Starpoint 2011, Tata

The conference took place between July 19 and 23, 2011 in Tata. This small town is situated in the Transdanubian Presbytery District of the Reformed Church in Hungary (only 40 minutes ride from Budapest, the capital city of Hungary) and famous for its historical diversity.

THEME OF 2011

Touches - Reach your inner self                                            

"You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your

hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful

for me; it is high; I cannot attain it." Psa 139,5-6

’Starpoint’ (in Hungarian: Csillagpont), the Reformed Youth festival, is organized every other year and has a different theme each time.  In 2011 "Touches" was the focus of morning lectures and small group conversations.

We looked at touches from three different points of view in three lectures. First: parental touches ensuring our growth; second: peer touches and interactions in our relationships; finally: God’s spiritual touches and their marks on our lives. The core message of Starpoint 2011 was the following: Touch with love and let yourself be touched because it is the mutual bonds we can grow in.

During the three main lectures Dr. Emőke Bagdy, clinical pshycologist and department head of Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church in Hungary, guided us to explore the world of touches. She helped us with her professional knowledge and experience to see and understand the variety of touches. In three days we discovered our world, the world of touches, the mutuality of touches from physical contacts to a spiritual touch. We learned to admit that without a touch we die, with a touch we are revived and we saw that touches may have a significant impact on our health.

During these days it was revealed that connections exist between the way we see God and the way we see our parents, we recognized that our connections are built and were getting stronger by mutual touches, everything has its ordered time and meaning from the cradle to the grave and we need a touch from God to find and keep balance, happiness and harmony in our life.

The thought-provoking plenary sessions and small group discussions aimed to help further by creating an atmosphere that is personal, encourages discussion and which fosters community.

In 2011, the Reformed Church in Hungary organized its fifth „Starpoint” youth event to which we offered a warm invitation to our Christian sisters and brothers all over the world.