12 July 2018 | Budapest, Hungary [Csizmadia Róbert]
Gábor Mihalec, Family Ministries director for the Hungarian Union, is recipient of the 2018 Kopp-Skrabski Prize. Dr Mihalec is both a pastor and family therapist.
During the award ceremony held at the Kopp Mária Institute for Population and Families (KINCS) on June 4, it was stated that Mihalec “has made immense efforts to strengthen and preserve the value of marriage, childbirth and family.” The laudation also acknowledged that he rescued or helped to start hundreds of relationships and marriages through his work as a couples and family therapist. It was noted that he has helped not only couples, but also families and singles by providing useful, professional and practical advice through his many publications.
The award is named after a renowned Hungarian couple, Mária Kopp and Árpád Skrabski. The highly acclaimed Professor Kopp (1942-2012) conducted research in areas such as clinical epidemiology, psychophysiology and psychosomatics for almost five decades.
The Three Princes, Three Princesses Movement, established by Professor Kopp in 2009, exists for the main purpose to support young adults in accomplishing their dreams of having children. They seek to help create optimal conditions for the birth of planned children by addressing ten areas for improvement such as work-life balance, financial struggles and unstable relationships. The Movement/Foundation rewards people who “perform outstanding work for the health of society, for the creation of supportive communities, for a family-friendly approach, for the prosperity of others and for the birth of desired children.”
Professor Ágnes Engler, during the award presentation, emphasized that it is a privilege to have people who work in a professional capacity following a personal call, “whose attitude is to serve others rather than just providing a service.” Based on a biblical paraphrase, she stated that those who work for families and children in the spirit of love “are collecting treasures in the right place.”
Yet, this was not the first time that the paths of Professor Kopp and Gábor Mihalec have crossed. Also in 2009, Kopp launched Population Roundtable with the aim of exploring the conditions for the improvement of the demographic situation by collaborating with sociologists, psychologists, pedagogues, engineers, economists and social workers. As part of this initiative in 2011-12, she invited the founders of the Adventist run Two-Together Marriage Workshop, Gábor Mihalec and Róbert Csizmadia, into a working group focused on the development of educational material in family life education.
Congratulating Mihalec on his award, representatives of the Adventist Church in Hungary pray that through his ministry many married couples and families will experience a restoration of their relationships, the re-discovery of love, and through such experiences: discover God—who is Love. [tedNEWS]
tedNEWS Staff: Victor Hulbert, editor; Sajitha Forde-Ralph, associate editor
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