An interesting Life
I was seeking the Lord as to what or how to pray for the Balkans. I was drawn to the city of Bor, Serbia and to a famous individual who suffered there during WW II.
Radnóti Miklós
Radnóti was born Miklós Glatter in Budapest into an assimilated Jewish family. His life was considerably shaped by the fact that both his mother and his twin brother died at his birth. He refers to this trauma in the title of his compilation Ikrek hava ("Month of the Twins").
In the early 1940s Radnóti was conscripted by the Hungarian Army, but being a Jew he was assigned to an unarmed (munkaszolgálat) ("labour battalion"). The battalion assigned to the Ukrainian front, and then in May 1944 the Hungarian Army retreated and his battalion was transferred to the copper mines in Bor, Serbia. In August 1944 as Yugoslav Partisans led by Josip Tito advanced, Radnóti's group of 3,200 Hungarian Jews was force-marched to central Hungary. On the march most of them died, including Radnóti.
In these last months of his life Radnóti continued to write poems in a small notebook and scraps of paper he kept with him. His last poem was dedicated to his friend Miklós Lorsi, who was shot to death during their death march.
According to witnesses, in early November 1944, Radnóti was severely beaten by a drunken militiaman who had been tormenting him for "scribbling". While passing near Győr, the prisoners were to be placed at the city's hospital, but as it being destroyed by Allied carpet bombing, Radnóti, together with other Jews, was shot, and buried in a mass grave. Today, a statue next to the road commemorates his place of death.
"Postcard 4" which was written days before his own death, describes the horror of seeing "his friend, the violinist Miklós Lorsi" executed. What follows is the poem in its translated version:
"Postcard 4"
I fell next to him. his body rolled over.
It was tight as a string before it snaps.
Shot in the back of the head- "This is how
you'll end." "Just lie quietly," I said to myself.
Patience flowers into death now.
"Der springt noch auf," I heard above me.
Dark filthy blood was drying on my ear.
October 31, 1944
Prayer Points:
1) Sad stories like Radnóti’s is a reminder of the fatal history of the Balkans. Throughout the Balkans, no matter where you journey, there is a sadness that hangs in the air. Let us pray for new stories of happy times.
Isaiah 61:3 To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.
2) Pray for hope. There is little hope in the Balkans. May the Lord raise up “hope givers” for the many people groups across the Balkans. Pray for encouragement.
3) I had someone quote Gandhi to me the other day, “There is enough to feed everyone’s need but not enough to feed everyone’s greed.” It is natural for those without hope to be selfish. Pray for generosity to arise and free people from the bondage of self-centeredness.
4) Even Christians in the Balkans are tight fisted. Many pastors must work long hours at a secular job and then try to pastor a congregation. Pray that generosity to be released through the Christians.
Let's talk about the Balkans. Make a Comment.
