Abstracts in theological studies
Veronika Tóth-Mihala: Outstretched: The Cross, the Tree of Life, in a Reformed Congregation’s Holy Week Practice
This essay investigates why the cross and the worship service on Good Friday remain marginal in the spiritual life of the Reformed Church in Hungary, and what this reveals about Reformed ecclesial self-understanding. The paper analyses the cultural, historical, and theological obstacles to the symbolism of the cross in the Reformed tradition, and traces the liturgical renewal of one congregation – the Debrecen-Kossuth Street Reformed Church – where on this year’s Good Friday a living cross woven in greenery appeared as a “tree of life”: a sign uniting Christ’s suffering with resurrection.
Keywords: Good Friday, cross, Reformed liturgy, ecclesiology, congregational experience, tree of life, liturgical history, Easter
Abstracts in historical studies
Ádám Kristóf Babucs: Ludovikások feketén-fehéren
In the World War II chapter of Hungarian military valor, the Ludovikas were undeservedly forgotten. The Ludovika Academy of the Royal Hungarian Army was the stronghold of Hungarian officer training in the first half of the 20th century. The officers who studied here formed the professional layer of the Royal Hungarian Army’s troop officers and participated in the war in various positions. In the midst of the fighting, in captivity and in their wartime lives, their academic education, their military oath and their patriotism were decisive, defining their behavior throughout their lives, whatever fate befell them. The aim of the study is to present “Ludovikas’ fates” with one example each, and to provide photographs as illustrations for the names. I used numerous contemporary diaries, memoirs, documents and specialist literature for the writing.
Keywords: Ludovika, officer, investiture, homeland, war, governor
Emese Mezei: Analysis of the Hungarian Jewish forced labourers as Soviet POWs
This study presents and analyses the data of more than 4,000 Hungarian Jewish forced labourers and their time as Soviet prisoners of war (POWs) from the available Hungarian and Soviet sources. Due to the research methodology used in the study, the paper examines the so far most comprehensive database about the Hungarian Jewish forced labourers in Soviet captivity. To better comprehend and reconstruct the circumstances of their capture and their conditions within the POW camps the study peripherally examines the letters, memoires and interviews of the survivors therefore providing a wider picture. The study aims to provide more insight into the circumstances of capture, the conditions in captivity, and deductions about their fate. The study also highlights the limitations of earlier research, which was constrained by incomplete source.
Keywords: forced labour, POWs, Jews, GUPVI
Szintia Tamás: Polish–Hungarian economic relations in the second half of the 20th century, with particular respect to the 1980s
This study analyzes the dynamics of economic and political cooperation between Hungary and Poland during the final decade of the socialist era. The central focus of the research is the Polish–Hungarian Standing Commission for Economic Cooperation, established in 1958. This organization played a key role in overcoming the difficulties caused by the rigid framework of the Comecon (CMEA) and the constant shortages of raw materials.
The author uses historical institutionalism to examine the relationship between the two states. This approach highlights the decisive role of institutional structures and “path dependency” in shaping social and economic changes. The analysis details how relations became more intense in the mid-1980s, characterized by high-level state and party meetings – most notably János Kádár’s 1983 visit to Warsaw – and a significant increase in trade turnover.
The paper demonstrates how economic reforms and the crisis of the socialist model became central themes of bilateral talks as the decade came to an end. Finally, the author outlines the transition following the regime change, emphasizing the role of the Visegrád Group and CEFTA in maintaining regional ties and supporting integration into Western organizations like the EU and NATO.
Keywords: Polish–Hungarian relations, economic history, regime change, historical institutionalism