Forfar East and Old twinned with Zuglo Reformed Church in Budapest, Hungary

The churches first established a link back in 2012 when some members of East and Old looked into the twinning process and applied to World Mission (now the Faith Impact Forum) for a twinning partner. After some possible partners were suggested, East and Old felt Zuglo Church best fitted their vision and expectations, and a formal twinning committee was set up. The two churches eventually signed a Twinning Agreement, which outlined their aims and objectives for the relationship.

Initially, correspondence was mainly via email between a couple of representatives from each partner, but the congregations were kept up to date and got to learn more about one another. News was shared about their respective churches, and information about the traditions and beliefs of the church and prayer requests were passed on. The first visit to Budapest took place within a year, when 12 members of East and Old visited the church and spent a few days getting to know the congregation in person.

Since then, the twinning has flourished, with yearly visits to and from Budapest and regular communication continuing in between visits. Solid, genuine friendships have developed, and the churches are always learning new things about each other and deepening their faith as they learn more about how the other lives as a Christian in another culture.

Highlights of visits have been a ceilidh in Budapest and young members of Forfar attending the Zuglo family camp and taking part in their first communion.

Just before the pandemic, a small delegation of three members of Zuglo church came over to Forfar for a brief visit to attend the celebrations for the 225-year anniversary of the church building, where they enjoyed a special service with the Moderator of Church of Scotland providing the sermon. It was uplifting and highlighted the importance of such a link in helping to see the broader picture of the Christian faith across the world and our part in it, something which the twinning link with Zuglo helps them achieve.

During the pandemic, the two churches held regular Zoom meetings and did some joint Bible studies based around the topic of ‘Care for Creation'. East and Old are already an active Eco-Congregation and they have encouraged Zuglo to connect with Eco-Congregations Hungary. East and Old are planning to plant around 1600 trees in their area over the next couple of years, and they have funded the purchase of a tree to plant in the Zuglo grounds.

At the start of the pandemic, East and Old were publicly honest about the financial struggles they were experiencing, and without being asked, the church in Budapest sent out money to support the church in Forfar. More recently, Forfar sent some money to Budapest to support the purchase of new hymnbooks, which have a stamp in the front indicating that these were bought by the Forfar church.

This exchange of money at the time when the congregations most needed it is a great sign of the way the congregations have grown closer. There is no feeling of obligation for one congregation to support another financially, yet when one is in need, and others can meet that need – they do so, with joy.