Baptistic Theologies, 2009

. 15 Cited by Geza Kovacs, Evangeliumi ebredes az 1880-90 - es evekben [Evangelical Revival between 1880 and 1890], in Krisztusert Jarvan Kovetsegben, p. 69. 58 Baptistic Theologies The revival among the Protestant churches spread quickly and soon reached Budapest. An outstanding leader in Budapest was Aladar Szabo, who, with the help of his friends, brought together a new group of theologians and dedicated his life to renewing the Reformed congregations. This group proposed a whole set of ideas for the Reformed Church, several of which came - even if only partially - to be accepted. Some of these ideas included forming local mission organisations, using musical bands and choirs in the services, forming Sunday schools, creating foundations for social care, and helping women to be more involved in the church. 16 However these missionary and renewal endeavours were strongly opposed by significant leaders in the Reformed Church. The idea of setting up a Missionary Association within the Reformed Church was rejected on the grounds that ‘pietism does not comply with Hungarian temperament’. 17 In analysing this period, Jeno Szigeti concluded in his study, ‘The Origin of the Hungarian Free Churches and the Protestant Churches’, that there were three different trends in the Protestant churches: 1. The appearance of small gatherings for Bible study was regarded by some as the consequence of the foolishness and backwardness of people; 2. Others wanted to foster an ecumenical spirit, which could include new movements; 3. Still others actively supported the forming of ‘peasant ecclesiolas’, as Szigeti calls them, which were gatherings - functioning as churches within churches - of people who were eager to pray and get a better knowledge and understanding of the Word of God. Most of the people attending these meetings were peasants. 19 It was this third attitude of some members of the Protestant churches that made possible the emergence and development of Hungarian Baptist Churches in Transylvania and the southern part of Hungary. The formation of peasant ecclesiolas There are a number of historical documents that speak about the existence of house gatherings organised in many of the Hungarian Reformed parishes by the end of the nineteenth century.” These groups of seekers formed the 16 Geza Kovacs, Magycirorszdg a XX szazad vegen [Hungary at the turn of the twentieth century], in Krisztusert Jarvan Kovetsegben, p. 55. 17 Toth, A Magyarorszdgi reformdtus , p. 29. 18 Jeno Szigeti. A Magyarorszdgi Szabadegyhazak Kozossegek Keletkezese es a P rote stalls Egyhazak [The Emergence of the Hungarian Free Churches and the Protestant Churches], Theoldgiai Szemle, 1976, pp. 71-73. 15 Jeno Szigeti, Es emlekezzel meg az utrol, Tanulmanyok a magyarorszdgi szabadegyhazak tortenetebol, [Remembering the Way, Papers from the History of Free Churches in Hungary] (Budapest: Szabad Egyhazak Tanacsa, 1981), p. 17. 20 Ar