The Rev. John Adam, 76, of Danbury, Conn., died Thursday at the Danbury Hospital.

He was born Dec. 4, 1928, in North Braddock, Pa., the son of John and Anna Durochik Adam.

The Rev. Adam received an honorary doctorate from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, as well as from the Seminary in Bratislava, Slovakia.

While attending Muhlenberg, he taught Sunday school at Holy Trinity Church in East Pittsburgh and also served on its church council. He graduated from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia and was ordained on June 3, 1958.

He then became pastor of the Dr. Martin Luther Church in Muskegon, Mich., serving there until 1969.

From 1969 to 1981, he was pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Danbury. In 1981, he was elected Bishop of the Slovak Zion Synod and held various other offices in the Slovak Zion Synod.

The Rev. Adam was a member of Thrivant, a Lutheran fraternal organization, and the Sokol Lodge in Danbury.

Upon retirement in 1991, the Rev. Adam was requested to serve three years as an interim pastor at St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Butler.

During the past two years he had services for recent Slovak immigrants at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Byram, Conn.

He is survived by his wife, Dorothy, whom he married on June 14, 1958; two sons, Paul Michael Adam of Danbury and Stephen Robert Adam of Bristol; two sisters, Mary Ann Hredzak of Monroeville and Suzanna Miller of Irwin; his brother, Michael Daniel Adam of Pittsburgh; seven grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by a son and a sister.

ADAM — Friends of the Rev. John Adam, who died Thursday, Oct. 27, 2005, will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the CORNELL MEMORIAL HOME, 247 White St., Danbury, Conn. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Danbury. Burial will follow in the Immanuel Lutheran Church.Memorial contributions may be made to St. Paul's Lutheran Church, 44 Spring St., Danbury, Ct. 06810 or the American Diabetes Association, 300 Research Parkway, Meriden, Ct. 06450. To light a candle of hope and remembrance, visit the Web site at www.cornellmemorial.com.