In English

Community of the Reformed church "Honvéd tér", Szeged, Hungary

Introduction
Community events

Wednesday

15:00 - Congregational Bible reading
(from June to August at 18:00)
16:30 - (last Wednesday of each month) - Women\'s hour

Thursday

18:00 - Bible studies in English
(except form July to August
19:00 - Bible studies for the young (age-group: 18-30)

Friday
15:00 - Divinity lesson ( for the first to third year
elementary school pupils)
16:00 - Divinity lesson (for the fourth to the eigth year elementary school pupils)

17:00 - Divinity lesson (for the age-group:14
18:00 - Congreagation Bible reading

Sunday

9:00 - Confirmation preparatory course (except July and August)
10:00 - Church service (with simultaneous children\'s service)
18:00 - Church service

On the first Monday of each month Bible Studies and meeting for the Presbiters

INTRODUCTION

The past of our church

The history of our congregation is short as it was created no longer than half a century ago. During the first half of the twentieth century the only Reformed church of the town was theat of "Kálvin tér" built in 1884. The number of devotees significantly grew after the resettlement of the University of Kolozsvár (present Romania) to Szeged; the Calvinist refugees of Transylvania and Banat and the high number of university students further increasing the congreagtion following the border modifications resulted from the Trianon peace treaty. That was why the Presbiteriat made the decision of building a new Calvinist church in 1928.
Due to the poor economic situation, the plan had remained unfulfilled until 1940, when General Governor Miklós Horthy, as the main patron of the future church, made a donation of 1000 pegos to cover the construction expenses, while the town authorities donated the corner-site of the Small Ring, as its construction site. Out of the ten architectors having been invited to hand their tenders in (with Károly Kós of Sztána among them), it was the design of architect József Boros of Debrecen, that won. Statics calculations were carried out by Pál Gábory.
Numerous fund raising actions were organised. The construction work of the church started on 8 September 1941. The foundation stone, buried under the flight of stairs of the main entrance incorporated into the tower structure, was laid solemnly on 26 October. In spite of the stormy war period, the construction work was completed in the summer of 1944, but it had not been consecrated until 26 December 1949.
The new building of church being dignified yet simple, is in fully accordance with the traditions of Calvinism, and is one of the most beautiful churches of the town.
Its dominant brick facade, just like the whole structure, was built of row, so called covering bricks, instead of the originally designed clinkers, due to money shortage. The building dominated by its tower has a flight of stone stairs leading up to the main entrance decorated with multiple orders of arches, above which there is a triangle with the Calvinist symbol of the flagged lamb made of coloured mosaics in it. ("The Lamb of God, carrying the sins of the human kind"). The face of the clock tower is constructed of small illuminated squares. Above it there is the bell chamber with arched windows and an all-round corridor; the tower of 41 metres heigth is crowned with a small cap and a star. The bells were donated by András Takaró and Jenő Géza Gál and their families and were produced by Ráfael Szlezak in Rákospalota in 1948.
The pentagonal church hall of five-hundred seats has a reinforced concrete dome, the supporting pillars of which meet in a crown at the heigth of twelve metres, which kins it to arched church interiors. The church hall opens into the room of the pasture and the parish clerk. On two sides of the pentagon, two flights of stairs lead downstairs to the congreagational hall of three-hundred seats in the basement, suitable for community meetings, agapes and lectures, which is provided with a thirty-metre-long stage, film-projecting cubicle, kitchenette and cloakroom.
The dominant piece of the pentagonal church hall is the trapezoid oak pulpit made of modestly-carved fence-like planks. The three-piece oak Communion table with Transylvanian carved motives has the caption "The Lord is at hand (Phil. 4:5)". the Hall\'s twenty-five stained windows, ten of them with Biblical scenes are of artstic value; they were designed by Kálmán Szabó Gáborjáni.
(Sources: Architectural monuments of Csongrád County by Mónika Csegezi; Diaries of Reverends Zoltán Seres and László Papp.)

Community pastures:
February 26 1950 - March 31 1982. Zoltán Seres
April 1 1982- February 15 2001. László Papp
February 16 2001 - Dr Sándor Kereskényi

To be contacted:
Pasture Dr Sándor Kereskényi
address: 15 Kárász Street, Szeged.
6720.
Parsonage
tel.: 62-426-902
e-mail: kerskenyi@hotmail.com


Church committee:
Pál Böjthe


Mission committee:
Gábor Nemes
Rózsa Sashegyi

Treasury Committee:
János Oláh
Gizella Szecsődi

Mission House (Kárász Street) Committee:
Gábor Nemes
Ildikó Zákány

Cemetery Committee of the Calvinist Church(es):



For "The Misson House of Kárász Street" Foundation

Aim:
1. Recreate the church proprietorship before 1945
2. Financial support of the Calvinist Hungarian students of foreign citizenship but studying in Hungary and setting up them a students\' hostel
3. Financial support of all the young members of our community in need
4. Support of the religious-patriotic education of the youth of our community
5. Setting up a home for religious-social associations (Gábor Bethlen Circle, Women\'s Association, Kálvin Circle, SDG Students\' Association, KIE).
6. Reconstruction of the Mission House (15. Kárász Street, Szeged).

Application conditions:
Financial support can be applied for by organisations and individuals belonging to our community aiming at the fulfillment of the aims of the upper fundation in applications to be handed in to the Board of Trustees .

Our brethren are kindly asked to support our fundation both with their donations and 1 percent of their tax.

Memebers of the Board of Trustees:
Chairman: Gábor Nemes
Horváth Attila
Zsolt Kigyóssy
Júlia Pocsai
Tóth Géza