The Institutional Child Protection System of the Reformed Church in Hungary

Abstract

This study analyzes the Reformed child protection system in Hungary within an interdisciplinary framework, through an integrated examination of its legal, sociopolitical, and theological dimensions. Its fundamental thesis is that the child protection structure maintained by the Reformed Church in Hungary can be described as a hybrid normative-institutional model, in which the secular legal framework of public service provision and the diaconal approach grounded in theological-anthropological principles mutually shape one another.

The starting point of the study is the theological-anthropological interpretation of the child, which defines the child as a relational being and a person endowed with innate dignity, offering a critical perspective in contrast to functionalist approaches to child protection. Subsequently, the study explores the multi-level structure of the Hungarian child protection system, as well as the growing role of church-run organizations—particularly the Diaconia of the Reformed Church —in the context of welfare pluralism.

The analysis highlights that the distinctive feature of the Reformed model is its networked operation and community embeddedness, in which institutional, community, and spiritual resources are integrated. The study concludes that this approach offers a relational and value-based child protection paradigm that can contribute to a more inclusive and sustainable rethinking of child protection.