Federation of Evangelical Congregations in Austria
The Federation of Evangelical Congregations in Austria ( BEG ) is an association of evangelical congregations in Austria . The community federation is a member of the free churches in Austria and a state-recognized religious community .
The federation founded in 1992 received the rights of a registered religious denomination in 1998 . The merger with four other congregational federations ( Baptists , Free Christian Congregation - Pentecostal Church , Elaia Christian Churches , Mennonites ) finally led to the emergence of free churches in Austria in 2013 .
52 municipalities with around 4,000 members are represented in the BEG.
history
The evangelical churches in Austria are part of the worldwide evangelical revival movement that started in New England and the middle colonies in the late 18th century . At the beginning of the 19th century the first independent evangelical congregations were already being formed in Central Europe. After the Second World War , free-church , evangelical congregations increasingly emerged in Germany, Switzerland and Austria .
In Austria, after various discussions with the parishes involved and the preparation of policy papers on March 21, 1992 in Traun , Upper Austria, the Federation of Evangelical Parishes in Austria (BEGÖ) was founded, to which 17 independent local parishes initially belonged. From 11 July 1998, the BEGÖ was a religious confessional community entered the state.
After the full state recognition of evangelical churches was unattainable if only because of this legally required number of members of two thousand of the total population, the BEG with four other church federations, the closed Baptist Union , the Pentecostal churches - open Christian communities , the Elaia Christian communities and the Mennonite Free Churches together, and on August 26, 2013 the common umbrella organization Free Churches in Austria became a legally recognized church by ordinance of the Minister of Education ( Federal Law Gazette II No. 250/2013 ).
Teaching
The Bible applies to the Association as the top mandatory teaching authority in all matters of faith and life. The BEG has developed a common belief system that deals with the following content:
- The Scripture is as inspired by God and therefore to the originals understood as inerrant ( 1 Tim 3.15 to 17 ELB ).
- God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, holy, full of love and shows himself in the trinity ( 5 Mos 6,4 ELB ), ( Mt 28,19 ELB ).
- The man was named after the image of God created and by the fall of its creator isolated ( 1 Mos 1:26 NIV ). Therefore he needs redemption ( Rom. 3 : 10-23 ESV ).
- The redemption is done by the vicarious sacrifice of Christ, by grace alone, through faith. A spiritual rebirth is required ( 1 Pet 1,13-16 ELB ).
- The Christian community is the body of Christ ( 1 Cor 12 : 12-27 ELB ). In it there is adoration, preaching, pastoral care, diakonia, petition and intercession, baptism of faith and the Lord's Supper ( Acts 2: 28-41 ELB ).
- The final things include the visible second coming of Christ , the final judgment , a new heaven and a new earth, the eternal life of believers and the second death of the unbelievers ( Rev 21 : 1-8 ELB ).
organization
The BEG consists of organizationally independent municipalities that are also financially responsible. The delegates of the municipalities have given themselves a constitution with the following structures:
Federal management
It is the governing body and has to ensure that the resolutions of the delegates' assembly are implemented. She has no authority over the churches. In addition to the chairman, it is composed of the heads of the various teams. It represents the federal government externally.
Assembly of delegates
The delegates usually meet once a year. In urgent cases, extraordinary assemblies of delegates can also be called. This is where the course is set for the whole of the BEG, the federal leadership is elected, new municipalities accepted and the budget decided.
Branches of work
Identity promotion: The congregations should learn that they are part of something bigger and that some things work better together than if each congregation works for itself. That is why, for example, regional and national meetings of the communities take place.
Church development: Three teams deal with the development of the church: The domestic mission team takes care of establishing new churches, recruiting and supporting employees as well as partnerships with mission organizations. The community counseling team is responsible for personnel matters, conflict management and community development. The employee questions team is supposed to accompany and train employees.
Project development: Three teams organize the projects: The youth team is responsible for youth work and leisure time . The team abroad recruits and looks after missionaries , organizes short-term assignments and aid projects. The Diakonie team takes care of diakonia , i.e. practical services for Christians and non-Christians.
Organization of the communities
The BEG congregations are autonomous and are understood as the image of the New Testament congregation. As a rule, they are organized in a congregational manner . The church leadership consists mostly of volunteer elders , deacons , deacons and preachers and also pastors. Voluntary work by community members is encouraged.
Members and member parishes
According to its own information, there were 46 BEG municipalities in Austria in 2013, and 6 municipalities have observer status. The last official record in the 2001 census revealed 4,892 religious affiliates.
The municipalities are distributed: 8 in Vienna, 9 in Lower Austria, 5 in Upper Austria, 1 in Salzburg, 6 in Styria, 7 in Carinthia, 7 in Tyrol, 3 in Vorarlberg.
financing
The association is financed by donations from its members. Although the BEG is a corporation under public law and could therefore collect church taxes, it deliberately does not make use of this option. The individual communities are therefore also financed through donations.
Worship and Faith Practice
There is no binding order of worship services , they can vary somewhat from congregation to congregation. The most important elements of the services are greeting, singing together, sharing, intercession for specific issues such as illness, missionaries, persecuted Christians and the sermon, the text of which can be freely chosen and which makes up the main part of the service. At the same time there is usually a separate children's lesson for children (a “Sunday school” in age-specific groups). Meeting in small groups is an important part of church life. During the week they meet in house groups for Bible study , which is discussed in the Bible to specific topics.
Rooms for worship
The meetings often take place in their own meeting rooms, others come together in former offices, schools or even in private living rooms.
Baptism and communion
The Baptism of adults is done by gänzliches immersion in water. The Lord's Supper with the elements of bread and wine (often grape juice) is seen as a sign of the body and blood of Jesus.
New Testament Priesthood
The common aspect of the New Testament priesthood plays an important role in the BEG congregations. Every believer should be able to deal personally with the Bible, study it privately and in Bible circles, interpret it and let it work. Hence there are many evangelicals with considerable knowledge of the Bible. They also see it as an important task to develop all gifts of grace in oneself in order to be witnesses of Jesus before the world.
Social life
Members are encouraged to exercise their political rights and obligations. Participation in political committees is generally affirmed because the state organs are viewed as having been given authority by God.
Relationship to other churches and religious communities
The BEG strives for mutual respect, appreciation and respectful communication with all churches and works. He wants to respect everyone else's differences and be inspired by good approaches.
The question of participation in the Evangelical Alliance (EA) and other supra-congregational initiatives is up to each individual evangelical congregation, whereby the general welfare of the BEG should be taken into account. The BEG itself is a partner in the Evangelical Alliance.
The BEG only participates in such forms of organized unity that affirm the elementary foundations of faith as laid down in the BEG's creed. There are therefore reservations about the World Council of Churches (WCC).
literature
- Raimund Harta: The Federation of Evangelical Congregations in Austria. Modern churches based on the Holy Scriptures. In: Johann Hirnsperger, Christian Wessely , Alexander Bernhard (Ed.): Ways to Salvation? Religious denominations in Austria. Self-expression and theological reflection . Styria, Graz a. a. 2001, pp. 59-67.
- Franz Graf-Stuhlhofer : Free churches in Austria since 1846. On the sources and on questions of method . In: Yearbook for the History of Protestantism in Austria 124/125, 2008/09, pp. 270–302.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Federal Law Gazette II No. 250/2013 (PDF; 138 kB)
- ↑ Evangelical Christians in Austria When did they begin? ( Memento of June 18, 2015 in the Internet Archive ), accessed June 17, 2015.
- ↑ a b c history , beg.or.at, About us , accessed June 24, 2014.
- ^ "Free churches in Austria" now recognized church , press release of the free churches in Austria
- ↑ BEG: Basis of Faith of the BEG ( Memento from January 23, 2018 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ a b community atlas, beg.or.at - addresses and websites
- ↑ Austrian population statistics according to religious denomination , statistik.at (PDF file; 41 kB)
- ↑ Claudia Böckle: Small groups as an essential element of religious practice in the Federation of Evangelical Congregations (BEG) in Austria. In: Johann Hirnsperger, Christian Wessely (Ed.): Ways to Salvation? Religious confessional communities in Austria: Elaia Christengemeinden (...) (= theology in cultural dialogue ; 7c). Innsbruck 2014, pp. 143–154, specifically 149–153.
- ↑ http://www.beg.or.at/index.php?eID=tx_nawsecuredl&u=0&g=0&t=1383562182&hash=1b555b1e1f581fd8a43cf320f4c549cfa4873d5e&file=uploads/tx_infounddownloads/Glaubensgrundlagen_BEGOE.pdf (link not available)
Coordinates: 48 ° 16'52 " N , 16 ° 27'27.4" E