Fraternity-Testvériség, 1996 (74. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
1996-07-01 / 3-4. szám
Page 6 TESTVÉRISÉG PRESIDENT continued for the founding of the new church. From the very beginning, the newly organized church faced financial difficulties. Therefore, Rev. Jurányi recommended that the church and the Sick Benefit Society merge and operate under the same charter. The idea was good; however, in practice it created friction between church and society members, because the charter “required that both church and society members pay the same monthly dues.” Therefore, the merger was dissolved shortly after it was formed. The preliminary meeting to create a united society and an organization to establish a unified church body for the Hungarian Reformed people in America was held in Pittsburgh in January 1896. Present were Ferenczy Ferenc from Pittsburgh; Sándor Harsanyi from Cleveland; Bertalan Demeter from New York; Gusztáv Jurányi from Trenton; and Sándor Kalassay from Mt. Carmel. To consecrate the plan, a second meeting was scheduled for July 4, 1896 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. However, according to the chronicles, the minister from Trenton, Rev. Jurányi, could not travel due to illness; therefore, the place of the meeting was shifted to Trenton, and so it was that on July 4, 1896, a small group of ministers and laymen gathered in Trenton, New Jersey, to organize the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America. They assembled because they recognized the urgent need to create a bond of union among the widely scattered Hungarian immigrants in America. The aims and goals of the Federation, besides giving material and moral support to the Hungarian Calvinist mission in America was to pay a death benefit and funeral expenses to the heirs of the members. The Federation would begin to function when it reached a membership of 500. Any Hungarian who would pay 1 dollar initiation fee and an annual fee of 1 dollar may become a member. Having reached a membership of 500, the Federation would pay a 250-dollar death benefit and 50 dollars for funeral expenses. The amount would be collected from the members through proportional assessment. The group, though small, was fired with missionary zeal and strong faith in the institution they had set up for the common good. They felt that the society, closely allied with the churches, offered a means to practice Christian faith and love. Therefore, by February 1898, the membership of the Federation had jumped from 320 to 936. Most of the members came from the northern region of Hungary, namely Abauj, Zemplen, Ung and Bereg counties. There were 816 of the Reformed faith; 31 Lutheran, 86 Catholic and 3 of the Jewish faith. The Trenton example shows that those who played a leading role in building the Hungarian churches in the various settlements also had a leading role in laying the foundation of our Federation. These were the Hungarian Reformed ministers together with Hungarian Calvinist laymen. The first ten-year jubilee of the Federation was observed with a Convention in 1906, here in Trenton, where the Federation was founded. The Federation branches sent 29 representatives to this meeting. It was presided by István Molnár who proudly announced that the Federation at its first ten-year jubilee had paid out $100,000 to the beneficiaries of its deceased members. As we read from the records, after the opening address of the president, Rev. Sándor Kalassay read the ten-year history of the Federation. At the conclusion of his presentation, he made a motion asking the Federation to donate a substantial fund to the existing Orphans’ Home of the Reformed Church in America in Butler, Pennsylvania. The interest of this money was to be used for the maintenance of one or two Hungarian orphans living at the orphanage. Thereupon, Rev. Lajos Nanassy modified the motion and proposed that the Federation at this jubilee make the initial step to found a Hungarian American orphans’ home, and that a financial drive be organized to establish such a benevolent institution as soon as possible. The convention accepted this motion unanimously. Through the years, the Federation has observed several jubilees and many conventions, but this is the first time since 1906, after 90 years, that we return to Trenton to celebrate not only our 100th anniversary but also the 75th anniversary of our benevolent institution—the Bethlen Home. At this milestone of our society, we bow our heads with thanks and appreciation to those who came before us and made the Federation we honor today. George Dózsa, President Senator LaRossa reads the Resolution of the Senate of the State of New Jersey.
