Magyar Egyház, 1997 (76. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)

1997 / 4. szám

8. oldal

MAGYAR EGYHÁZ

CELEBRATION 1997

November 23, 1997 was a special day in the Perth Amboy Magyar Reformed Church. On this day, a special divine worship service of thanksgiving was held at 2:00 PM, during which time the congregation paid tribute to the Women’s Guild, commemorating the 50th anniversary of its existence, the 25th anniversary of the ordination of its Pastor, Rev. Stefan M. Torok, to the Christian ministry, and also unveiled a plaque perpetuating the ministry of its former pastor, the late Rt. Rev. Dr. Dezső Abraham, Bishop and his 20 years of ministry in this congregation.

During the divine worship service, the following pastors served: the Rt. Rev. Alexander Forro, Bishop of the Hungarian Reformed Church in America, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Francis Vitéz, Bishop of the Calvin Synod United Church of Christ, the Rev. Peter Toth, pastor of the Hungarian Reformed Church of Carteret, NJ., the Rev. Arpad Drotos, pastor of the Hungarian Reformed Church of New York City, and the pastor of the congregation. The church was filled with worshipers, not only from the congregation, celebrating, but from the area churches as well. The service was followed by a reception in the church center where special displays were on hand, depicting the history of the abovementioned organization as well as the service of the late Bishop Dezső Abraham and the Rev. Torok.

The church center was beautifully decorated with a Hungarian flag flying from each flower arrangement. A very delicious dinner was served to the satisfaction of all by the members of the Women’s Guild. At the opening, the National Anthems of the United States and Hungary was sung and a special tribute was offered by the church choir to honor the services of the present pastor, Rev. Torok. Greeting was extended by the Mayor of Perth Amboy, the Hon. Joseph Vas. Master of Ceremony for the evening was the Chief Elder of the congregation, Mr. Kim Latkovich. During the evening, the pastor made introduction of the special guests, among whom the following were Mrs. Margaret Abraham, wife of the former pastor, the late Bishop Dezső Abraham, Mr. Stephen Szabó, Chief Elder of the Hungarian Reformed Church of America, and his wife Eva Szabó. Mr. George Dózsa, President of the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America and his wife, Matilda Dózsa. Mr. Baling Balogh, Chief Elder of the Eastern Classis of the Hungarian Reformed Church of America, and his wife. The Rev. László Ujj, pastor of the Hungarian Reformed Church of Trenton, and his wife. Mr. Anthony Beke, former Chief Elder of the Synod and his wife, also from Trenton, NJ. Mrs. Vilma Vitéz, wife of Bishop Dr. Francis Vitéz. Mrs. Helen Bercik, President of the Women’s Guild and many church delegates from

Carteret, NJ, Linden, NJ, Cliffside, NJ, and many more.

The highlight of the late afternoon festivity focused on three events. First, Mrs. Helen Bercik, President of the Women’s Guild spoke of the joyous event of their anniversary. Mrs. Priscilla Jenkins, secretary of the Guild shares some of the events of the 50 years, paying tribute to the founder of the organization, the late Mrs. Helen Vincze, wife of the late Rt. Rev. Dr. Charles Vincze. Special tribute was given to the wives of the succeeding pastors who gave new vitality to the organization.

On behalf of the Church Council, honoring the 50th anniversary of the Women ‘s Guild, a plaque was presented to the Women’s Guild which was received by the Mrs. Helen Bercik, President, and the daughter of the founder, Mrs. Judith Quinn.

The next event brought a great deal of sadness as well as comfort to the members of the congregation when the members of the church, in gratitude to God, unveiled a special plaque to be placed on the wall of honor remembering the 20 years of ministry of the late Bishop Dezső Abraham. Mrs. Margaret Abraham accepted the plaque with teary eyes and expressed her thanks and appreciation for the occasion, remembering the service of her late husband. We have promised her and each other that the life and service of her late husband, our former pastor, will become a living legacy in this church.

The last event of the evening was the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the ordination of our pastor, the Rev. Stefan M. Torok. This portion of the celebration started with the wife of the pastor, who read the letter of Rev. Torok’s mother from the Felvidék, greeting her son on the occasion. Additional poem and prayer, written by the pastor’s mother was read by Dr. Francis Vitéz. On behalf of the congregation, Chief elder Mr. Kim Latkovich presented a plaque, commemorating the 25th anniversary of his ordination and also another presentation sending the pastor and wife on a dream skiing vacation of their choice. A special presentation on behalf of the Women’s Guild was made also to the pastor in the form of a concord swiss watch. This was truly an overwhelming evening, full of surprises. The pastor expressed many thanks for all the gifts and the special celebration.

It must also be noted that the whole celebration was a joint effort of many people. Here, we would like to express our thanks and appreciation to all committees, individuals, who added anything to the uplifting and heartwarming celebration.

We departed in the knowledge that we need each other and that we must depend on each other for the continuing life of the church to the greater glory of God.