On Saturday, the re-elected bishop and synod of the Transcarpathian Reformed Church (KRE) were inaugurated in Beregszász. The event was attended by the bishops and chief guardians of the Reformed church districts in the Carpathian Basin, as well as the heads of state and civil organizations in Hungary and Subcarpathia.
On this occasion, the Reformed church in Beregsász was filled to the brim. In addition to the women in Nagydobronyi costumes sitting in the pews, the songs of the youth of Mezővár about faith and love testified that in addition to preserving the past and tradition, there is also the future. God is taking care of us so that this part of the nation, which is the most tested these days, does not get lost.
Bishop Zoltán Balog, the Pastoral President of the Synod of the Hungarian Reformed Church, confirmed the participants and the church leader in this faith, who in his sermon, after the prayer of Transylvanian Bishop Béla Kató, wrote to God in the book of the prophet Ezsaiás about two thousand five hundred years ago, which is also addressed to people today encouraged with his promise: "Do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will even support you with my victorious right..." (Isaiah 41:10)
Source: reformatus.hu/András Makó
Referring to the current difficult situation, Zoltán Balog drew attention in his sermon to the fact that one day we will all have to stand before God's judgment seat: the leaders of the countries, as well as those who are at war today.
And as we have been convinced so many times throughout history, "those who rule unjustly fall to dust".
Do not be afraid! The Lord is with you! - the Word often encourages. This gives us all hope. After Thanksgiving, KRE announced 2023 as the year of hope. Sándor Zán Fábián, the re-elected bishop of KRE, emphasized in this regard: we must always rely on God, believe in him and trust him. The book of Job also encourages us to do this: "Even a tree has hope: if it is cut down, it will grow again and its shoots will not be lost. Even if its root grows old in the earth, even if its stump dies in the dust, it sprouts from the smell of water and brings forth branches like a sapling" (Job 14:7-9). - Although we are beset by all kinds of difficulties, according to statistical data, we are losing weight, we still have to have hope. If God cares about the birds of the sky, if even the cut tree sprouts, then how much hope must the person who follows Christ have - said Sándor Zán Fábián, who prayed that God would gift us with the renewing power of His Holy Spirit, that there would be gratitude and hope in our hearts .
The participants were also greeted by Volodymyr Chubirko, the president of the Subcarpathian County Council, who
he thanked the Hungarian government for all its support and expressed his hope that the peoples and nations of the multi-ethnic Transcarpathia will continue to live in peace in the future.
In his closing remarks, Bishop Sándor Zán Fábián asked us to pray for peace to finally come, and for the dying communities to be revived - sensing the "smell of water". Because "even the tree has hope."
Source, full article and pictures: reformatus.hu
