Bethlen Almanac 2000 (Ligonier)
New York-i Egyházmegye
A júliusi IV. Magyar Református Világtalálkozó alkalmával Budapesttől-Kassáig és Genfig Szabó István és Éva közel húsz rendezvényen vett részt, amerikai egyházaink életéről mindenütt beszámolva. Lelkészünk, a Magyar Reformátusok Tanácskozó Zsinatának világi elnöke, 1981 óta pásztorolja a kis Cliffside-i gyülekezetét. Isten áldását és segítségét kérjük további munkánkra. Szabó István világi lelkész There is evidence that the Hungarian Reformed people worshipped in Cliffside already at the beginning of the 20th century. According to the 35th anniversary edition of the dedication of the church, the founding fathers organized their congregation in 1925. Soon they started to build a church. By the completion of the church building in 1929, they had a lively congregation. They worshipped every Sunday in Hungarian, kept their social traditions, organized folk dances, performed on the stage, etc. But by the time the 2nd and 3rd generations grew up, some of them found jobs elsewhere, relocated throughout the country, or joined other churches. The church membership started to decline during the sixties and seventies. It was a great loss when Michael Takacs, our chief elder, died last year. He dedicated his life to this congregation having served at least 25 years as chief elder. In May 2000 we elected our new chief elder, Dr. Otto Kanocz, who is also a member of the Judicial Commission of the Synod. The pastor and his wife are visiting the sick and especially one of our oldest members: Mrs. Elizabeth Gönczi, who is in the nursing home. The congregation is contributing regularly to the General Fund of the Synod, the New York Classis and the official magazine, Magyar Church, as well as to children’s hospitals and nursing homes here and abroad. The lay pastor, István Szabó, is a member of the Faculty at Dominican College, he is also the chief elder of the Hungarian Reformed Church in America, and president of the Consultative Synod of Hungarian Reformed Churches, together with Bishop Kalman Csiha of Kolozsvár. István Szabó, Lay Pastor 109
