NEW UPDATE
Jó napot kívánok (Good day),
Before I dive into my experiences in Hungary, I have an update for the Central Europe cohort. In early January, Madeline, Sara, Sylvia, Aaron, our country coordinator Kelly, and I welcomed the two newest members of the Central Europe team, Abbie and Braden. After being evacuated in October from their placements in the Jerusalem and West Bank program due to the ongoing violence, Abbie and Braden were given the opportunity to join another cohort and I deeply admire their willingness to continue with the program and am excited to have them be apart of this cohort!
During their orientation week in Hungary, the cohort had the opportunity to meet the bishop of the Lutheran church in Hungary, Bishop Tamás Fabiny. During this meeting, we enjoyed the Bishop’s presentation on the Lutheran faith in Hungary, their worldwide partners, and primary goals. It was interesting to see how the faith has evolved and the challenges it faces, which are similar to the church in the United States.
THE HOLIDAY SEASON
In early December, I had the opportunity to do one of the Old Lutheran Church’s Angel mornings. During this, a fifth-grade student from Benka translated my speech. I talked about the four themes of Advent: Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy and expressed moments I have felt each, along with stories about how my family in the U.S. celebrates Christmas. Following this, the fifth-grade class sang Christmas carols for all in attendance.
Furthermore, in each grade at Benka, we discussed the history of Christmas, Santa Claus, and the meaning of Advent. Specifically I posed questions to the students so they could reflect on what each of the themes mean to them, why they are important, and how each of us can display them in our community. Learning about how Hungarians celebrate the holiday season has been a fascinating experience. One such traditions I noticed was that gifts are given on the 6th of December, when Saint Nicolas arrives. Each year, Benka has a member of the community dress up as Saint Nick and rides up on a decorated motorcycle, where he delivers candies to the children. Needless to say, the classes on the 6th were full of kids on sugar rushes!
To close out this school term, I was first invited to a second teacher's dinner with the Benka staff. We enjoyed our time together and had many palinka shots (iconic Hungarian liquor, which will warm you up real quick)! The next day I attended a teacher lunch at Vajda, where we all shared community and experienced some great live music from a few of the teachers.
On December 23rd, I attended a dinner hosted by Zsolt and Dori’s family. Here, I had the chance to try more classic Hungarian dishes like halászleves (fish soup), kacsa (duck), bejgli (a dessert after dinner), and of course, palinka. We then sang Christmas hymns in Hungarian and exchanged gifts. While I provided some sweets and wine as gifts, Zsolt and Dora gave me a beginners and intermediate guide to the Hungarian language! I was incredibly grateful for their hospitality and overwhelmed with their generosity.
Next, I was graciously invited to Zétény Czifra’s house, a Vajda student, and his family for Christmas Eve. There we had more classic Hungarian dishes and enjoyed each other's company. It was great to hear what the two boys (one in 10th and the other in 12th grade) are planning to do following high school. I am constantly blown away by the kindness and care of those in this community, many of whom don’t know me but invite me to their celebrations and care that I am involved in the community.
For Christmas Day, Klára and her family had me over for lunch and an evening celebration. During this time we shared many stories of Christmas and had a lot of fun playing games like reverse uno, bananas, and a few other games. Later on the 30th, I was graciously invited to Nóra, a fellow Benka teachers house, where she prepared a phenomenal lunch and activities for myself and her family along with her children’s partners. During this we exchanged experiences, opinions, and had a lot of fun playing a card game that they created! Following that, for New Years, I was luckily invited to celebrate with my Friends from Szarvas who attend both Budapest and Szeged for university. We had a great time, which included a lot of toasts and fireworks!
From January 5-7th, Madeline visited Szarvas where we explored the town with Klára, where we went on the memorial walk, which describes and commemorates the history of Hungary, and later went on our second excursion to a waterpark in Gyula with Klára and her family. Now on January 18th, I celebrated my birthday and the reason I bring this up is simply because of the generosity from my community. Klára first took me for a amazing cake following class. Later I was given two tremendous gifts, one from a student at Vajda, which was a 3D printed key chain of the old and new Hungary, with the Hungarian inscription of “Isten hozott!” (Welcome), and a Hungarian book from the Benka teachers!
Overall, the holiday season is often seen as a difficult time for anyone away from family or loved ones. However, the gift of being with the incredible people in this community made my holiday season enjoyable even when being away from my family for the first time during Christmas!
Below, I have included some bonus photos and my list of reads. Unfortunately, due to wrapping up my final graduate applications, I was unable to spend time on a book review, but I hope you enjoy!
All the best,
Connor JL Moore
BERLIN WITH BALÁZS
On December 15th, I had the incredible opportunity to travel with one of my first friends from Szarvas, Balázs Kozák, to Berlin, Germany for the weekend. My sister's fiance, Drew and his co-founder, Steen, of Livestock Labs were in Germany for business and met up with us for a few great experiences. We went on a three hour walking tour of Berlin. During this, we had an incredible guide who was very passionate about the history of Berlin. On the tour, we saw the beginnings of the region, it’s cultural and geopolitical importance in history.
A few things that stood out were Neue Wache (New Guardhouse) was once a symbol of Prussian military might. However, now the centerpiece of this memorial is a sculpture by Käthe Kollwitz, a renowned German artist, titled “Mother with her Dead Son.” The sculpture captures the grief and devastation of war, symbolizing the suffering of civilians during conflict. Close by was Bebelplatz, where in 1933 the Nazi party conducted a country wide campaign to burn books. The country wide burnings of works that were considered “Un-German” were from prominent Jewish intellectuals and others. The event had historical precedents with the 1817 book burnings at Wartburg Castle by German students who choose the 300th anniversary of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses to burn antinationalist texts. The tour also went by Hitler’s personal office, which is now a Chinese restaurant. In the back, under our feet was Hitler’s
final stand in a bunker where he, his new wife, Eva Braun, along with his head of propaganda, Joseph Goebbels and his family all committed suicide. Following the suicides, Nazi officials burned the bodies outside so the allied forces would not have their hands on them. Later in 1970, in fear of Hitler’s resting place becoming a homage site, Soviet KGB agents dug up his remains, burned them and threw them into a German river. The final stop I would like to mention is the Holocaust memorial in the center of Berlin.
This thought provoking and powerful memorial begins with what almost look like short benches. However, as one begins to walk into this memorial on the undulating ground, one feels a gradual entrapment and confusion as the horizon of the city is lost and the large square tower over you. All of the symmetry made me think about how systematic (gradual at first, but eventually rapid) the Nazi genocide of European Jews was.
This experience was profound for me and when reflecting on this history of authoritarianism and fascism, there is one quote that came to mine. It comes from Yale historian Dr. Timothy Snyder, who states, “The European history of the twentieth century shows us that societies can break, democracies can fall, ethics can collapse, and ordinary men can find themselves standing over death pits with guns in their hands. It would serve us well today to understand why.”
Timothy Snyder in On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from Twentieth Century Europe
CONNOR’S LIST OF READS
NOVEMBER
Educated
Tara Westover, 2018
Recommended to me by a fellow YAGM, Ellie, Educated by Tara Westover is a powerful memoir that accounts for Tara’s profound transformation and struggle coming from a strict Mormon and survivalist family in Idaho to attaining her Ph.D. in intellectual history from Cambridge University. The memoir chronologically traces Westover’s life from her childhood to her early thirties and is structured into three main sections: her experiences living at Buck’s Peak, her transition into college, and her time at Cambridge and Harvard. While her journey from a family who was deeply suspicious of the government, medicine, and formal education to the higher rungs of academia is powerful, she is courageous and inspiring in including her personal traumas dealing with physical and emotional abuse throughout her life. Overall, this story embodies the liberating power of education and how one can overcome personal and professional obstacles to create a whole new life.
Hungary: A Short History
Norman Stone, 2018
On my quest to read a book related to Hungary in each newsletter, I came across Hungay: A Short History by Oxford historian Norman Stone. Starting in the early history of the Magyars, the founding of the Hungarian state, and moving to significant periods such as the Ottoman occupation, Habsburg rule, the two world wars, the Cold War era, and the post-Communist period, the book covers an immense amount of ground in just under four hundred pages. Stone’s aim is to display the complexities of Hungary's past while emphasizing its distinct cultural and political identity in the European context. Moreover, Stone suggests that Hungary’s present political landscape and unique position in Europe has been shaped by it often being caught between major powers of extreme ideologies, occupations, and political upheavals. Overall, the book was a good introduction to the basics of Hungarian history. However, it falls short in many areas as it often gets convoluted at times when Stone attempts to display/explain too much in such a short amount of space.
Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.
Brené Brown, 2018
Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead is an insightful investigation into leadership and courage. Brown is a renowned researcher and storyteller who dives into what it means to lead through vulnerability, authenticity, and empathy in today’s quickly evolving world. The primary point made is that true leadership is not about status, titles, or using power, rather its about the willingness to step up, put yourself out there, and lean into courage. I really enjoyed her “rumbling” space and language, which is a space where we have the ability to talk about challenging or uncomfortable issues while using recommended tactics that allow for curiosity, accountability, and generosity. Overall, the book provides a solid argument and insight into growing as a leader through means that differ from current norms.
David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants
Malcolm Gladwell, 2013
Gladwell’s David and Goliath presents a perspective challenging conventional views of the advantages and disadvantages of power and success. Known for his unique take on psychology and sociology, Gladwell presents anecdotes and analyses that illustrate how apparent weaknesses can lead to unexpected strengths and how apparent advantages can lead to complacency or other vulnerabilities. From basketball strategies, class sizes in schools, dyslexia’s role in significant peoples lives, to Emil Freireich’s radical approach to treating childhood leukemia, and the London Blitz of World War II, Gladwell employs a wide gamut to support his arguments. While the book and critics of Gladwell often note the large reliance on anecdotal evidence, this read was very entertainment and intriguing.
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
Yuval Noah Harari, 2011
Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari presents a thought-provoking journey through the entire span of human history, which begins with the emergence of Homo sapiens in the Stone Age and moves all the way to the twenty-first century. The book covers three primary phases, the cognitive, agricultural, and scientific revolutions. Harari posits that more than biological factors, the ability of Homo sapiens to believe in shared myths and stories like religion, money, and law, which allows us to create large-scale cooperation, is what distinguishes our species and has been a key to our rapid accent and success. Moreover, Harari contends that the Agriculture Revolution was a critical moment in history that set the stage for the rise of complex societies, yet it was at the cost of individual happiness and freedom. Another claim is that the relentless pursuit of growth and progress, during the Scientific Revolution, has created remarkable achievements but also significant ecological destruction and ethical dilemmas. Harari’s writing style is phenomenal. It is accessible to many even with its philosophical portions and incredibly engaging and entertaining. This work is amongst the top of my recommended reads.
How To Change Your Mind: The New Science of Psycedelics
Michael Pollan, 2018
Michael Pollan’s How to Change Your Mind is an intriguing exploration into the history, science, social, and therapeutic potential of psychedelics like LSD, psilocybin, and DMT. Combining scientific research, personal experiences, and cultural history, Pollan argues that such substances, which have long been stigmatized and misunderstood, have significant potential for enhancing our understanding of consciousness, mental health, and spirituality. Specifically, I found the presented research on psychedelics being used for treating mental health issues, addiction, depression, PTSD, and more very intriguing. I highly recommend this read to anyone curious about the science and history behind such substances. Moreover, Pollan does a great job at balancing perspectives and being critical of his personal journey with faith, spirituality, and testing such substances.
