinist University; István Nagy, Minister of Agriculture; Emőke Tapolyai and Komlósi Piroska psychologists; Grezsa Ferenc psychiatrist; István Bogárdi Szabó, professor of theology; András Lánczi philosopher; Mihály Imre, historian of literature, Lajos Bara school principal in Királyhágómellék; Róbert Géresi, Bishop of Upper Hungary, András Csűrös and Levente Sohajda Pastors. The conference was attended by Katalin Novák President of the Republic, who spoke about her Calvinist faith to the audience.