"THE CRADLE OF UNITARIANISM"

A Sermon by the Rev. Bruce Clear

Sunday, October 7, 2001

All Souls Unitarian Church

Indianapolis, Indiana

For most Unitarians in the twenty-first century, Unitarianism is a very modern religion. And of course, it is. We do not talk about ancient creeds and traditions that survive through the centuries. Most of us -- the vast majority of us -- were born in some other religious tradition and chose to be Unitarian.

In that choosing, we often seem to encounter Unitarianism as a fresh, new religious approach, and seem to give little thought to its tradition and roots. Peter Raible, a retired Unitarian minister from Seattle, addressed a gathering of Unitarians in a 400 year old Unitarian congregation in Transylvania, and put it this way:

“It is a deep privilege to be here. I live in a land where 9/10 of Unitarians did not grow up Unitarian. Some tend to think that Unitarianism began last Tuesday when they walked in the door. Knowing about Transylvania gives them a heritage. I say to them: Transylvania is our holy land.”

I will speak this morning of the land that can be considered "the cradle of Unitarianism." Unitarianism we celebrate today began nearly 450 years ago in Transylvania. The story I tell about the commitment to freedom and reason in religion has continued unbroken through the centuries, making Unitarians older than Methodists or Baptists, Pentecostals or fundamentalists.

Most Unitarians seem surprised when this centuries-old heritage is identified. It is a surprise to discover that our roots go as deep as they do. The fact is, of course, that the central principle which brought together Unitarians in 16th century Transylvania is the same principle which brought together Unitarians in 18th century New England, and is the same principle which brings people into the doors of All Souls Unitarian Church in 2001. It is the principle of freedom in religion. This is our roots, and our roots go deep.

Everyone understands something about the idea of freedom. And most people do not associate freedom of belief with religions. And to me it is our commitment to freedom that most distinguishes Unitarians from other religions I know. It is not an exaggeration to suggest that, in the context of our current world crisis, religious freedom, and particularly religious tolerance, are among the values this world could most benefit from today.

This principle of freedom leads us to a conviction that many other religions would repudiate: that it is far more important for our beliefs to be freely affirmed than it is for our beliefs to be correct. And furthermore, it is far more likely that beliefs will be correct if they are allowed to be freely reached.

This is the underlying justification for the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: freedom of speech and press and religion. Why? The First Amendment is an expression of a faith -- a faith that truth is more likely to prevail in an environment of freedom, and not coercion.

Our commitment to religious freedom parallels, therefore, our commitment to political and social freedom. Where there is repression, you are likely to find Unitarians and Universalists in battle against it.

It is sadly ironic, then, that we Unitarians in America have enjoyed freedom for 200 years, but the earlier Unitarians of history, the Unitarians of Eastern Europe, who have been committed to freedom in religion for twice as long as we have, have suffered much more political repression over the centuries, and are now struggling to survive in the freedom of their land that is only now less than a decade long.

Many Unitarians in the U.S. are unaware of our roots in Eastern Europe. Unitarians remain strong there, even if the political atmosphere over the last few decades has been one of strangling religious voices. There are in Hungary and Romania whole towns which are overwhelmingly Unitarian, and where the only town church is a Unitarian Church. The strongest cluster of Unitarians today can be found in an area known as Transylvania, and I would like to offer information on their background, which is also our background.

Transylvania. I fear the word itself is part of the problem. It is a beautiful word -- and a beautiful land -- which means, in translation, "The Land Beyond the Forests." Transylvania.

The geography of Transylvania has been compared favorably with the Swiss Alps. In fact many maps refer to it as the "Transylvanian Alps." It is filled with quaint villages nestled in the valleys.

Transylvania. The problem with that word is that most people in this country -- as geographically and culturally ignorant as we sometimes prove ourselves to be -- associate one thing and one thing only with the word "Transylvania." And that is? Dracula.

Sometimes when people ask me to talk more deeply about the Unitarian concept of "freedom," I try to tell them the story I'm about to tell you -- for the whole concept of religious freedom had its birth in the Western World among Unitarians in the 16th century in Transylvania. As I tell the story, I try hard to avoid saying the word "Transylvania," because I know that as soon as I do, visions of vampires will fly like bats throughout their heads.

It is freedom, not vampires, I wish to honor as I talk about Transylvania this morning.

The Protestant Reformation in the 1500's in Europe was not a single movement. There were two major Reformations. The one we hear most was in Germany and Switzerland, lead separately by Martin Luther and John Calvin. But another reformation was also going on in Eastern Europe -- in Poland, in Eastern Germany, and in what has more recently been known as Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Rumania.

The Reformation in Eastern Europe was of a very different type than that of Luther and Calvin. It was far more extreme, and has been dubbed by historians as "The Radical Reformation" or sometimes, "The Left Wing of the Reformation."

It was in that region that Unitarianism was born -- and along with it many other Protestant religions, such as the Baptists and the Mennonites. The Protestant Reformation in general was grounded on the principle of freedom -- of breaking away from the authoritarian rule of the Roman Catholic Pope -- but the Radical Reformation took the principle of freedom much further.

Perhaps the greatest principle we remember from the Reformation is that of "the priesthood of all believers." This attitude, promoted primarily by Luther, succeeded in questioning the authority of the Roman Church; but Calvin and Luther could only take freedom so far, and no further. Once they were freed from the reigns of Catholicism, they themselves instituted their own authoritarian approaches to religion.

The wars of the Protestant Reformation instituted the policy that each local prince would decide the religion for his subjects. If a new Prince brings a new religion, the religion of that region would be expected to change. But, for Luther and Calvin who accepted this system, there was no sense in which freedom -- the priesthood of all believers -- extends politically below the level of the Prince.

That was not the case in certain important pockets of Eastern Europe. There, the Radical Reformation took the principles of the Reformation to the most extreme conclusion. And there Unitarianism -- a religion grounded on the principles of freedom and reason -- took root for the first time sinnce Unitarian heretics were banished by the Church a thousand years before.

One major advocate of Unitarianism was Faustus Socinus, who preached throughout the area, including Transylvania, but he eventually settled in Poland, and had his major influence there.

This morning I am more interested in the influence of another Unitarian reformer, one who even today is revered among Unitarians in Transylvania as the founder of Unitarianism. His name is Francis David.

Francis David was minister in the largest church in the largest town in Transylvania, the city of Kolozsvar, also known in recent times as "Cluj" by the Romanians. He began life as a Catholic, but began his ministry as the head of the Lutheran Churches of Hungary. Later he headed the Calvinist Churches of Transylvania. As he took over the Church in Kolozsvar, his theology became increasingly Unitarian, and over the course of his ministry there, virtually the entire town converted to Unitarianism. He eventually became the head of all Unitarian churches in Transylvania.

Today in Kolozsvar (Cluj), the Unitarian Church is still the largest church in town, Unitarianism is still the leading religion, and there is even a Unitarian seminary and college in town.

A recent leader of Unitarians in Transylvania, the late Dr. Janos Erdo, was minister of the Unitarian Church in Kolozsvar when he wrote about his predecessor, Francis David, this way:

"In his view, the reforms of Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin had been incomplete and largely confined to less important changes in theology, liturgy, and organization. At the same time, in carrying out their reforms, they had set bounds to the freedom of human experience and further religious development. For them (Luther, Calvin, Zwingli), the reformation of the Church was complete.

"Francis David, however, considered that the work of the Reformation must be continued and extended. Semper reformanda was for him an eternal principle.”

Erdo then described David's religious views, which, by the end of his ministry, look not too different from Unitarian views today. While he revered Jesus for the religion he taught, David refused to accept Jesus as a God. But the greatest contribution of David, according to Erdo, had to do with freedom. Erdo writes:

"The Unitarian reformation represented the most progressive religious ideology of the 16th century. It was not satisfied with denial of the Trinity, but in the spirit of the gospel created fundamental humanist principles also, such as toleration and freedom of conscience."

Francis David counted among his admirers the new King of Transylvania, John Sigismund, who took the throne in 1561, at the age of 21. His father, King John Zapolya, had been a Catholic, though somewhat at odds with the Pope. His mother, Isabella, was nominally Catholic with strong Protestant leanings. Through the influence of Francis David, King John Sigismund became a Unitarian -- the only Unitarian King in history.

John Sigismund is responsible for one of the most dramatic moments in our Unitarian history. It is an event and a story that can rival almost any religious legend in the world. That event is captured in a famous picture, which hangs in all Unitarian Churches in Transylvania, and a copy was discovered here at All Souls by the Partner Church committee. The story is this:

King John was interested in religion, and particularly issues of religious freedom. In January of 1568, he called together representatives of various religions to a debate in the city of Torda. The Catholics, the Lutherans, the Calvinists, and the Unitarians all showed up. Francis David spoke for the Unitarians, and was known widely as among the most eloquent speakers in the land. One Unitarian historian, Edward Darling, described the scene this way:

"In a very tense atmosphere, full of suspicion and fear, with feelings running high on all sides, the conditions of the debate were agreed upon and judges appointed. The king and the whole court were present, and the debate -- if one can believe the record -- lasted ten days, beginning each morningg at five o'clock.

"In our day, Unitarians have no hesitation in arguing all night; but one wonders how big a crowd could be collected before cock-crow for a week and a half without interruption. It is no wonder that this is considered the greatest debate in the entire history of Unitarianism."

David, to be sure, was the clear winner.

Such debates were not unusual in Reformation Europe. The pattern was, of course, that the winners would receive special favors and privilege, and the losers would lose favor, perhaps be outlawed or banished from the kingdom.

What David requested as reward for his victory was only this: complete religious freedom for all religions throughout Transylvania. King John was persuaded by David and granted his request, and issued the following proclamation on January 6, 1568 [January 6 continues to be celebrated among Transylvanian Unitarians as a special religious holiday.]:

"The preachers should everywhere preach the gospel, according to his own belief, and the community might accept it or not. Nobody should compel it, as this would not ease anybody's soul, but the community should have the right to keep such a preacher whose teaching it likes. None of the (religious authorities) or others are allowed to do any harm to the preacher, no one should be hurt for his religion.... Nobody is allowed to threaten anybody with prison or with expelling him from his place of teaching."

So here we find the first declaration of complete religious freedom in Western history. It is the legacy of our Unitarian heritage, coming directly from Transylvania. If it had taken hold, if it survived and spread, it would be a far different world we would be living in today.

Unfortunately, such freedom did not last long. King John died in an accident a few years later, and a bitter struggle for the throne ensued. The Catholics succeeded, and religious freedom was abolished. Unitarianism became illegal outside of two towns, Kolozsvar and Torda.

Francis David, needless to say, was in trouble. He was eventually arrested for the heresy of denying the Trinity. A trial was held, and he was found guilty. Though many in power wished to execute him, he was sentenced to life in prison, and died only after a few months in the dungeon of a castle in Deva.

The drama of Unitarianism in Transylvania continued over the years.

For a thousand years, the region of Transylvania had been part of Hungary, not Romania. However, after World War I, and again after World War II, the region of Transylvania was removed from Hungary’s borders by the Allies, who made it part of Romania. Today, Hungarians are the largest ethnic group in the region. Romania’s population in modern times is about 23 million people, 2 million of whom are Hungarian, most of them living in Transylvania. Some 80,000 of those Hungarians are Unitarians -- it's the largest group of Unitarians outside of North America. It is probably fair to say that Transylvanian Unitarians consider themselves Hungarians and not Romanians.

Over the years, as the Hungarians were increasingly oppressed by the Romanians, some 10,000 Transylvanians, including many Unitarians, fled across the border into Hungary. One of those refugees was the great modern composer, Bela Bartok, who became a member of the Second Unitarian Church in Budapest.

Also, after the second world war, Romania came under communist rule and became one of the so-called Iron Curtain countries. From 1965 until the fall of communism, Romania had been ruled by a dictator named Nicholas Ceausescu. Ceausecscu and the leaders of Romania were not pleased with this ethnic group which did not identify with Romania. A plan was developed for a form of "ethnic cleansing," though not quite as extreme as genocide. There was a cultural cleansing. The government forbid Hungarian language in schools, theaters, libraries, museums, books, and newspapers. Hundreds of Hungarian villages were bulldozed, forcing the residents into urban high-rise apartments. All church possessions, other than the buildings, were nationalized. And Unitarian ministers were regularly interrogated by the government concerning contacts outside of Romania.

David Gyero, a Unitarian minister from Transylvania who has spoke here at All Souls a few years ago, expressed the situation eloquently:

We Transylvanian Unitarians are among those who are seen as aliens in our own country, enemies of the dominant Romanians and a scourge in society. Think about this: our Unitarian ancestors were the first people in the world to proclaim religious tolerance and freedom of conscience as law. It was in 1568 in Torda, when John Sigismund was the Unitarian King of Transylvania. He had the power to force Unitarianism on others; instead, he offered them the right of choice. Yet today, it is we, his descendants, who are the targets of ethnic cleansing and religious intolerance in our own land. (We still await) the renewing Spring, but there is fear and concern on our faces. After 433 years since proclaiming it as law, we still wait for tolerance.

The Unitarians of Transylvania seem to look at this recent era as a continuation of religious oppression over several centuries since their Edict of Toleration was rescinded following the death of King Sigismund. During that period, there were ministers and lay leaders of Unitarian churches who were killed during worship services. One modern Transylvanian Unitarian minister, Mozes Kedei, reflected on their history this way.

Only the most faithful people remained Unitarians through centuries of hard history. In my former (church), centuries ago, when the village was compelled to give up the Unitarian faith, the lay president of the congregation (responded) this way: "I and my family would rather die than to give up the Unitarian faith." Through these people our faith survived. Through centuries of persecution, of depravation of our rights, we learned well the lesson of history: we could survive only if we help and love each other. There remains a proverb from those times: "They love each other like Unitarians."

Almost miraculously, there are still entire villages in Transylvania which are Unitarian -- the Unitarian church being the only church in the town. Above the door or pulpit of each church is the motto of Francis David, the simple saying, "Egy Az Isten," [, pronounced Edge Oz Eeshten, it means "God is One"]. This phrase identifies a distinguishing mark of Unitarianism in affirming divine unity rather than trinity.

When, in 1989, most of the communist world had opened to freedom, Romania remained one of the last holdouts. Since the fall of Ceaucescu, much of the severe threat has calmed, but our Unitarian cousins in Transylvania remain poor, and are struggling to keep their lives, their culture, and their churches afloat. Their status as Hungarians still marks them as an ethnic minority subject to discrimination.

Since the 1920s, Unitarian churches in the United States have had "sister church" relationships with Unitarian churches in Transylvania. During the years of communist rule, much of that connection died as the region became closed to outside contact. But since 1989, the UUA created the Partner Church Council create to encourage not only institutional ties, but personal ties between American Transylvanian Unitarians. It is clear that those courageous Unitarians of Transylvania are continuing to struggle for survival, and that the economy of the region remains poor and volatile.

A few years ago, some members of this church formed our own Partner Church Committee of All Souls to participate in this important international outreach. All Souls was linked to the Unitarian Church of Sepsi St. Georgy in Transylvania. Over these years, two of the ministers associated with that church have visited here and spoken to you from this pulpit. Two years ago, one of our youth, Jean Schrementi, joined a group of American Unitarian youth on a trip to Sepsi St. George. Two All Souls members, Janos and Linda Horvath, who live currently in Budapest Hungary where Janos serves the Hungarian Parliament, have visited our partner church several times. And last summer, Russ and Francie Eberhart, and their son Sean, visited the church of Sepsi St. George. Thanks to the efforts of dedicated members of our Partner Church Committee, each year, and with each visit, we have been able to make important contributions to the survival and health of this brave congregation in Transylvania.

For several years, a new church building has been under construction there, thanks to the financial support of All Souls and several other American Unitarian Churches. The construction is near completion and the new church dedication is scheduled for November 18. Several members of the All Souls Partner Church Committee approached Nancy and me about the possibility of our representing All Souls at the church dedication that day. They said they would be willing to raise funds to sponsor us.

To say we were honored by the proposal in an understatement. I must say that in my 18 years of being a Unitarian minister, this has been one of the best compliments to me in my work, even more so because so many people are willing to help this happen. Today, as you know, an authentic Transylvanian meal has been prepared by Jim and Betty Schrementi as a fundraiser for the project. To Jim and Betty, and to each member of the Partner Church Committee, Nancy and I, and the church at Sepsi St. Georgy, extend our profound appreciation.

We are looking forward to our visit to Transylvania, the cradle of Unitarianism, and what some have referred to as the Unitarian "Holy Land." The work of the Partner Church Committee, in this church and in many others, is helping strengthen Unitarianism not only in Transylvania, but also here in the United States, and all over the world. There is a feeling of personal and religious growth that comes over me as I reflect on this opportunity to connect with these roots of our tradition.

The nourishment that flows through the roots of our tradition, from the 1500s in Eastern Europe through today, is, above all, the devotion to the principle of freedom in religion. The "partnership" we encourage is as much a benefit for us as it is for them. We can be strengthened, I believe, by reconnecting with our heritage. The story of Unitarianism in Transylvania is a powerfully moving one, and we should be feel honored by our association with their courageous and proud history.

We owe a great deal to our Unitarian heritage in that region, including the most precious of all legacies, the religious freedom we cherish, the legacy of religious freedom and tolerance the whole world now longs for and needs.