OCR
ABSTRACTS me OPPORTUNITIES FOR CONGREGATIONAL LIFE IN THE 1950s — THE EXAMPLE OF THE REFORMED CONGREGATION IN SZONY Anna Bokor Research of the Hungarian churches after the second world war has yet been focused primarily on the leadership of the churches. Nevertheless, the nationalisation of church property and schools, the replacement of church leaders and growing state control over churches all affected the lives of the congregations and believers. The history of the Reformed Congregation in Szény in the 1950s offers a basis for comparison for the research of congregations during this era. Tackling mental and financial difficulties and keeping church members together in spite of all these obstacles can be well demonstrated through the example of this congregation. The thriving youth ministry that was extraordinary in the fifties displays the cohesive strength of the congregation. FOLK THEOLOGY OF THE HIDDEN APPEARANCE OF DISEASE-DEMONS Viktor Holló Csanádi In my study, I present the exploration of the disease-demonic manifestations hidden in Hungarian folk narrative memories, but no longer uttered, and the theological context of the exorcist methods associated with them. The roots of the associated folk beliefs can be traced back to ancient cultures, and the folk customs that emerged from them have evolved into their present form through a number of mediating channels. In these processes, there is an eruption from the church and a transformed infiltration into it, through a close and reciprocal relationship. Understanding these phenomena and their manifestations today, linked to the disease-demon images, is of little studied but verifiable importance in the pastoral care of small town churches. s" 169 "