Magyar Egyház, 1994 (73. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)

1994 / 2. szám

12. oldal

MAGYAR EGYHÁZ

THE ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF THE HUNGARIAN REFORMED CHURCH OF TRENTON (1894-1994)

Among the congregations of the Eastern Classis of the Hungarian Reformed Church in America, the Trenton Church is the first to have reached the hundred year milestone. At the same time, this period of a hundred years marks the presence of Hungarians in the United States. This means that our fellow Hungarians have been shaping almost half of this country's history. With Hungarian Reformed faith, we profess that the Hungarians of America drifted to the shores of the New World not by chance but due to the wise decision of the Lord of History. This is the background that enables our church this year to look back not at a self determined journey but at that assigned by God. In Trenton, too, our fellow Hungarians of America built the visible manifestation of faith, that was to say the church edifice, and the unique world of their own, meaning Hungarian America where by securing the survival of their traditions, they created a home for themselves. This was the Reformed, overseas Hungary that our members watered, but God gave the increase.

Among the highlights of the hundred years, mention has to be made first and foremost of the beginning: it was on September the 23rd, 1894 that a small group of enthusiastic Hungarians of Reformed faith in Trenton decided "to form a Reformed society in order to build a church edifice". It was at Christmas time, in that same year that regular church life, including worship services began.

Over the past hundred years, the following ministers have served at the Hungarian Reformed Church of Trenton:

Rev. Gusztáv Jurányi (1895-1897)

Rev. Ferenc Csamfordi (1897-1899)

Rev. István Virág (1899-1906)

Rev. Sándor Vajo (1906-1909)

Rev. László Szabó (Interim Minister)

Rev. Geza Korocz (1910-1928)

Rev. Zoltán Beky (1928-1965)

Rev. Stephen Kovács (1965-1981)

Rev. Kalman Adorján (1981-1991)

Rev. Tamas Karla (1992-)

In the beginning, from 1895 to 1909 our church was a member of the Reformed Church of America, a denomination comprising churches of German origin, and then joined the Reformed Church in Hungary. After World War I, because of the economic crisis in Hungary, the mother could no longer support its congregations in the United States financially. Therefore the Synod recommended these churches to merge with American churches. Yet

our congregation chose tobe independent. This view and practice were shared and followed by other churches. It was in 1923 and in Trenton that the idea of uniting the independent churches into one denomination was entertained. This idea came true a year later, in 1924.

A unique achievement in the history of the Hungarians of Reformed faith in the United States was the erection at the peak of the Great Depression, in 1930, with the leadership of the then minister, Rev. Zoltán Beky of the two-storeyed school building. As a symbol of brotherly cooperation, this edifice has been the scene for countless church functions over the decades. Since June, 1994 it has become the designated Bishop Zoltán Beky Center.

Over the past hundred years, the entire world has changed. Our church, however, has preserved its past. This April, on a tradition Sunday, we revived and reenacted the worship customs of the past and the participants could see old slides and motion pictures. It was in the spirit of remembering the past that in the basement of our church building, in 1992 the Stephen Ture Heritage Museum was opened, a museum which displays the life of our church through photographs, newspaper articles and objects of use.

This year our church has been commemorating the past hundred years in a series of celebrations. Thus in February we greeted the newly elected elders and officers of our church at a welcome dinner. In March, at the March the 15th banquet, Rev. Stephen Kovács, former minister of the church, recently Pastor Emeritus was awarded the Bishop Beky Humanitarian Award. In April, on the previously mentioned tradition Sunday, after the worship service displaying the past worship tradition, we savoured Hungarian dishes and watched old slides and motion pictures. In May, as usual, the annual Hungarian Day was held. In June, at a solemn worship service, we paid tribute to the memory of Bishop Zoltán Beky, former minister of our church. It was also on that day that our school building was dedicated to Bishop Beky's memory and became the Bishop Zoltán Beky Center. In August, we will hold our summer picnic. Our congregation will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its existence on Sunday, September the 25th, 1994 at a worship service starting at 11 o'clock in the morning as well as at a banquet to be held at 3 o'clock in the afternoon at the Baldassari Regency in Trenton. In the light of God's eternal providence and grace, we look into the future, the second century of our existence in a spirit of confidence and hope, and for all the blessings of the past, we give glory to God alone.

Rev. Thomas Karla Pastor of the Church