Magyar Egyház, 2004 (83. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
2004-04-01 / 2. szám
MAGYAR EGYHÁZ 21. oldal Ez a templom befogadott engem, meggyógyította a sebeimet, - visszaadta a hitem. Lelki otthonom lett, ahol a családom dicsérte az Urat. Megáldotta a házasságomat, eltemette a halottaimat és el fog temetni engem is, ha haza hív az Isten. Ma,- túl sokan vannak a temetőben, de álmuk él tovább. Ez a folytonosság olyan mint a folio, mely emberi szivekből fakad és folyik, míg el nem éri az Örökkévalóság tengerét, ahol mind találkozunk a végső számadásra. Ez a templom a szülőhelyem nyelvén szól hozzám és a nyelven amit itt tanultam menedékért esedezve. Isten minden nyelvet ismer, - de az üzenete ugyanaz: ”Én vagyok az Úr, a te Istened!” Generációk jönnek és mennek. Elmegyünk mi is és mások veszik át a helyünket. A templom megmarad, mert szilárd alapon áll és mert ihletett pásztorok szolgálják. Isten itt marad megjutalmazni a rég elmúlt álmodok hitét, z az amit ez a templom nekem jelent! Hanzelyné Fogarassy Enikő Trenton, New Jersey 110th Anniversary A hundred and ten years ago, a dream became a reality. The dreamers of that dream invited the Lord to the house; they erected in His honor. He came and He stayed, He is with us still because they built His house on solid foundation and because the hunger of our soul needs to be fed by the words of Gog! As Jacob, we still cry out ”1 will not let thee go, except thou bless me!” When I am asked, - what this church means to me, the answer is manifold, because I came with a wounded soul, from a war raveged country, where may faith was trampled by the brutal boots of unholy hordes. They wanted to destroy God in me! My journey from Hungary to Trenton was very long, - the burden of the war very heavy, - my faith very faint. All 1 could offer, was a plea ”1 am a stranger and a sojourner with you, - give me a burying place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight...” This church welcomed me, healed my wounds; restored my soul, it became the spiritual home, where my family worshipped, - it blessed my marriage, it buried my dead and it will bury me, when God calls me home. Today, - too many are in the cemetery but their dream lives on. The continuity is like a river flowing out of human hearts until it reaches the ocean of eternity, - where we all gather for our final reckoning. My church speaks to me in the language of my homeland, - it speaks to me in the language I learned when I came here to seek refuge. God knows all the languages but his message is the same “ I am the Lord, thy God!” Generations come and go. We will leave and others will take our place. The church will remain, because it stands on solid foundation, - served by dedicated pastors. God will remain to reward the faith of those long ago dreamers. This is what my church means to me! Enikő Fogarassy Hanzely OSfO AMREICAN HUNGARIAN REFORMED CHURCH 9901 Allen Road, Allen Park, MI 48101 Tel: 313-382-1001 Pastor: Rev. Frank Varga, Dean Chief Elder: Margaret Tarkanyi We thank God that out of His endless love he granted us an other year in which we are sent to proclaim the good news of His salvation and to be His instruments in the Kingdom work. Our English worship service is at 9:30 AM followed by the Hungarian service at 11:00 A.M. on Sundays. During the services we offer Sunday School in both languages. We are filled with joy and are grateful to the Lord, that the number of our Sunday School students is increasing. Part of our worship service is dedicated to our children. Parents bring them to the sanctuary and after the Children’s Message they go to their classroom. . In our Bible Study at this time we focus on the once for all atonement of Christ. In Lent we watched the movie The Passion of Christ directed by Mel Gibson and now we are having a six part discussion based on the movie and a study guide authored by Lee Stroble. This year we are greatly blessed. In our confirmation class we have seven young people. After spending months with diligently studying the Bible and our Reformed Creeds they made their confirmation the Sunday before Pentecost. A number of fellowship events characterized the social life of our congregation. The Prayer Chain hosted the Lenten Soup Supper once again on Ash Wednesday after the worship service. The Golden Circle had a Ham raffle before Easter and they had a membership drive this spring they invited church members to join them in serving the Lord. Our Hungarian Heritage Preservation Circle (Magyar Hagyományokat Ápoló Kör) organized the Pork Dinner (Disznótoros Ebéd) and gave a short program of the Hungarian traditions in February and in April they invited everyone for the Spring Dinner. The Dorcas Guild served a Meat Loaf dinner. Both dinners were successful and delicious as always. The Busy Bee craft group surprised our children with gift package on Easter Sunday. For the first time in the history of our church we formally celebrated the National Prayer Day in our congregation. The Sunday School children released helium filled balloons after the service with a message attached to spread the necessity, importance and power of prayer. Our Martha Circle organized their annual Family Night. They had fellowship, and as always, delicious food and desserts for the members of the group and their families. As part of our outreach program The Planning Committee, with the help of the Confirmation Class of 2004 and their parents served a Pancake Breakfast for all members of our church, and for non-members and those who do not have a strong tie with our worshipping and fellowshipping circles. Dear readers, we are always happy to share with you the events that take place at our church. But we also request
