Journal index

This presentation advocates for the revival of theology as a craft, specifically by teaching theological students the craft of a theologian. To achieve this, it raises three questions: 1. What is the artisan mentality compared to the peasant mentality? 2. How should theology be understood as a craft, and how can it be taught as such? 3. Is it even permissible to pursue theology as a craft? In conclusion, it draws several insights: the theologian we increasingly need is a true artisan who continually learns, is willing to retrain to provide the best for the congregation; who becomes humble by projecting themselves and their theology; and who, while respecting the traditions of the fathers and the lives of Christian people, is ready to purify the Gospel from the sterile explanations of bygone eras and proclaim it as eternal truths.

We are always seeking for the sense of the life, for ourselves and for the place in our family and community. Religion shows a new way to us, according to Jesus Christ’s principles. The son of God not only created a religion, but gave us an example how to live, and sacrifice himself for us. Sándor Karácsony reckons religion as a spiritual behavior, the base of our social contacts. We have to see into our lives and character according to the message of Jesus Christ. The right and appropriate personality can be evolved by individual training.

The views of Sándor Karácsony about religious education can be clearly discerned from his writings. The main task of reformed pedagogy is to activate continuously the divine notions in this continuously changing world. Protestant teachers must accomplish their daily work according to the Gospel of Christ. The Hungarian Reformed Church was a so-called “church of schools” for hundreds of years. This means that even between WWI and WWII it owned more schools than churches. The number of Reformed schools is significant even today. Sándor Karácsony claims that only Reformed people and communities are able to maintain Reformed schools by people who “are ready to serve and sacrifice themselves” for this cause (Karácsony, Sándor: A magyarok Istene. Széphalom Könyvműhely, Budapest 2004, 172).