Magyar News, 1991. szeptember-1992. augusztus (2. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1991-10-01 / 2. szám

PRIESTHOOD AND HUNGARIAN LANGUAGE HAND-IN-HAND

In the late nineteen forties and early fifties, as well as after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, one of the questions asked of me by the immigrants who attended Mass at St. Stephen’s Church in New York and heard me preach was, “What county in Hungary did you come from?” They could not identify my anglicized Hungarian accent with any county in Hungary. Jokingly I replied that I was from “Király Megye.” “There is no such county in Hungary,” they replied. Yes, you are right, I answered. This county is called in English “King’s County,” and it is located right across the East River from Manhattan and is also known as the Borough of Brooklyn.

It was in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn that I spent my boyhood, and attended public school for the first year and a half and then the local Catholic Parochial School up to the eighth grade. Not knowing a word of English, naturally I began at the bottom of the class. However, at graduation eight years later, I was third from the top. My home language was always Hungarian. My father learned English by reading the comics and going to the movies with my mother. However, many times I had to translate whenever someone came to the door. Taking care of four of us, ages 5,8,11, and 13, gave little time to my parents to learn English better and no time at all for us to learn Hungarian grammar. Besides there was no Hungarian literature for children, only the New York Hungarian newspaper, the Népszava. My mother learned English by listening intendy to our Irish neighbors, whose Irish brogue was often a puzzle to her. My parents’ knowledge of German helped a lot in shopping for the necessities of die table.

How I became involved with the Franciscan Order is another story. The name of St. Francis is involved with our family history. Before and after their marriage, my parents lived in the ninth district of Budapest, which was “Ferencváros,” named the Francis district after the name of the king of Hungary, Francis Joseph, who was also the Emperor of Austria. About three years after I was bom, our family moved to the “Belváros,” the inner city of Budapest

Around the comer from us was the Franciscan Church, which was administered by Franciscans of the Marian Province. Having attended kindergarten from September to November, my father and I bid farewell to the rest of the family and set out for America. At Chcrbourge, France, on November 20, 1923 my Father and I boarded one of the largest ships of the United States Line at that time, the “Leviathan,” and arrived at Ellis Island around Thanksgiving Day. A month later the rest of the family arrived. But because it was Christmas, they had to spend the night on the ship, called the “Aquitania,” of the Cunard Line. From December 1923 to the following September, we moved three times

Fr. Emerik Szlezák

till we finally settled in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn as described in the above paragraph. There we became acquainted with many other Hungarian families, who were affiliated with the Hungarian Franciscan Parish of St. Stephen in New York.

Thus, like many other Hungarians, we became affiliated with two parishes; the local parish in Greenpoint which also happened to be German and the Hungarian parish in Manhattan. Living next door to us were playmates who had brothers as members of the Franciscan Order of the Province of the Most Holy Name, which had its headquarters in New York. The Hungarian parish in the upper East side of New York was also administered by Franciscans from the Capistran Province of Hungary. In 1930 my brother became interested in joining the Franciscans by entering the Minor Seminary which was also a High School. In 1932 I, being his shadow, joined him. However after four years he decided to change his course of life, went home, continued his college, eventually married and raised seven children.

When I decided to enter the Franciscan Seminary, my parents were naturally delighted. However my father told me my letters to him had to be in Hungarian. I replied that I could not either read or write Hungarian. He told me, “then learn it.” But the big question was: How? No books, no literature, no grammar, no anything. So I wrote to the Daughters of Divine Charity in Arrochar, Staten Island, inquiring whether they had anything I could learn from, perhaps a grammar or any book from which I could pick up some new words, and thus increase my vocabulary. They sent me a grammar book and one on the lives of the Saints written in Hungarian. From these books, I took words that sounded familiar, put them together, by now thinking in English of course, and off went the letter to my father and mother. During those thirteen years in the Seminary, the only contact with Hungarian was during the first six years of summer vacation. During the next seven years, I was out of all contact with Hungarian. At the end of my third year of theology, I was ordained a priest on J une 11,1944 by the Apostolic Delegate, Amleto Cicognani, and celebrated a Hungarian Mass in St. Stephens, in New York on the Feast of St. Anna, July 26. While continuing my fourth year of theology, I used to commute twice a month from Washington, D.C. to New York to celebrate Hungarian Mass and hear confessions. Then in October, after putting my best effort into a sermon, one of the acquaintances of my parents remarked that I spoke better Hungarian when I was a kid than I did then. A perfect squelch! However, the remark, though it hurt at first, was intended well; in fact it induced me to try harder. And I have been trying hard for the last forty-seven years.

In this passport photo of 1923 ,we see Emerik with his father Kálmán Szlezák.

After my final exams in 1945, I was assigned by the Provincial of the American Province of the Most Holy Name to serve the Hungarian Community of the five Boroughs of New York. Oneof theFathers who was historian of the Community put into the Chronicle this observation: “Fr. Emeric has been welcomed into the Franciscan Community of St. Stephen apparently for goodLittle did he know nor did anyone else that after forty-one years, I would move on. So now I am beginning the second half of my priestly ministry at die request of Fr. Robert Nemeth, pastor and superior, at St. Emery Church, here in Fairfield, Connecticut.

SYMPOSIUM, AN EVENT YOU SHOULDN’T MISS

'Hie American Hungarian Heritage Association is conducting a Symposium on the Liberated Hungary with the participation of our local clergy. Rev. Dr. Alexander Havadtoy travelled extensively throughout Hungary and Transylvania during die II World Reformed Conference in Hungary. Ft. Dr. Andor Rakaczki accompanied the Pope on His Holyness’ visit and pilgrimage to Mariapocs. Fr. Robert Nemeth with an intemadonal group of Franciscan Friars visited Hungary and also Transylvania. Rev. Joseph Vásárhelyi, from Norwalk, also participated in the Reformed Conference.

They will give an insight on Hungary and Transylvania, and about their personal experiences. The Symposium will be held at the Fairfield Library Auditorium on October 17, at 7:00 p.m. Please be on time because we will start without delay.