A Bit of History

Abásfalva's Unitarian Heritage

In the 1560s, 300 years before Americans proclaimed themselves Unitarians, the radical reformation in Transylvania peaked in a series of debates over the validity of the trinity. Following the Diet of Torda, King John Sigismund issued the Act of Religious Tolerance and Freedom of Conscience, the first European country to proclaim such freedoms. A short time later, following another debate, the king was won over to the Unitarian views of Francis Dávid, becoming the only Unitarian king in history. Many Transylvanians followed their king in accepting Dávid's positions, and Unitarianism became the leading faith in the country. This success was short-lived, as King Sigismund died soon thereafter and was replaced by a Catholic king who began a long period of repression of the Unitarians. Despite 450 years of struggle for the freedom to worship as they choose, some 80,000 people in Transylvania today consider themselves Unitarians. The members of our partner church are a part of this surviving religious tradition.

 

The Village

The Homoród valley is in the foothills of the Harghita mountains. The Homoród River (we would call it a stream) runs through the valley. A road parallels the river, and villages lie along the road, a few kilometers apart. Fields and pastures dot the hillsides, which are topped by large wooded areas. Abásfalva is small, about 300 people living in 100 homes, and entirely Unitarian. There is also a small Roma (gypsy) population. The Unitarian church is the only church in the village. Houses have electricity, but no natural gas. Few of the houses have indoor toilets, but most have water indoors and many have wood-fired hot water heaters. Almost every family farms and gardens and owns livestock.

Transylvania in the Twentieth Century

For over 1000 years, Transylvania was an independent state or a part of Hungary. In 1921, following the end of the First World War, Transylvania was made part of Romania. The Unitarians of Transylvania are ethnic Hungarians, who speak the Hungarian language and follow Hungarian customs.

The period since World War II has been especially difficult for the ethnic Hungarian population of Transylvania. Forced by the communist government to give up the independent life they had followed for centuries and work in collectives, many lost hope for the future. The dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu, who was in power from 1965 to 1989, wanted to eliminate the villages and force all the villagers into cities. The impacts of his ruthless behavior and of his ever present secret police have not yet been dispelled. Trust was a victim of the communist era, and it has not been restored. Now the ethnic Hungarian population faces the rise in popularity of nationalistic Romanian politicians who use minorities as scapegoats for the difficulties of the Romanian economy.