The Yugoslavian Branch of the Assemblies of God was formed at the close of the
Second World War to network Yugoslavian-language Pentecostal churches and
ministers living in the United States. The August 21, 1948, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel
reported on the fourth annual convention of the Yugoslavian
Branch, which was held in Lorain, Ohio.
The Yugoslavian Branch provided common ground for recent immigrants who had
fled war and religious persecution in central and eastern European nations. The
article reported that testimonies were given in English, Yugoslavian, Russian,
German, Hungarian, Czechoslovakian and Romanian.
Delegates to the convention elected the following officers: Peter J. Krnjeta, superintendent; S. G. Marksity, assistant superintendent; Paul Florea, secretary; Joseph Horonitz, treasurer; Nick M. Gruick, field evangelist. The
article noted that the official branch periodical, Herald of Salvation,
was mailed to thousands of people around the world.
Very little is known about the history of the Yugoslavian Branch. The
Yugoslavian Branch disbanded in the early 1960s, and it ministers and churches
apparently joined English-speaking districts. No copies of its periodical, Herald
of Salvation, are known to have survived.
Read the article, "Yugoslavian Branch Convenes," on page 12 of the
August 21, 1948, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.
Also featured in this issue:
* "Joseph is Yet Alive," by T. J. Jones
* "A Faulty Faith," by Ernest S. Williams
* "Hell in the High Schools," by Dan Gilbert
And many more!
Click here to read this issue now.
Do you own historical materials relating to the Yugoslavian Branch, including Herald
of Salvation and other publications? Please consider depositing these
materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (email: archives@ag.org,
or toll free: 877-840-5200).
Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal
Heritage Center. For current
editions of the Evangel, click here.
