Studia Theologica Transsylvaniensia Supplementum

“I Will Show Myself Holy” (Lev 10:3)

2025-01-29T13:08:19+00:00

This volume offers a comprehensive exploration of the diverse ways in which the Sacred reveals itself through liturgy, rituals, and spiritual practices. Comprising twenty-seven scholarly contributions, the volume examines the multifaceted nature of the Sacred across six thematic dimensions: liturgical actions and practices, the transformative power of the spoken word, sacred time and space, the celebration of festivals and mysticism, the presence of angels and saints, and the spiritual pathways of prayer and devotion. Additionally, the volume extends its scope by addressing a specific aspect of ecclesiastical practice, providing a rich and interdisciplinary perspective. This collection not only honors the intellectual legacy of Moses Nóda but also advances the scholarly understanding of the Sacred's manifestations in religious life and practice.

They Shall Mount Up with Wings Like Eagles

2024-07-19T14:57:37+00:00

Our lives become truly beautiful when we have people around us who do not want to impose their own image and likeness on us with a hammer and chisel, but who help us spread our wings with their encouraging presence. People who trust in us and believe that we too can spread our wings through our own efforts. We need the good and beautiful words to give our wings a boost. But there is someone in the depths who is constantly at work, without a break. He is the Eternal God who never tires and never fails. When we are weary, He pours His Spirit into us and increases our strength (cf. Is 40:28). God trusts in man, and this trust gives him wings. If we continue to trust in him, we can always hope for the strength of our wings. He helps us to overcome everything that would break our wings. He lifts us up to see more, to see deeper. Those who give themselves to God's impulse can soar like eagles (as the title of the volume, Is 40:31, says). And from above they can see at least a shining fragment of the mystery. When they return to their daily lives, they will be light bearers for the world.

More Majestic than the Waves of the Sea

2024-07-06T20:54:30+00:00

The search for God is an act of the intellect of a person who is open and invited to the infinite. We must be aware that we only want to and dare to go in search of God because someone has already gone in search of us: God first sought man. This is man's security and hope. From creation, through the incarnation, to redemption, we are witnesses to this search. The search has continued ever since. From both sides. For he who is mightier than the roaring of the waters or the roaring of the sea draws near to man. This does not mean that God is louder than any noise we can hear. He comes to us out of silence. God's silence is louder and more powerful than anything else. He breaks through the wall of silence and comes to us in Christ Jesus. The second divine Person rips open the curtain of God's great "stage" and allows the creature a glimpse into the depths of the ineffable and inexpressible inner life of the Trinity. If one dares to approach God's stage and really see even a small detail of it, one can admire the resounding silence of God: the forces of nature are impressive and awesome, but God is not in them. We can understand that God is not to be found in the great and mighty storm - which turns the mountains upside down and crushes the rocks - nor in the earthquake, nor in the fire, nor even in the roar of the sea. God comes in a gentle breeze. When God touches our faces with the whisper of a gentle breeze, he causes us to cover our faces and go out into the world (cf. 1 Kings 19:11-13; Ps 93:4). This volume is the fruit of that divine touch.

The Matter of the Dutch Loan of the Parish of St. Michael in Cluj-Napoca

2024-06-14T10:21:29+00:00

Especially in the minutes or reports of the parish board, I received references to a number of past events at the reference level, but I did not come across a related description. The publications published so far in print cannot be said to be coherent and comprehensive either. I did not even find an acceptable picture of the famous Dutch loan, with clear statements. It is commonly mentioned that the parish of St. Michael in Cluj-Napoca, which had drifted to the brink of bankruptcy due to the famous Dutch loan, was saved from total collapse by Áron Márton. The main goal of my doctoral dissertation was to search for this mysterious and hitherto undiscovered fact. With the help of the official documents available in the archives, I tried to examine and systematize the starting point, background and the course of the Dutch loan case, the people involved, the solution attempts and finally Áron Márton's orderly work. Because of my topic, I chose to use the narrative method, and I tried to strive for objectivity in all situations, even in the cases when there were unpleasant facts I had to declare about church persons and priestly dignities. The Dutch loan is about an internal ecclesiastical affair, in its initial stages it was treated as a kind of secret, but after the outbreak of the scandal it found such a resonance at the Transylvanian level, even ringing to Bucharest and Rome, that it soon lost its secret character. I divided the dissertation into two parts: the development of the Dutch loan during the administration of the parish by priest dr. József Hirschler and Áron Márton, who led the solution, at the time of his being the parish priest.