Bethlen Naptár, 1959 (Ligonier)

Bethlen Almanac

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BETHLEN ALMANAC

THE HUNGARIAN REFORMED CHURCH IN AUSTRALIA

The year 1957 brought thousands of Hungarians to Australia The Hungarian Presbyterian Church at Fitzroy, Melbourne with its limited possibilities was not prepared to the intake of new Hungarian Presbyterians in such a big number as it happened during the year 1957. Unless new method is introduced in churchwork, new efforts, alterations are made, we might not only lose the wonderful opportunity to gain thousands of new churchmembers but we can account with the disintegration of an inefficient Hungarian Mission.

The Number of Hungarian Presbyterians in Victoria

In 1956 there were 2,570 Hungarian Presbyterians in Victoria. The official reports are showing that within six months in 1957, an other 1,234 Hungarian Presbyterian arrived to Bonegilla (receiving Centre of Victoria). From this number 28 went to Queensland, 3 went to West Australia, 9 went to Tasmania, 47 went to South Australia, 222 went to New South Wales, and 845 settled down in Victoria.

Our records show that during that period; 201 Hungarians came from South Australia to Melbourne and about 400 from New South Wales all joining our Presbyterian Church at Fitzroy. An other 275 arrived to Australia by private arrangements and became our Churchmembers soon after their arrival to Melbourne. Apart from the Hungarian Presbyterians I have to deal in my churchwork with a great number of Catholic Hungarians who are the members of Presbyterian mixed families and attend our Church Services, take active part in the Churches’ life and contribute to our budget in a moderate way. The number of these people is about 1,800 in the whole Victoria. All together I must account with six thousand souls who expect the services of the Fitzroy Presbyterian Church which is the centre of the Hungarian Presbyterian Church of Victoria. The statistics show that 75% of the newly arrived Hungarian Presbyterians settled down in Victoria, 20% went to New South Wales and about 5% to Tasmania, Queensland or West Australia.

30,000 Hungarians in Australia

Hungarian immigrants began to arrive to Australia in the 1920’s. The majority of these Hungarians were Hungarian Jews and those few Hungarians who symphatized with the first Hungarian Communist regime and after its short reign they emigrated. (The first Hungarian Communist regime dominated Hungary only a few months in 1918-19 and collapsed.)

Between the years 1920-1948 a few hundreds of Hungarians arrived only to Australia, mostly adventurers. The bigger Hun-