Partner Church
April, 2006
We have received Easter greetings from Mihály Molnár, the teacher of the Desfalva computer
class. He writes:
The students from the Désfalva computer course wish everyone a very happy Easter and thank everyone
for the opportunity to learn new things. In lieu of a card, I'm sending one picture each of the small
and large class, respectively. The list of students' names is (family name first):
Molnár Albert Csaba, Szilágyi Arnold, Szentgyörgyi Sándor, Medrea Sidonia Krisztina,
Antal Helga Enikő,Molnár Edina Krisztina, Béres Edith Kinga, Balogh Noémi, Szilágyi
Renáta, Szabó Annamária Dalma, Baciu Andrea Teodóra, Szabó Andrea, Béres Andrea, Béres Levente
Barna, Jakab Attila, Balogh Zsolt János, Molnár Miklós Szilárd, Borbély Izabella, Borbély
Szilárd, Székely Szilárd
In the name of the congregation, I wish you Happy Holidays. With respect, Mihály Molnár
(Translation by Livia Racz)
Rev. Ferenc Balint was minister of the
Desfalva
Church
in 1990. In 1995, Ferenc moved to The First Church in Kolozsvar and Rev. Sándor Szentgyörgyi became
our partner minister. Sándor and his wife Tünde and children Sanyi & Tündike live in the
parsonage next to the Désfalva church. Tünde is an elementary school teacher. Like everyone else in
Désfalva, the Szentgyörgyis must farm to survive.
In 1990
First
Church
joined the
Partner
Church
movement and was partnered with the Unitarian Church of Désfalva. Désfalva is a tiny farming village
in the middle of
Transylvania
. About a third of Désfalva's residents are Unitarian. There are also Calvinist Reformed and Eastern
Orthodox churches in the village. The primary language of the village is Hungarian. Désfalva also has
Roma (Gypsy) families. Whatever their profession, everyone in the village must farm to provide basic
needs. Rev. Ferenc Balint was the minister of Désfalva at
the time our partnership was formed. Our Minister of Music
Alfa
Radford met Ferenc in
Transylvania
while on a choir tour in 1990. Thus began pilgrimages
between our two congregations which have continued over the years. We
continue to offer each other mutual support and love as we journey through life sharing our Unitarian
heritage.
The first goal of our partnership was to help the
Désfalva congregation rebuild their
Community
Building
and repair the Church and Parsonage. The
Community
Building
was in complete ruin having been razed by the Communists. We provided the funds for these building
projects and the people of the Désfalva church provided the labor. Construction of the
Community
Building
was completed in 1998 and renovation of the
Church
Building
was completed in 2002. (See pictures of the church renovation under the link Church Renovations.) Other
programs have been student scholarships, relief gifts, flood assistance, and educational programs such
as English and computer literacy classes.
During his first visit in 1997, Sándor presented the idea of a stipend program to
help the youth of Désfalva attend high school and college. There is no high school in Désfalva, so the
cost of both high school and college were beyond the means of Désfalva's families.
Our scholarship program began in 1998 with four students: two high school students and two
seminary students. The program has grown to support up to 14 students each year. We grant deserving
students a stipend of $250/year to help offset the costs of transportation, boarding and books. This
program is largely funded by individual subscriptions.
First
Church
donors pledge $25 - $250 annually to this program. Any short-fall is made up by general fundraising.
Information on past and current students can be found on display in the Partner Church Bookcase
in the Parlor.
There have been several pilgrimages of
First
Church
ministers and parishioners to
Transylvania
beginning in 1990 with the most recent visits being in 2002. Rev.
Ferenc Balint visited
First
Church
in 1994. Rev. Sándor Szentgyörgyi and his wife Tünde
visited
Belmont
in 1997. Sándor visited again in 2001.
The most recent visit in the fall of 2004 saw the Szentgyörgyi family (Sándor, Tünde, Sanyi
and Tündike), Ilona Moldovan (translator), and Désfalva parishioners Cati Csug, Istvan Kis, and
Alexandru (Sándor) Molnar-Kis visit
Belmont
on the occasion of the dedication of our new Educational Wing. (See the link 2004 Visit to see pictures
of this visit.) Photo albums, CD slide shows, and videos of these visits are available in the Partner
Church Bookcase in the Parlor.
The
Partner
Church
program receives the receipts of Sunday plate offerings several times during the year. These funds
represent our church's commitment to Désfalva and the
Partner
Church
program. We are also a beneficiary of the Second Friday Coffee House. For the past few years we have
helped spearhead the Rummage Sale and have received half of its proceeds. This money is kept in a
special account to fund pilgrimages of our ministers to Transylvanian and of Désfalva folk to
Belmont
. The Scholarship Program is funded largely by subscription. From time to time we have had special
fundraising events when the need has arisen. Individual
donors have also been a large part of financial support for the
Partner
Church
program.
Contacts between US and Translvanian Unitarians took
place surprisingly early in the history of our denominations. The Unitarian religion was founded in
Translyvania in the 16th century by the former Catholic priest Frances David. By the 18th century, early
founders of Unitarian congregations in
America
such as William Ellery Channing were reading David's sermons. Channing's landmark sermon in 1819 made
its way to
Transylvania
and is said to have had a profound effect on Unitarian thinking there. Although there was some sharing
of intellectual thought, there were few formal contacts between these two religious communities until
after WWI. Transylvania was a part of
Hungary
before the war, and its primary language was Hungarian. After WWI, Transylvania was deeded to
Romania
. Stories reached
America
of the desperate conditions of the Unitarians in
Transylvania
under Romanian rule. The UU Service Committee sent a delegation to
Transylvania
to assess the situation. Edward Witte, a member of
First
Church
, was one of the delegates. Partnerships were formed between a few Transylvanian and a few
US
churches. These early ties were fragile at best and were completely broken by the outbreak of
hostilities in WWII and the subsequent Communist takeover in
Romania
. During the 40 years of Communist rule, church property was confiscated or destroyed. Church services
were often held in secret and the threat of police informants was a constant fear. The Communist
dictator Ceaucescu was overthrown in December 1989. US Unitarians responded by sending delegates to
assess how we could help our sister congregations. Minister Emeritus Victor Carpenter and Minister of
Music
Alfa
Radford were among the earliest visitors to
Transylvania
following the overthrow. The Partnership movement was reestablished in 1990, and Bishop Kovaca, leader
of the Transylvanian Unitarian Churches, was allowed to visit the
US
. During his stay, he preached at
First
Church
. These contacts led to our interest in partnership and the pairing of
First
Church
with the Unitarian Church of Désfalva in 1990.
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More Info
- Désfalva Church Renovations [link coming...]
- 2004 Visit
Our partner Church in
Désfalva, Romania
Partner Church Committee Members
- Sherry Jones and Ellen Cerasuolo, Co-chairs
- Nanny Almquist
- Nicole Bernstein
- Dick Clarey
- Cecilia Michaelis
- Laura Miller
- Livia Racz
- Sara Sos
- Ildiko Toth
Partner Church Forebears
- Edward Witte (1896-1978) was the first person from The First Church to visit Transylvania. He was
part of a UUA Service Committee delegation that visited Transylvania after WWI. Their report resulted
in the first partnership program being formed.
- Harold (Hal) Babcock (1913-2002) along with wife Fran gave a major donation to establish a fund to
help defray expenses for exchange visits.
- Hans de Muinck Keizer (1929-2004) was the first visitor from our congregation to visit the village
of Désfalva. His witness sparked an enduring interest in the Partner Church Program at First Church.
The Community Building built by Désfalva members with financial
support from First Church
Did you know?
First
Church
donors gave $10,000 to fund a dormitory room in the
Kolozsvar Unitarian high school. It is know as “The
Belmont Room” and is dedicated to the partnership between
First
Church
and Desfalva.
First
Church
members may stay in the room when visiting Kolozsvar.
Scholarship student Ildiko Molnar (class of 2007) and her
parents
First Church pilgrims go for a hayride tour of Désfalva
Future Plans
- A
new education initiative to offer computer literacy to the adults of Désfalva began in early 2005. We
provided seed money for used computers, programs, and teacher salary. The salary support will continue
in future years.
- Rev. Edmund Robinson plans to visit Désfalva sometime in 2006.
- The Music Committee and Minister
of Music
Alfa
Radford are in the planning stages for a choir tour of
Transylvania
in the summer of 2006. This tour would include a visit to Désfalva. Non-choir members are also
welcome on this trip.
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