Perhaps, like me, you are curious about a unique religious movement. This movement is the Faith Church or Hit Gyülekezete in Hungarian.
Faith Church is an Evangelical charismatic Pentecostal Christian denomination. It is a megachurch with its headquarters right here in Budapest. Over 150000 members belong to this religious group.
Pastor Sandor Nemeth leads the church. He founded Faith Church in 1979 with only six other Hungarians. During the Communist regime, the church could only conduct worship services illegally. The Communist secret service watched its activities and leaders.
By 1989, Faith Church membership reached 2000 people. In 1989, the Hungarian State recognized Faith Church as a denomination. This recognition was based on the 1895 XLIII Act.
In 2008, the Faith Church in Budapest had 30000 faithful members. The church’s building could seat 5000 people. By 2016, approximately 70000 people regularly attended services across Hungary. The Church’s weekly Sunday service broadcasts on live television.
There are about three hundred local church branches of Faith Church. They function all around Hungary and beyond its borders. All neighboring countries, Germany, and the U.S. also have local Faith Churches. Most local churches hold services on privately owned property. Local churches in Pécs, Debrecen, Nyíregyháza, and Salgótarján are also quite large. Their buildings accommodate over a thousand people.
Based on the 1% tax designation to churches, Faith Church gets the fourth most support in Hungary. However, Faith Church was not among the four biggest churches according to the last census. It kept its official church status after the Orbán government’s 2011 reduction of the number of churches.
Prime Minister Victor Orban’s son Gáspár Orbán converted to the Faith Church in 2014. He is currently a minister. He claims to have heard from God and witnessed miraculous healings.
The Faith and Morals Cultural Foundation performs social services. It provides aid to families and cares for the elderly. The foundation also pursues teaching, training, information distribution, and cultural services.
Faith Church runs elementary schools in several cities. These include Budapest, Pécs, Nyíregyháza, and Salgótarján. They also maintain a kindergarten in Kecskemét. The state-accredited theological college, Saint Paul’s Academy, operates in Budapest.
The Church publishes a weekly news magazine called Hetek since 1997. The Faith Church has a charismatic confession of faith.
Interestingly, in a service on November 16, 2019, Németh described yoga in a controversial manner. He called it a physical exercise of demon worship.
Faith Church’s journey from an underground movement to a recognized and influential denomination is a fascinating part of Hungary’s religious history. The Faith Church continues to evolve. It adapts to the changing social and political landscape while maintaining its core beliefs and values.