Association of Evangelical Free Churches in the GDR
The Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in the GDR existed as an independent body from 1969 until the reunification with the Federation of Municipalities of the Federal Republic in 1990. For the overall history, teaching and self-image of Evangelical Free Churches see the articles Baptists , Brethren Movement and Bund Evangelical Free Churches .
History of origin
As early as 1949, it was clear to those in charge of the German Evangelical Free Churches that the changed post-war conditions and the associated division of Germany required changed structures. Under the umbrella of a federal line east , whose first full-time chairman was Otto Soltau from 1953 to 1957, separate administrative facilities and a publishing house were created for the GDR area. In 1959 a theological seminar was opened in Buckow (Märkische Schweiz) , which offered 16 places. After the Wall was built in 1961, an autonomous partial synod, the so-called Federal Council, was constituted in the territory of the GDR. For the first time, the MPs elected their own federal leadership. In 1969 the formal organizational and legal independence took place, which was also reflected in the newly adopted name Bund Evangelisch-Freikirchlicher Gemeinde in der DDR (BEFG-DDR). Pastor Herbert Morét (1969–1981) was the first President of the Federation . He was succeeded by Manfred Sult (1981–1991). Pastor Rolf Dammann acted as general secretary . In August, the year it was founded, the BEFG-GDR was accepted into the European Baptist Federation as an independent member. In 1970 he was accepted into the Baptist World Federation . When the Working Group of Christian Churches in the GDR was constituted on April 9, 1970 , the BEFG-GDR was also a founding member.
statistics
In 1969, 222 parishes with around 24,600 baptized members belonged to the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in the GDR . In 1983 the federal government only had 20,500 members. Of these, 12,760 belonged to communities of the Baptist tradition, 5370 belonged to the Evangelical Free Church Brethren communities and 2340 to the Elim communities . With these figures it should be noted that, due to the understanding of the community and the practice of baptism in faith, children of community members and friends of the community are not counted. The decline in membership can mainly be explained by the fact that many Free Churches emigrated to the West or fled.
structure
The highest body of the association of municipalities was the Federal Council, to which all municipalities sent delegates according to their size. As a rule, it should meet every three years. Its tasks were, among other things, to elect the federal government and, on their proposal, to confirm the president of the federal government. The Federal Council also decided on the admission and exclusion of local parishes and made the corresponding financial decisions. Of particular importance for the congregations, however, were the federal conferences that were linked to the Federal Council meetings and that set both biblical-theological and spiritual accents. The current business was carried out by the federal office in Berlin . Administrative head was a general secretary.
Special branches of the community union were
- supra-regional youth work for which a youth pastor was responsible
- the children's worship work ( Sunday school )
- the promotion of missionary church work
- the women's and professional mission
- working among those at risk of addiction
- community advice for building and property issues
Facilities
In addition to the Buckower seminar already mentioned, the following institutions of diaconia and adult education worked within the GDR Federation :
- Biblical School Burgstädt : "Biblical-theological knowledge with a practical accent" was offered here in one-year or several week courses. Correspondence courses and lesson letters published by the Bible School also served to equip the volunteer community workers.
- Christian nursing home in Schmalkalden -Aue: This facility was the largest diaconal work of the GDR Federation and looked after around 150 mentally handicapped people.
- Retirement homes existed in Crivitz ( Mecklenburg ), in Sonneberg and in Berlin-Hirschgarten .
- Bethel Deaconess Mother House in Buckow
- Martin Luther King House in Schmiedeberg : This facility was a youth and adult education center and also served as a leisure home for families, community groups and work conferences. There were other smaller so-called setup homes in Forst , Brandenburg an der Havel , Malchow , Berthelsdorf (Upper Lusatia) , Ruhla and Friedrichroda .
- The Evangelische Versandbuchhandlung Otto Ekelmann Nachf. Supplied the book tables of the local communities with Christian literature. The Evangelical Free Church monthly magazine Wort und Werk was also published as well as books and writings of free Church style.
Structure of the Federation
The Federation of Evangelical Free Churches was divided into six regional associations: Association North, East (including Berlin), West, Southeast, South and Southwest. The associations were led by the association council and the association management. In contrast to the Federal Council meeting, the synodal meetings of the associations took place annually.
Ecumenism
The Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in the GDR was not a member of the World Council of Churches , but it did support individual projects, including the anti-racism program. Together with the Federation of Evangelical Churches in the GDR , various emergency sacrifice campaigns were carried out, including Bread for the World , Monument of Life and others.
The members of the Evangelical Free Churches took part in the projects and events of the Evangelical Alliance and, together with the Evangelical Methodist Church and the Association of Free Evangelical Churches, were members of the Association of Evangelical Free Churches . The GDR Confederation also participated in the Working Group on Christian Churches .
Timeline of the history of the BEFG in the GDR
Unless otherwise noted, the historical data in the following table is based on the timetable in the book Erlebt in der DDR published by Ulrich Materne and Günter Balders in 1995 . Reports taken from the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches .
| year | Day month | event | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Otto Ekelmann founds the Protestant mail-order bookshop affiliated with the BEFG | ||
| 1947 | April | The BEFG monthly magazine Wort und Werk appears. | |
| 1949 | September 15th | 1st meeting of the Federal Government East | |
| October 12th to 16th | Joint Federal Council meeting of the BEFG in Kassel : Otto Soltau is elected chairman of the BEFG-Ost. | ||
| 1950 | January 1st | The BEFG includes 179 "east zonal" communities with 33282 members. | |
| May 1st to 5th | In Berlin-Schöneberg, a separate theological week for the pastors of the GDR parishes is taking place for the first time . | The FRG pastors met from April 14th to 18th in Hamburg-Eimsbüttel . | |
| 1951 | April 1st to 5th | 1st Federal Conference of Eastern Communities in East Berlin | The Federal Council meeting in Dortmund (September 13-19) takes place this time without representatives of the GDR communities. |
| November 16 | A GDR government agency suggests the establishment of a separate seminar for preachers on the territory of the GDR. The Federal Government East then founds a so-called seminar department , which is to deal with the establishment of its own theological training center. | ||
| 1953 | July 14th | Due to the easing of traffic between zones in June 1953, the seminary department decided to forego the establishment of its own seminary for preachers. | |
| 21 July | Otto Nuschke , Deputy GDR Prime Minister, informed BEFG-Ost that it was still possible for students from the East to study at the Theological Seminary in Hamburg-Horn . Relocation is guaranteed for them. | The theological seminary in Hamburg-Horn has been in Wustermark-Elstal since 1997 . | |
| 1954 | August 27th to September 1st | A joint Federal Council meeting of the BEFG East and West takes place in Hamburg. | |
| 1955 | October 1 | A new academic year begins at the preacher's seminar in Hamburg-Horn with 5 students from the GDR. | |
| 1957 | 17th to 21st August | A new federal leadership is elected at the Federal Council meeting in Hanover. It includes 14 members from western and 6 members from eastern parishes. Herbert Weist is appointed chairman of the eastern parishes . | |
| October 1 | Adolf Pohl becomes editor of the word and work . | ||
| 1958 | Not all theology students from the BEFG-Ost receive an exit permit to start studying in Hamburg-Horn. | ||
| July 1 | Rolf Dammann becomes managing director of the federal office east in East Berlin. | ||
| September 3 | At the end of the academic year 1958/59, all East students who are matriculated at the Hamburg seminar are to return to the GDR by government order. | ||
| October 2nd | The Federal Government East decides to set up its own theological training center. | Considered locations are Berlin or Leipzig . | |
| 1959 | May 6th | Leipzig is out of the question as a seminar location because the responsible GDR authorities are refusing permission “because of overpopulation [Leipzig]”. The State Secretariat for Church Issues recommends starting training in the Baptist Deaconess Rest House in Buckow . | |
| October 14th | The Buckow Theological Seminary begins operations in the Bethel Deaconess Recreation Home . | Adolf Pohl becomes the director of studies . Further lecturers are Herbert Weist and Erich Rädel as well as various guest teachers. | |
| 1960 | April 1st | Günter Lorenz is the new editor of the magazine Wort und Werk . Klaus Fuhrmann is appointed the first youth pastor of the BEFG-Ost. | |
| 1st of May | The Evangelical-Free Church Bible School Burgstädt , an institution of the Brethren Movement within BEFG-Ost, opens its doors. | The corresponding (but considerably older) institution in the west is the Wiedenest Bible School . | |
| September 1st to 7th | The last joint Federal Council meeting (BEFG-West, BEFG-Ost) takes place in Berlin-Tempelhof . | ||
| 1961 | April 10-14 | The theological week of the GDR pastors takes place in East Berlin. | The FRG pastors met from April 10th to 14th for the Theological Week in Hamburg-Horn. |
| June 1-12 | Eric Rudén, Swedish Baptist pastor and general secretary of the European Baptist Federation visits the Baptist congregations of the GDR. On the last day there is a meeting with the deputy state secretary in the State Secretariat for Church Affairs. | ||
| June 13th to 18th | The so-called Christian Peace Conference takes place in Prague . The delegate of the BEFG-Ost is Otto Ekelmann . | The delegate of BEFG-West is Helmut Pohl. | |
| 13 August | Construction of the Berlin Wall | ||
| October 26-28 | The Federal Council meeting planned for this period cannot take place despite the State Secretary for Church Affairs' prior approval. | ||
| 1962 | January 29th to February 4th | In Görlitz , the first so-called preparation week for Evangelical Free Church parish sisters takes place. A joint event with the parish nurses of BEFG-West is no longer possible for political reasons. | |
| May 10th to 13th | An anniversary conference of faith takes place in East Berlin. It is a reminder of the founding of the first Berlin Baptist congregation 125 years ago. | ||
| 1963 | May 4th to 8th | The Federal Council and Pastors' Conference of the BEFG-Ost takes place in Leipzig. | Conference guests from the Soviet and Polish Baptist Union will be shown on May 9th by Hans Seigewasser , State Secretary for Church Affairs , to the Brandenburg Gate and the so-called “ anti-fascist protective wall ” ( Berlin Wall ). On this occasion you sign the guest book of the Soviet city commandant . |
| 1964 | April 20-23 | The Theological Week of the GDR Pastors takes place in Berlin. | On this occasion, a handout on the question of youth consecration will be prepared. |
| September 14th | The American Baptist pastor and civil rights activist Martin Luther King preaches in East Berlin's Marienkirche . Herbert Weist and Rolf Dammann are present as guests of the BEFG-Ost. After the service there will be a personal meeting between King and the two representatives of BEFG-Ost. | In Martin Luther King's sermon, the sentence "No limit can divide God's children." | |
| October | The VI. The conference of European churches takes place on the Danish motor ship Bornholm . BEFG-Ost (represented by Adolf Pohl ) is accepted as an independent member. | The theme of the conference was: "Living together as continents and generations". | |
| 1965 | The BEFG-Ost proclaims the year of the Bible . | A corresponding, but then ecumenical, event was the Year of the Bible 2003. A similar event had already taken place in 1983 in the USA. | |
| January 1st | Adolf Pohl becomes director of the Buckow Theological Seminary . | ||
| July 1 | BEFG-Ost acquires the Evangelisch Versandbuchhandlung Berlin from Otto Ekelmann . | ||
| Klaus Fuhrmann becomes a teacher at the Buckow Theological Seminary . | |||
| October 1 | Manfred Sult becomes youth pastor of BEFG-Ost. | ||
| 1966 | May 12-16 | The Federal Council meeting and pastors meeting takes place in the Baptist congregation Berlin-Weißensee . | |
| 1967 | September 11th to 15th | The theological week takes place in the community center Berlin, Kaliner Straße. | |
| 1968 | January 1st | The BEFG, which formally still exists as a whole federation, includes 224 eastern parishes with 25,582 parishioners. | In the western area of the BEFG there are 328 parishes with 67647 members. |
| April 5th | Herbert Weist , President of the BEFG-Ostgemeinden, dies. | ||
| April 16 | The federal management east appoints Herbert Morét as interim chairman. Frido Heinemann remains deputy. | ||
| October 18 | The federal management east decides to set up a working group for public issues (AKÖ) | ||
| 1969 | April 18 | The federal government East, the committee of the BEFG (East) Federal Council and the AKÖ meet Hans Steigewasser , State Secretary for Church Affairs , in the Cecilienhof Palace in Potsdam . | |
| May 8-12 | The Federal Council Conference East takes place in Dresden. Herbert Morét is elected President of BEFG Ost. During the council meeting of the council meeting the name Bund Evangelisch-Freikirchlicher Congregations in the GDR is officially adopted for the BEFG Ost . Women are also admitted to study at the Buckower Theological Seminary by resolution. | ||
| June 1st | Christian Wolf becomes a lecturer at the Buckow Theological Seminary . | ||
| August 6-10 | The Congress of the European Baptist Federation takes place in Vienna . The BEFG of the GDR is incorporated into the EBF as an independent member association. |
See also
- Congregational songs : The congregational songs were alsothe official hymn book in the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches from 1978; however, some text passages in the GDR edition fell victim to state censorship.
- Accountability for faith : Accountability for faith has been the official confession of the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in Germany (FRG) since 1977. In the GDR Bund der Freikirche it was valid from 1978, but differed in the section Faith and Baptism for theological (and not political) reasons from the FRG version.
literature
- Detlef Pollack: Church in the organizational society: on the change in the social situation of the Protestant churches in the GDR ; Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1994.
- Günter Lorenz: The Evangelical Free Churches - Past and Present ; East Berlin, without a year
- Ulrich Materne: The Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in the GDR ; in: Peter Singer (Ed.): Free Churches - A Handbook ; (East) Berlin, 1987; ISBN 3-374-00018-5
- Reinhard Assmann (ed.): The Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in the GDR. A Guide to Structures - Sources - Research ; Baptism Studies 6; Kassel: Oncken, 2004; ISBN 978-3-87939-205-6
Individual evidence
- ↑ Axel Steen: Soltau, Otto . In: One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism. 150 years of Baptist congregations in Germany (Ed. Günter Balders). Wuppertal and Kassel 1985. p. 362
- ↑ The dates mentioned are based on the time table compiled by Günter Balders and Rolf Dammann on the history of the BEEFG-GDR. It is printed by Ulrich Materne, Günter Balders (Ed.): Erlebt in der DDR. Reports from the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches . Wuppertal and Kassel 995, pp. 387-404
- ^ Ulrich Materne, Günter Balders in collaboration with Reinhard Assmann, Bernhard Kühl and Manfred Sult : Experienced in the GDR. Reports from the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches . Wuppertal and Kassel 1995. pp. 387-404
- ^ Association of Evangelical Free Churches (Ed.): Festschrift to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the seminary of the Evangelical Free Churches (Baptists) in Germany , Hamburg-Horn 1955, p. 98
- ↑ Commemorative and discussion breakfast for Martin Luther King Jr., January 20, 2014. Greeting by Christoph Stiba , Secretary General of the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches in Germany. Kdö.R. In: baptisten.de. Retrieved January 7, 2017 (on the occasion of an event to commemorate 50 years of this meeting.).
- ↑ Martin Luther King in East Berlin. In: Der Tagesspiegel , September 6, 2009
- ↑ The publication Conference European Churche (ed.): Living together as continents and generations provides information about the conference . Lectures and reports . Gotthelf-Verlag Zurich 1965