Bethlen Évkönyv, 1993-1996 (Ligonier)

Zoltán D. Szücs: Our churches and our federation

Secretary Bela Mokcsay announced the planned building of a new church in Cleveland. — He also donated $5 to help the cause. The Treasurer of the Federation, József Tomcsanyi, followed his example as did most of the delegates with their generous and sacraficial donations to insure the building of the new church. Many of our lay and clergy forefathers committed themselves for a set amount of yearly donations to support this idea of Hungarian unity in America, both through our Reformed churches and also through our Reformed Federation. They even endowed foundations, like the “Kalassay-Abahazi Foundation” and the Virág-Abahazi Foundation”. (American-Hungarian

Reformed Journal, Year 2, No. 31, Page 7.)

The founding fathers emphasized two cardinal principles from the beginning: 1. The goals and lives of our churches and of our Federation are inseparable and all of us have to work together for both, (“Our Lives in the Church and in the Federation”, American-Hungarian Reformed Journal, Year 2, No. 35, Page 5.); 2. The Hungarian Reformed Federation of America was established for all Hungarians. From it's conception it is Reformed, yet not at all narrowly denominational. It wants to embrace all Hungarians. (American-Hungarian Reformed Journal, Reverend Sándor Kalassay, Year 2, No. 46, Page 1.)

Our work and our responsibility for both are inseparable. It is comparable to the rebuilding of Jerusalem. We are very much, like were Ezra and Nehemiah, in the Bible. Like they were, we are also called to build up the walls of Jerusalem. We have to resolve in our minds to build up the church and the strong protecting walls of the Federation. We have to keep one hand on the Bible and the other has to work with the trowel. The two go hand in hand. (American-Hungarian Reformed Jurnal, Year 3, No. 29.) We can find strength only in unity. The Hungarian Reformed Federation of America is the strong link which binds together all Hungarian brethren in America, (American-Hungarian Reformed Journal, Year 2, No. 35, August 29, 1901.) By 1903 all our brethren in Cleveland Pittsburgh, Toledo and Lorain were called upon and they committed themselves to work together for the common and better future of our churches and our Federation. (American-Hungarian Reformed Journal, Year 4, No. 52, December 24, 1903, Page 3.)

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