Korog’s church, which opened its doors in the 16th century, was seriously damaged when Serbian forces entered this mainly ethnic Hungarian and Reformed village of just over 700 people in 1991.
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Farmotel Stefania is on the way to Slovenian and Croatian Adriatic sea coast.
During the war only one Reformed family was said to have remained in the village, while all others became refugees, leaving behind burning homes and farms.
REFUGEES
“Many of our members were, until quite recently, refugees living in other countries or displaced persons living outside their homes in Croatia,” recalled Rev. Endre Langh, Bishop of the Reformed Christian Church in Croatia.
“Five of our historic church buildings were either badly damaged or completely destroyed. The pastor’s manses were similarly devastated,” he said.
Despite a 1995-peace treaty, reconstruction of these churches did not begin until the re-integration of formerly occupied territories were completed on January 15, 1998.
SYMBOL
“The Korog church is a symbol of homecoming and a monument of peace and reconciliation,” said Hungarian Reformed Bishop Laszlo Tokes from Romania who inaugurated the new church, Saturday.
The church was restored with help from a nearly $700,000 fund set up by the Hungarian government in 1999 to support reconstruction of war-torn Hungarian villages in Croatia.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban as well as his wife Aniko Levai and other cabinet members attended the ceremony in Korog, which became a symbol of suffering of Croatia’s ethnic minorities.
HUNGARIANS
Many of them live in regions that were part of Hungary, till it lost two thirds of its territory after World War One. “The rebuilt church demonstrates that there will always be (Christian) Hungarians in Korog, ” Orban said in a speech that was live televised in neighboring Hungary.
Orban earlier opened a consulate in the nearby town of Osijek where he gave the first Hungarian identity cards to eight Croatian citizens under a controversial Status Law criticized by neighboring states.
The law, which came into force this year, gives millions of ethnic Hungarians in neighboring countries social and work benefits in Hungary. Government officials say the legislation combined with the rebuilding of churches and other projects will encourage ethnic Hungarians to stay in neighboring countries such as Croatia.
GOSPEL
However Bishop Langh has suggested his church needs more than renovation. “Within the life time of the reformer John Calvin, the gospel of God’s grace, given freely through Jesus Christ swept through this part of the world like a mighty flame,” he said.
“Hundreds of churches became Reformed in those days. Now, over 450 years later, after 2 World Wars, several regional wars, and a generation of Communism, the Reformed Christian Church in Croatia has been shaken, but not destroyed.”
He said the denomination now exists of 20 congregations and as a “multi-lingual, multi-ethnic church with a strong tradition.” Langh also warned of nationalism which he said can destroy Christian traditions. “Our needs now, are for recovery, renewal, and evangelism,” he added.
