Compact (law)

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A compact is a contractual agreement. The ancient legal term comes from Latin and means pact or contract.

The Bohemian compacts have become historically significant in connection with the religious clashes between the Hussites and the Catholic Church.

Prague compact data

The Hussites knew how to combine aspects of church reformation with political concerns in Bohemia and Moravia . According to their interpretation of the Bible, communion in both forms had to be given not only to the clergy, but also to the laity. There was a moderate trend in the upper and a revolutionary one in the lower classes of the population.

In 1420 the concerns were formulated in the Four Prague Articles . The Kalixtiner wanted a complete communion with a chalice for laypeople and priests, free preaching in the national language, also for laypeople, the secularization of church property, strict church discipline through the punishment of deadly sins and the renunciation of wealth and politics by the clergy . The Taborites was too little. They also called for community of property, the abolition of church customs and institutions, and even the creation of the kingdom of God by force of arms. The Hussite Wars soon followed (for other reasons as well as for religious reasons) .

The Prague compacts (Compactata religionis) represented a comparison that came about on the basis of the modified Prague Articles of 1420 on November 30, 1433 between the Bohemian estates and the Council of Basel . They are therefore also called Basel compact data .

After that was allowed to

  • The Church Supper in Bohemia and Moravia could be given to anyone who wanted it in the form of bread and wine. But the clergyman had to explain that Jesus Christ was present in both forms.
  • the punishment of sins can only be carried out by the competent judge in accordance with the Bible and the holy ordinances, under no circumstances by orders from private individuals.
  • the word of God can be freely proclaimed, but only by priests appointed by the ecclesiastical ordinaries .
  • the church and its clergy (except monks ) own church property, the appropriation of which has been persecuted as church robbery by others .

These agreements with the Catholic Church were signed by the moderate wing of the Hussites, also called Kalixtines or Utraquists , who were particularly keen to receive the lay chalice .

The more radical Taborites, on the other hand, did not agree. There was a fight between the followers of both Hussite faiths. The Kalixtines, allied with an imperial army, won the battle of Lipan on May 30, 1434.

Iglauer compacts

The regulations concluded on July 5, 1436 brought about the end of the Hussite Wars, which had raged in the eastern Holy Roman Empire since 1420 . Contracting parties here were Emperor Sigismund , who was also King of Bohemia , on the one hand and the representatives of the Hussites on the other.

A bishop from the ranks of the Kalixtines was installed in Prague. After the conclusion of the contract, the Lord's Supper with the host and wine goblet was also practiced in the Moldavian city; it was thus standardized throughout the Bohemian Kingdom. Conversely, Sigismund was accepted by the Hussites as a legitimate sovereign. For him it also meant the end of unsuccessful and financially expensive campaigns.

Further development

In the long run, the official church was uncomfortable with the agreements on a special Bohemian regulation. As early as 1448, Cardinal Juan de Caravajal wanted to abolish the compacts, which were uncomfortable for the curia. Pope Pius II expressly rejected them on March 31, 1462 and demanded the ecclesiastical reunification of Bohemia. The compact data were finally abolished in 1567.

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