Our Partner Church in Medeser, Romania
Medeser’s Political History
The Unitarian church with which UUCSV is a partner is located in the small village of Medeser in the Transylvania area of Romania. Transylvania was not always part of Romania, however. Except for a brief period in the sixteenth century, Transylvania was part of Hungary; therefore, its people were Hungarian
Transylvania was awarded to Romania, though, as a result of battles fought in the First World War. Consequently, the Unitarian churches in Transylvania with their Hungarian population became a religious and ethnic minority in the greater Romanian state.
Worried about the fate of the Unitarian churches in Transylvania, Unitarians in the United States worked to establish partnerships with the Unitarian churches in Transylvania. Any progress made, however, was nearly wiped out by the effects of World War II, years of Communist rule, and the dictatorship of the nationalist Ceaucescu.
Threats to Church Continue
The Hungarian people in the Transylvanian villages, now located in Romania, were a problem for Ceaucescu. He proposed an answer to “The Hungarian Problem.” He planned for the Hungarians to be re-located to large, agricultural-industrial centers where the minority Hungarians and majority Romanians would be merged, thus wiping out the culture of the Transylvanian villages. One of the cultural losses of such a move would be the demise of the traditional churches.
In 1989, before the “final solution” could be implemented, the repressive and corrupt Ceaucescu government was overturned. The dictator and his wife were arrested and executed. Former communists ruled until 1996. Currently, much economic restructuring is needed before Romania can join the European Union.
UUA Establishes Partnerships
The UUA now has a viable partner church program between the Unitarian Universalist churches in the United States and those in Transylvania. The people in many of the small villages face extreme hardships. Many UU churches in the United States encourage and support their partners in Transylvania through contributions and selling in the U.S. handmade articles made in Transylvania. UUs in the U.S. sponsor fund-raising events and visit their partner churches. See the website http://www.uupcc.org/index.htm for more information.
UUCSV and Medeser Church Become Partners
When UUCSV was founded in the early 21st century, one of the responsibilities we assumed was partnership with the Unitarian church in Medeser, Transylvania, Romania. The earliest contact with our partners came through the efforts and contributions of one of our members Charlie Chilton and his wife Eugenia. They visited Medeser and became acquainted with the minister Imre Balint, his wife Marie, and their sons Csoba and Imre.
Charlie and Gene came back to our church with pictures and stories of the village and people in Medeser. Charlie visited Medeser again. Still, our church membership was small, and it did not own a building or property. It was not until July 2004 that UUCSV acquired a church building and that congregational efforts to reach out to the people of Medeser could be expanded.
Sisters of Lucy Stone (SOLS) Reach Out
In 2004 the first fund-raiser to enhance the resources available for the people in the Medeser church took place. The newly formed women’s group of UUCSV held a bake sale. This group, named for the abolitionist and women’s rights pioneer Unitarian Lucy Stone, vowed to increase our activity with our partners in Medeser. The initial bake sale was followed by others. In December church member Jey Hiott and her daughter Lily Hiott-Millis traveled to Medeser and delivered, on behalf of UUCSV, gifts for the children and adults. In April 2005 a spring festival, “Trillium: a Festival of Follies and Flings,” was held. It is expected to be an annual community event. All profits from the fund-raising activities are earmarked to help meet the health and educational needs of our partners. This year SOLS will have sent more than $1700 in cash and goods to Medeser as a gift from UUCSV. Moreover, the SOLS have undertaken the work of placing orders from people in the U. S. for hand-embroidered articles made by the women in Medeser.
Ceausescu, Nicolae
Born in 1918 as a son of a peasant, early became active in the Romanian Communist movement and was arrested as a revolutionary; he spent the late 1930s and early 40s in prison, where he became acquainted with the future first secretary of the Romanian Communist party, Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej. Escaping in 1944, Ceausescu held a variety of posts within Communist party and government ranks after the Communist takeover in 1948. He soon became a member of the party's central committee and then, in 1955, a member of the politburo. Upon Gheorghiu-Dej's death in March, 1965, he was chosen first secretary of the central committee of the Communist party and in December, 1967 he assumed the office of president of the state council, or head of state. As supreme leader, he continued his mentor's policy of nationalism and independence from the USSR within the context of Marxism-Leninism. He promoted closer relations with the People's Republic of China and with the West, as well as industrial and agricultural development. His domestic rule, however, was marked by frequently disastrous economic schemes and became increasingly repressive and corrupt. In December, 1989, a popular uprising, joined by the army, led to the arrest and execution of him and his wife, Elena.
Soviet occupation following World War II led to the formation of a communist Peoples Republic in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The decades-long rule of President Nicolae CEAUSESCU became increasingly draconian through the 1980s. He was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Former communists dominated the government until 1996 when they were swept from power. Much economic restructuring remains to be carried out before Romania can achieve its hope of joining the EU.
A presentation delivered by Charlie Chilton to the congregation of the Unitarian Universalist church in Asheville, NC on November 17, 2002
History of Unitarianism in Transylvania
I’d like to start with a brief outline of the history of Unitarianism in Transylvania. Francis David whose destiny was to become the father of Transylvanian Unitarianism and also its first martyr was born in 1510. He was son of a German-speaking Saxon shoemaker and a Hungarian lady of a noble family.
It was seven years later in 1517 that Luther nailed his famous theses on his church door. By 1520 Luther’s books were circulated in Saxon communities in Transylvania and soon were known to the rest of the population. Lutheran churches began to be established in that decade but mushroomed in the 1530s. Soon Calvinists were also becoming established.
From 1545-48 Francis David studied in Wittenberg. On his return he became rector of a Catholic School and parish priest. In 1553 he converted to Lutheranism and was soon Bishop. In a series of debates, he defended Lutheranism against Calvinism. It appeared that he won the debates, but the Calvinists won David; he soon resigned and joined the more radical Reformed, or Calvinist Church. By 1564 he was superintendent of the Reformed Church.
David's reputation as a skilled debater and preacher brought him to the attention of Dr. Georgio Biandrata, trusted advisor to the king John Sigismund. Biandrata had always had an avocational interest in theology and had fled Italy after an unpleasant encounter with the inquisition. He went to Geneva where he aroused the suspicions of John Calvin. He then went to Poland to serve as physician to the queen. While there he had been instrumental in advancing the fortunes of the Minor Church of Poland, a radical anti-trinitarian denomination. The Polish queen sent Biandrata to the Transylanian court to serve as physician to her daughter Isabella, mother of King John Sigismund.
As regent, Isabella had ruled Transylvania during his minority. She found the Reformation too well established to be uprooted. Despite her preference for Catholicism, she issued a remarkable decree, that "each person maintain whatever religious faith he wishes, with old or new rituals just so long...as they bring no harm to bear on anyone at all."
Isabella died 1559. King John Sigismund at 19 years of age came to power. He relied on Dr. Biandratta not only for his health but as a trusted advisor, diplomat and organizer of the debates surrounding the religious controversies of the day. Biandrata saw David as an ally in his effort to achieve a radical reformation. He began questioning the doctrine of the Trinity in religious debates within the Reformed Church, and David addressed the same issues from the pulpit. They hoped to clear away doctrines of the Trinity and the deity of Jesus before the Transylvanian Reformed Church adopted any creedal statement. Biandrata persuaded the King to appoint David Court Preacher. Together they produced books ridiculing the doctrine of the trinity.
They aroused controversy and alarm amongst more conservative forces; so, the king called for a debate between those defending the Unity of God and those supporting the Trinity. The debate was held in the great hall of the palace in 1568. For 10 days, dawn until dark, Francis David carried the bulk of the arguments for the radical reformers. It was generally conceded that he won the debate.
Now David and Biandrata engaged their antagonists in debate at every opportunity. At the end of one such event, the King ordered that henceforth the Unitarians were not to be interfered with. Furthermore he decreed: "Inasmuch as we know that faith is the gift of God ...we demand that in our dominions there will be freedom of conscience." Then the King and most of the court embraced Unitarianism. The majority of the population followed into the new faith. For the only time in history, the Unitarians constituted the majority, in a nation ruled by the only Unitarian monarch in history. Perhaps this sudden conversion was more political than religious; and yet, despite centuries of persecution, the church they created still survives.
On January 14, 1571, the Diet and the King provided formal, legal recognition to the four "received" religions of the realm, Unitarianism, Calvinism, Lutheranism and Catholicism. Ironically, on the very next day, when his carriage turned over, the King received injuries from which he died two months later. He was 31.
John Sigismund died without an heir. Stephen Bathory, one of the few Catholic nobles left in the country, was chosen to be prince. He accepted, promising to honor the edict of religious toleration, but only so long as dogma and religious practices remained as they were at the time of Sigismund's death.
However, Francis David's ever-evolving theology led him to insist that if Jesus is not God, it would be inappropriate to address prayers to Jesus. He also urged that the ritual of the Lord's Supper be abandoned. The politically savvy Biandretti was alarmed. Fearing for the survival of the church, he tried to persuade David to keep his mouth shut.
But, even knowing that he would be jailed, David would not be silenced. With Biandratta as his prosecutor, he was convicted of "religious innovation." David was sentenced to perpetual imprisonment and died in the royal dungeon at Deva.
The Unitarian Church, which looked to him as its martyr, would survive his death and various other forms of persecution over the centuries. Biandrata acted to save the church from political peril. David, open to new truth as it emerged, acted to advance reform regardless of the cost. In his own words: "I wrote what I felt and that is what I preached with trusting spirit."
Skipping a few centuries, we fast-forward to the 20th century. After the devastation of World War I, Transylvania was taken from Hungary and awarded to Romania. The Second World War brought new devastation. However, true to their heritage, and at great personal risk, Unitarian ministers listed Jews and Gypsies on their membership rolls in an effort to protect them from the Nazis.
Romania suffered greatly under the Communist Dictator Ceaucescu. In the mid 80s he cut off the natural gas to all of Romania so he could sell it abroad. Not only did most of the radiators in Bucharest burst in the hard freezes of that winter, but all over the country People froze to death.
The Hungarian minority was threatened with the destruction of its cultural heritage. Villages were bulldozed and flooded. Unitarian Schools and Colleges were expropriated. Use of the Hungarian language was not allowed in schools. The government tried to recruit Unitarian Clergy to spy for the state and many were jailed for refusing.
North American and British UU churches formed partnerships with Transylvanian churches to make it known that the world was aware of his oppressive nationalism. This had the effect of slowing implementation of his policies -- the fall of the Communist regime in 1989 ended it.
In the chaotic conditions following the fall of Communism, the status of the Unitarians has improved somewhat in spite of Nationalistic politics. Today, where there were once around 500 Unitarian churches, there are now just over 200 with some 70,000 members.
Inscribed on the wall of the dungeon cell in which Francis David died in 1579 were these words: "Neither the sword of popes, nor the cross, nor the image of death will halt the march of truth."
UU Partner Church Council
A UU Partner Church Council was formed in 1993 to promote new partnerships and to assist with travel and international money transfers. The PCC maintains an internet chat line which promotes the exchange of information and ideas. Today many North American Churches are partnered with churches not only in central and east European nations, but also in the Philippines and India.
Partnerships have helped develop agricultural projects and scholarship programs, and have assisted with building new clinics and church buildings as well as restoration of old ones. Exchange visits have been sponsored, including tours by youth groups and choirs.
Transylvania is a beautiful country of mountains and woods, of small farms and villages, even ski resorts. Two-thirds the size of the state of Maine, and at the same latitude, it lies within the boundaries of Romania. On the north, east and south it is bounded by the Carpathian Mountains. Maps show names of towns, rivers and other features in Hungarian, in Romanian, and often in German as well hinting at a multiethnic heritage.
In September of last year, two weeks after 9/11, my wife Gene and I set out for Romania to find the village church at Medeser in Transylvania which [at that time was] partnered with the Asheville UU church. This would be the first face-to-face meeting between people from the two Churches. We flew to Bucharest and took a train 175 miles north crossing the southern Carpathian Mountains. In the early afternoon we arrived at Segisvar, best known as the birthplace of Dracula.
We were met by Rev. Nyitrai Csongor who drove us to the home of his then fiancé, Vilma, in Szekelyudvarhely 35 miles east in a part of Romania which is almost 100 percent Hungarian. He serves [in 2002] part time at the Unitarian church in Medeser. He was born in Transylvania in 1942.
In 1956 when the failed anti-Communist Revolution took place in Hungary, Romania's Communist dictator Ceaucescu interred many Hungarian intellectuals, among them Csongor's mother, father, and older brother. His father and brother were both Unitarian ministers. Csongor also was arrested but soon released since he was only 14. His parents and brother were detained for seven years. Csongor had to fend for himself, his education interrupted. So, he started high school when he was 21.
His first wife died two years ago after a long fight with cancer. He has no children. Since we were there, he and Vilma have married. Vilma also lost her first husband to cancer not long ago. She is 53 and has three grown children.
After a supper starting with polinka—plum brandy and ending with homemade wine, we spent the night in Vilma's house. Next day Csongor returned to drive the four of us to Vilma's "chalet" in the remote mountain village of Vorshak where she had been raised. Beautiful mixed beech, hornbeam, beech and evergreen forests and green pastures. We walked about a mile up the mountain to Vilma's mother's house passing through steep pastures and orchards of hazelnuts, walnuts, and apples.
Back at the chalet, Csongor and I attempted to discuss financial matters. In our correspondence over the past couple of years he and I had spoken of various things that might be useful for the congregation: help with costs of medicine or other medical needs, assistance for the education of young people who might not otherwise stay in school, and funds for restoration of the church and parish building.
While there I gave some money to Csongor to help the church. He said he still had some that I had previously sent because he wanted to be sure how I wanted it spent. He suggested, and I agreed, that $100 be given to each of 3 families who had extra expense because they have children who attend schools outside of Medeser.
The rest was to be divided between the church for much needed repairs, and him. (He does not get enough serving the Medeser Church to cover his commuting expense.) The inflation rate in Romania which was around 40% 3 years has gone down some. Still the dollar buys a lot more in Romania than here—a bonus for tourists and others buying Romanian goods and services.
Next day we were taken on a hike in a high lush forest with springs everywhere. The waters merged to form a gushing stream which plunged over pretty waterfalls. The plush moss carpet under the trees was dotted with many different kinds of mushrooms. As we were enjoying our picnic lunch (more brandy!) thinking there couldn't be a more Idyllic scene, a shepherd and his large flock of sheep passed through the grove on their way to greener pastures, I suppose.
Back at the chalet, we repacked and were off again after driving a very long ride, much of it on very bad roads; we came to the end of long muddy track. Here at last was the place we came to find. Medeser is a village which used to have a population of over 800 people, but now has less than 200. Most are pensioners eking out a subsistence livelihood from their gardens and poultry. There are no jobs. Young adults leave to find employment. The economy of Romania is the poorest in Europe. Unemployment is high; wages are low.
It was dark, but Csongor wanted us to meet the president of the congregation and his family. We sat at the dining room table (more brandy wine and cakes). There were three young girls, two of whom were studying English. There is only a one-room school with four grades in Medeser. Older students walk three miles on rutted muddy roads often deep in snow to the nearest intermediate school. High schoolers have to board away from home. Schools are church-run. I learned that, poor as they are, the Unitarian schools encourage attendance by Gypsy children.
After our visit we were taken to the house where we were to spend the next two nights. It was the home of a widow who moved into her "little house" so that we might have use of her home. The little house was one small room equipped as kitchen and bedroom. Water was drawn in a bucket from a shallow well by the gate. Occupying the yard were 20 chickens, one turkey, and a dog on a chain. At the far end of the yard next to the chicken coop, which was locked at night to keep out foxes and Gypsies, was the outhouse.
Our room, which was larger than the little house, had a couple of daybeds one of which was prepared for us as a rather small double bed. There were a couple of chairs and several sturdy homemade stools. The small dining table was also handmade as was a large built-in cabinet for storing dishes, etc. We were provided with a basin and pitcher of water for our ablutions, and a chamber pot under the bed. The only concession to technology was a large TV but the one station broadcast only in Romanian.
Next morning, Saturday, we were greeted with polinka before breakfast. Later we took a walk around the village and found the church prominently located on a steep rise where its steeple can be seen for miles around. The steeple is atop the bell tower which Csongor humorously compared to the tower of Pisa; it leans away from the church building. A buttress has been built in an attempt to halt this movement but it seems not to be working; where the tower pulls away from the building, there are recurring problems with a leaking roof threatening the integrity of the building. [the tower has since been fixed].
Csongor returned in the afternoon to take us to visit other families with school-aged children. Everywhere, polinka, wine and cakes. There are only 15 children in the village under age 17.
On Sunday morning we heard the loud clang of the church bell. There is a tradition that the bell which bears the date 1496 was found buried in a nearby river where it had been placed by residents of a long abandoned village to hide it from the Turks in one of their forays into that part of the world.
We were guests of honor at the 11:15 service. Men entered by a side door and sat at one end of the church. Women came through the front door and sat facing the men. The pulpit was mounted on the wall opposite the side door several steps above the floor. In the center of the church was a table with bread and wine covered with a lace cloth. In a balcony was an organ the bellows being powered by man turning a large crank. Hymnals had words and melody including the usual rhythm indications which were ignored by organist and congregation; each note was given more or less equal time so the music sounded like a slow chant or dirge. The words being Hungarian, I can only guess what they were.
After Bible readings, a long extemporaneous prayer, and a sermon, communion was celebrated. All the men stood in a large semi-circle around the table set in the middle of the church. The minister gave a piece of bread to each. Next, each man took a sip of wine as the chalice was passed. When the men went back to their pews, the women received communion in the same manner.
After a few more prayers, Gene and I were formally welcomed by Rev. Nyitrai, the president of the congregation, then by four young girls who read a simple but well rehearsed greeting in English. They were dressed in colorful, traditional, handmade costumes. We were asked to make a few remarks which we did, Rev. Nyitrai translating into Hungarian. We presented them with a bag of spring-flowering bulbs which Wilbur Oliphant of the Asheville congregation had got for us to deliver.
When the service ended we walked back to our abode where our hostess, Ida. and her friend Emma laid out an elegant lunch for us, along with Rev. Nyitrai and his wife-to-be, and several church officials. More spirits and a very ornate egg salad. We were told we would be treated to a coach ride to the top of the ridge just north of the village. When the "coach" arrived it was a hay wagon with sloping sides across which was placed a padded plank for us to sit on. Two men sat at the front of the wagon, one to direct the horse and the other to man the brake. We were driven on a track across a meadow which got steeper and steeper and more and more rutted. With the wagon tilting this way and that we felt more than once that we would surely fall off.
Once at the top we were we passed by a large encampment of Gypsies. We were joined by two more men who had hiked up and by a young couple who arrived on a motorcycle. We continued along a narrow ridge until we came to a house which is now a hunting lodge, but it was built many years ago as a retreat by a bishop who had been born in Medeser. (We had met his 100-year-old daughter on one of our walks around the village the day before.)
It was a clear day and the view was wonderful. We saw steeples in several villages and in the surrounding countryside. After a while we started back by an even steeper lane through a wooded area. After this precipitous journey the woods opened into a large apple orchard and we were soon back in the village.
It was after dark when Csongor reappeared. He had left to conduct an afternoon service in his regular church in a larger village Kobatfalva. We again stuffed our luggage into his tiny car and returned to Vilma's home for the night.
Next morning after breakfast, they drove us to Segesvar where we boarded the train for Bucharest. Goodbye Transylvania.
