The ancestor settlers of each community everywhere endeavored to receive a
pastor. The first pastors were:
in Sekitsch from 1787-1813: Johann Gottlieb Weinrich from
Silesia, Germany in N. Vrbas from 1786-1808: Johann Georg Mayer from Swabia,
Germany in Torscha from 1785-1790: Samuel Spannagel from Upper Hungary (today's
Czechoslovakia) in Crvenka from 1784-1785: Jos. Hajnoczi (S. Getsch) from Upper
Hungary (today's Czech.) in Kisker from 1788-1809: Josef Hojnoczi from Upper
Hungary (today's Czechoslovakia) in Buljkes from 1787-1790: Matthias Hlivai from
Upper Hungary (today's Czechoslovakia) in Jarek from 1788-1796: Johann Gelt from
Comitat Arad.
Only the settlements of Sekitsch and Novi Vrbas were lucky to have clergymen who
were of their own blood and came from Germany.
These places of origin were also entered into the minutes, which unfortunately
was not the case with the others.
The administration of the congregation provided the pastor with the help of one
appointed church elder and two church advisors.
After the death of Emperor Josef the 2nd his brother Leopold the 2nd followed
him to the throne.
During the rule of the new rulers, the 26th law from 1790-1791 was
produced which laid down the rights of the Evangelical church.
This law allowed the freedom of religious practice and gave the church the right
to autonomous self-administration.
The synod took place for the purpose of producing the church law.
In this sense the Hungarian Evangelical Synod could take place in Pest in 1791.
According to the decisions which this synod brought about the village community
administered the pastors with the elders
Over the communities stood the Seniorat with the senior assembly, which the
clergy and the secular belonged to in the same strong number.
Over the executives stood the district and the district assembly.
This district was united through the general assembly.
Up to the time of the first synod the Evangelical congregation belonged to the
Pester Seniorat.
The administration realized the difficulty of such an expanded Seniorats
that they decided to establish an independent Batsch-Syrmier Seniorates to which
everyone in the region, German and Slovakian Evangelical congregations, would be
linked.
In 1808 there were 7734 German Evangelical souls in the Seniorat.
In 1846 there were 23840 German Evangelical souls in the Seniorat with 10
parent communities and 3 branch communities (Feketitsch among them), with 13
schools (one with Feketitsch), at which 20 teachers worked.
The number of students was 3979.
A
teacher averaged 200 students.
The newly established Batsch-Syrmier Seniorat belonged with 6 other Seniorates
to the mountain district, at which point stood the bishop.
The new Seniorat extended over a very wide area.
The organization moved forward slowly so that until 1898 Presbyterians were
everywhere.
For the first time the community got to know and at the same time became
accustomed to their duties and rights.
The Seniorates assembly always took place in another community and the
hospitable community received 25 Florints from the Seniorates treasurer.
However the German and Slovakian communities were never really in harmony.
Because of the sensitivity of the linguistic area, mistrust concerning the
relative use of the contribution intensified the disagreement, especially since
1848.
When the region of Vojvodina became an autonomous district in 1859 with
its own bishop, there came the split.
The Slovakians established their own Seniorat.
Finally they came to a reconciliation.
They took turns. One time a
German was assigned, another time a Slovakian was assigned as Consenior.
For the Germans there was a German school deacon. For the Slovakians there
was a Slovakian school deacon.
In 1891 quite a few changes were
needed in the church constitution. So the church inspector would for
example have the same rights as the preceding member, in the Seniorat assembly
the secular predominated.
In 1900 they separated themselves
from the (Sremer?) community and established their own Seniorat.
After the overthrow it included
itself together with the Slovakians in its own Seniorat. The Neu Vrbas
Synod endured from 1926 to 1930 in 4 periods and inherited the new church
constitution for the German Evangelical Christian church of the Augsburg
denomination in the kingdom of Yugoslavia."
King Alexander I sanctioned under
number 39340 on the 16th of April, 1930 the "law over the Evangelical Christian
Church and over the Reformed Christian Church in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. -
The synod law was sanctioned on the 19th of November 1930; exactly on the same
day as the parliament of Augsburg ended 400 years ago.
Dignitaries of the Regional German Evangelical Church
A.B.
Bishop is: Dr. Philipp Popp, pastor in Zagreb
(Agram).
President of the regional church is: Dr. Wilhelm
Roth, lawyer in Bel. Kikinda.
Officials of our Batschka Seniorates
|
Senior: Peter Scherer, pastor in Feketitsch.
|
|
Inspector: Dr. Andreas Zimmermann, doctor in Neu
Schowe. |
|
Consenior: Franz Klein, pastor in Kac.
|
|
2nd Inspector: Daniel Kuhn, farmer in Kucura.
|
|
1st Seniorat notary: Fritz Konrath, pastor in Neu
Schowe. |
|
2nd Seniorat notary: Heinrich Lebherz, pastor in
Sombor. |
|
1st Seniorat notary: Johann Brust, community
notary a.D., economist in St. Vrbas. |
|
2nd Seniorat notary, Jakob Dietrich, teacher in
Novisad. |
|
Treasurer: Adalbert Achatz, pastor in Budusava.
|
|
Account
reporter: Daniel Hübchen, pastor in Zabalj. |
The Evangelical Christian Church in the Kingdom of
Yugoslavia and the Evangelical Congregation A.B. in Feketitsch
The 7 Seniorates of the German Evangelical Church
1. Batschka: Senior at the time: Peter Scherer,
pastor of Feketitsch
2. Banat: Senior at the time: Wilhelm Kund,
pastor of Pantschevo
3. Sremer (Syrmia): Senior at the time: Ludwig
Binder, pastor of N. Pazova
4. Croatia- Slovenia: Senior at the time: Anton
Walter, pastor of Osijek
5. Belgrade: Senior at the time: Theophil Turek,
pastor of Belgrade
6. Bosnia: at the time: Karl Hamm, pastor of
Sarajevo
7. Slovenia: Senior at the time; Johann Baron, pastor of Maribor these were connected to the changing Seniorates.
The Batschka Seniorat has 23 Parent Communities
1. Batschki Jarak
. .
2191+20
2. Budisava . . . . .
.990+40
3. Buljkes . . . . . .
.
2654+326
4. Crvenka . . . . .
.
6444+202
5. Feketitsch . . . . 1390+186
6. Jagodnjak . . . . .489+239
7. Kac . . . . . . . . .1000+100
8. Kucura . . . . . . .780+30
9. Nove Sove . . .
.1380
10. Novi Sad . .
. . . 1000
11. Novi Vrbas .
. . . 4257+500
12. Pasicevo
.
. . .
.
2800
13. Pivnica. . .
. . .
. 300+121
14. Dobropolje . . .
. 3521+36
15. S. Sv. Ivan
. .
. 1200+42
16. Sekic. . . .
. . .
.
5020+1000
17. Somor . .
. . .
. .
165+130
18. St. Becej . .
. . .
92+185
19. St. Vrbas .
. . .
.
1538+115
20. Subotica . .
. . .
570+100
21. Titel . . . . . . . .
.700+60
22. Torza . . . .
. . .
.
1790+120
23. Zabalj . . . .
. . .
.
365+428
From the Archives of the Congregation
1. Ledger from 1827 to 1874.
2. Invoice record of the Evangelical
community's August Conference in Feketehegy from 1875 to 1897.
3. Minutes of the Senioral General
Assembly from 1859 to 1909.
4. a) Church minutes from 1860 to
1911. b) from 1911 to today.
5. Birth, marriage, and death
register of the Evangelical community is inserted - as is the first baptism:
|
No: |
Born |
Baptized/Name |
Child |
Parents
|
house# |
/ Witness |
|
1 |
4 Jan 1860 |
12 Jan 1860 |
Susanna |
Peter Trumpf |
49 |
Carl Trumpf |
| |
|
|
|
Müller A.C. |
|
Catherina |
| |
|
|
|
Margareta Gutwein |
49 |
Gutwein |
The first marriage: married by Ferdinand Hamel
|
No: |
Date |
Name |
Parents / Relationship |
Born |
|
|
age |
Witness |
|
1 |
2 Feb 1860 |
Jakob Freund |
son of John. Fruend & Cath.
Exle of Feketic |
Sekic |
|
A.C. |
22 |
Karl Burg |
| |
|
Cath. Schock |
daughter of Peter Schock &
Cath. Gruber of Seketisch |
Sekic |
|
A.C. |
22 |
|
The first burial:
|
No: |
Date
|
Parents / Relationship |
house |
|
age |
cause of death |
Directed
by |
|
1
|
died
31 Dec 1859
buried
1 Jan 1860 |
Jakob, son of
Gottfried Gutwein & Eliz. Taüwel |
140 |
|
2
years, 5 months, 7 days |
serious tooth problem
|
Carl Burg |
From old-fashioned beliefs the cause
of death given was "difficult teeth" which hints that this first diagnosis was
unfortunately a mistake because there is one such illness which could lead to
death which was not given.
According to the first register from
1860 to 1877 there were in the first five years:
|
In
the Year |
Baptized (Illegitimate) |
Marriages |
Deaths (Adults) |
(Among
Them) |
|
1860 |
40
(3) |
3 |
25
(3) |
|
|
1861 |
63
(4) |
15 |
24
(2) |
|
|
1862 |
57
(2) |
6 |
39
(13) |
|
|
1863 |
52
(1) |
11 |
45
(13) |
|
|
1864 |
48
(3) |
6 |
33
(6) |
|
1865 had the most births with
65, the same year had the most marriages with 16, the most deaths occurred in
1873 with 61, of which only 7 were adults. The oldest to get married was
63 years old, the youngest was 16 years old.
|
1926
14
21 22
1446 |
|
1927
22
11 22
1414 |
|
1927
22
11 22
1414 |
|
1928
20
8 23
1390 |
|
1929
26
14 17
1385 |
|
1930
19
4 17
1269 |
|
1931
18
7 18
1269 |
|
1932
20
13 20
1269? |
|
1933
24
11 15
1269? |
|
1934
25
6 19
1269? |
The illegitimate children and the
small number of marriages can be explained by the numerous common law marriages.
Regarding this matter the canonical visitation in 1874 laid down the following
protocol: "With great regret this knowledge was received that there are so many
common law marriages in this congregation and this is a truly paternal, serious
admonition to bring about an end to this through legal marriages." As a
cause it was accepted that several of the common law marriages had couples
living with each other in such a relationship in which an approval from the
authorities had been necessary. However at most they would be freed from
the burden of the church tax.
On the 1st of October 1895 the
following remark was made in the register: "Since the reformation the person
overseeing the register was the pastor. According to law this office has
now been placed in the hands of a civilian register. After the 1st of
October 1895 the church register was also overseen, as before, only by the
clergy."
The last burial which Rev. Ferd.
Hamel oversaw was on the 22nd of November 1910. It was Philipp Bayer, 4
years old.
The first funeral by Rev. Peter
Scherer was on the 4th of March, 1910 for Johann Gebel, 67 years old.
Dates of the Register from 1925 to 1934
|
Year |
Baptisms |
Marriages |
Burials |
Census |
|
1925 |
31 |
8 |
13 |
1442 |
|
1926 |
20 |
14 |
21 |
1446 |
|
1927 |
22 |
11 |
22 |
1414 |
|
1928 |
20 |
8 |
23 |
1390 |
|
1929 |
26 |
14 |
17 |
1385 |
|
1930 |
19 |
3 |
17 |
1269 |
|
1931 |
18 |
7 |
18 |
1269 |
|
1932 |
20 |
13 |
20 |
1269? |
|
1933 |
24 |
11 |
15 |
1269? |
|
1934 |
25 |
6 |
19 |
1269? |
Perhaps the death rate of 82 burials in 1891 is
through the favorable healthy relationship of the population and the tremendous
progress of the local science but the birthrate is bleak since it decreased
quite a bit from 60 to 20. To assure the continued existence and healthy
development of a community, it is necessary for 30 births a year for a
population of 1000. Where before women were afraid to bear a child, no
development was to be expected. It is in this area that a change for the
better came through desirable sex education which was neglected till now.
The particulars of the census are unfortunately rather unreliable as these
clearly resulted from the above statistics. Very similar behavior existed
in all communities of the seniorates since the communities have to hand in the
censuses. For example, in Crvenka the census was suddenly around 827, and
in Sekitsch it decreased to almost 700.
Canonical visitations included a
visit from Dr. Johann Seberenyi, superintendent of the community, in 1835.
The visit is noted in the ledger. In 1874 Gustav Seberenyi, superintendent
of our community, also visited.
The Episcopal administrator, Dr.
Philipp Popp, visited the community in 1927. The competent executives were
often in the community. The last Episcopal visitation was made by
executive Jakob Jahn, pastor of Pribicevicevo (Kisker).
From 1874 to 1903, in exactly 30 years
the census of the community has continued to grow to number 1900 people today.
About how much were individuals burdens decreased? About how much was the
pastor's salary increased?
