In Târgu‑Mureș, Romania, a Roma man quits smoking 120 cigarettes a day after finding faith and support at the Hope Church and Center of Influence—transforming his life and inspiring his community through Adventist outreach.
Mirel’s* lifetime habit didn’t only drain his wallet—it nearly cost him his life. He smoked as many as 120 cigarettes a day.
Mirel is part of a Roma community, one of Romania’s largest ethnic minorities, located in Târgu-Mureș.
Traditionally nomadic, the Roma are known for being hard-working, hospitable, and close-knit. Yet they often face discrimination, poverty, and limited access to education and healthcare.
Mirel didn’t realize how dangerous smoking was until he suffered a stroke. His perspective changed when an Adventist friend invited him to visit the Hope Church and Center of Influence in Târgu-Mureș.
Mirel enjoyed his experience and began attending regularly. He studied the Bible with Pastor Horea Tămășan and decided to be baptized. Only one thing stood in his way—the 120 daily cigarettes. He knew he would have to quit first.
It seemed impossible, so he postponed preparations for baptism. “Don’t wait,” Pastor Tămășan encouraged. “God will take care of this.” Church members prayed with Mirel, and he finally quit through their support and the help of the center of influence.
Hope Church began in 2020, when Pastor Tămășan and a group of Roma members prayed about establishing a center of influence to uplift their fellow Roma people. They decided to start a church specifically for the Roma, sharing a building with another congregation. It worked like a magnet. Roma members who had been attending other Adventist churches in the city gathered there, and non-Adventists came, too. By 2022, some 80 Roma believers were worshiping together every Sabbath.
Launching their own congregation has transformed the Adventist Roma community. For the first time, they have embraced church leadership opportunities, serving as elders, Sabbath School teachers, and program leaders, some even accepting the invitation to preach. As they invest in church life, they’ve discovered that their family and professional lives have been blessed.
As Pastor Tămășan prepares people for baptism, he introduces lifestyle changes that improve health, strengthen family life, and give children a better future. Hope Church encourages the Roma to delay early marriages, operate their businesses according to local laws, and pay taxes faithfully. These ideas challenge long-held traditions, but the community listens because they see how lives improve when others follow these principles.
“The Roma people request health education,” Pastor Tămășan explains. “They are very interested because they can see how their people are getting wiped out because of their lifestyle. Many have become vegetarians because of our health programs.”
In response to these blessings from God, the Roma believers pour themselves wholeheartedly into church life.
“Our worship service and Sabbath school programs are no different from other Adventist churches,” Pastor Tămășan said. “But our Sabbath School attendance is much higher, and the Roma respond to the lesson study with intensity. They are keen to give proper answers when the teacher asks questions. They’re a lively group!”
In 2023, Pastor Tămășan and his team launched the Hope Center of Influence and laid plans to construct their own building with multiple rooms for classes and seminars. The Roma are passionately fundraising. Each person has set aside money for the project, and many have prayed specifically for jobs so they can give to God’s work.
“Once, when we passed the basket to gather the offerings, there was an envelope with no name,” Pastor Tămășan said. “It only said, ‘for construction.’ But those who gathered the offering saw who put it in: the poorest person in the church. Until now, this person has given the most money for the project.” The Roma are just as generous in supporting each other. When one disabled man shied away from baptism because he lacked appropriate clothing for the occasion, fellow members purchased what he needed so he could get baptized with dignity.
The church’s youth group regularly shares music, food, and gifts with an orphanage and home for the elderly. It’s one more way they bless the community while allowing Christ to transform their lives.
If one pastor and his congregation can reach a marginalized people group using local ministries and a shared building, what might you and your church accomplish?
“People may see change as being impossible,” Pastor Tămășan says. “But I have seen God make the impossible possible.”
Sandra Dombrowski
Sandra Dombrowski is a freelance writer living in Connecticut, United States. She helps prepare church members to participate in sustainable health evangelism to cities of the northeastern part of the country.
