Bethlen Naptár, 1989 (Ligonier)

Kálvin Egyházkerület

As we stop at this anniversary and look forward to the future, we do not know what it may bring but we say together with Samuel: „Hitherto the Lord has helped us” (ISamuel 7:12).

INDIANA HARBOR, IN Pastor: Koloman K. Ludwig

The Indiana Harbor congregation of East Chicago Indiana had its roots in the Hungarian Reformed Church of South Chicago, founded in 1898. As the Hungarian Reformed population increased in Northwest Indiana, the East Chicago Indiana congregation was established in 1907 on the west side of the city. The Indiana Harbor church was formed by members of the East Chicago Hungarian Reformed Church who lived in a separate community on the east side, in the older section of the city, closest to Lake Michigan.

First conceived on June 28, 1925 at the Catherine House, a neighborhood center, this would be their temporary place of worship begining July 5, 1925, followed by their first Holy Communion worship service on August 23 of the same year.

Two years later, in 1927, land was purchased for the building of the church at its present site, as the first confirmation class was accepted into membership in the church. Meeting at that time at Saint Alban Episcopal Church, the $30.00 monthly rent seemed too high.

With the coming of The Depression, things seemed to get worse. The monthly rent at St. Alban’s dropped from $30.00 to $23.00, membership „dues” in the church dropped from $12.00 yearly to $9.00 per family (from $6.00 to $5.00 for single members), and by 1932 the Depression threatened the existence of every organization, business, family and church. To compound the problems of the Hungarians in the Chicago area, the Hungarian churches on the East Coast tried to lure away the ministers in the Chicago area, so that the South Side, the Whiting and the Indiana Harbor congregations had to form a congregation of churches for their own defense. Perhaps this helped the Indiana Harbor Reformed community make their boldest decision.

On April 11, 1932, at the Classis meeting of the Magyar Synod, the Indiana Harbor delegation announced it was planning to build a sanctuary. Records show that no one took the Indiana Harbor delegates seriously. After all, this was the worst financial situation the country had been in: unemployment was over 20%! But the Hungarians in Indiana Harbor were determined. If men were unemployed, the church would feed them, as they had free time to work. On May 8, 1932, the Consistory empowered the

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