A shared church (), simultaneum mixtum, a term first coined in 16th-century

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, is a church in which public worship is conducted by adherents of two or more religious groups. Such churches became common in the German-speaking lands of Europe in the wake of the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

.''Religious Conflict and the Practice of Toleration in Early Modern Europe,'' Harvard University Press, 2007, Chapter 8, pp. 198. ff. The different Christian denominations (such as

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

, Reformed, or United, etc.), share the same church building, although they worship at different times and with different

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. It is thus a form of

religious toleration Religious tolerance or religious toleration may signify "no more than forbearance and the permission given by the adherents of a dominant religion for other religions to exist, even though the latter are looked on with disapproval as inferior, ...

. ''Simultaneum'' as a policy was particularly attractive to rulers who ruled over populations which contained considerable numbers of both Catholics and Protestants. It was often the opposite of '' cuius regio, eius religio'' and used in situations where a ruler was of a different religion than the majority of the people, and not strong enough to impose his religion on the population. During the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

(1688–1697),

Louis XIV of France LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

occupied the

Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a Imperial State, constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy ...

, a Protestant region situated mainly in the western part of what is today Germany, where he introduced the ''simultaneum''. At the end of the war the region returned to Protestant control, but a last-minute addition to the Treaty of Ryswick provided for a continuation of the ''simultaneum''. Although intended to apply only to the Palatinate, the ''simultaneum'' was subsequently also applied in portions of Protestant

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

(a region ruled by France, but where the

Edict of Fontainebleau The Edict of Fontainebleau (18 October 1685, published 22 October 1685) was an edict issued by French King Louis XIV and is also known as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The Edict of Nantes (1598) had granted Huguenots the right to prac ...

was not enforced).

Examples

Belgium

* Olne, province of

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

; a simultaneum was introduced in 1649

France

Béarn Béarn (; ; or ''Biarn''; or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in Southwestern France. Along with the three Northern Basque Country, ...

- there used to be a simultaneum there between 1561–1569 * Old Saint Peter's Church,

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

; now divided into separate Protestant and Catholic churches *

Wissembourg Wissembourg (; South Franconian: ''Weisseburch'' ; German: ''Weißenburg'' ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Wissembourg was a sub-prefecture of the department until 2015. The name ''Wissembourg'' ...

: there was a so-called ''trimultaneum'', with a Catholic, Lutheran, and Reformed congregation sharing one church

Germany

* Altenberg im Bergischen Land, Altenberger Dom, since 1857 Catholic-United simultaneum * Althaldensleben, Double Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day *

Bautzen Bautzen () or Budyšin (), until 1868 ''Budissin'' in German, is a town in eastern Saxony, Germany, and the administrative centre of the Bautzen (district), district of Bautzen. It is located on the Spree (river), Spree river, is the eighth most ...

, St. Peter's Cathedral, oldest Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum since 1524 * Bechtolsheim, Ss. Mary and Christopher, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day *

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, French Church of Friedrichstadt, Calvinist-United simultaneum since 1981 * St. Martin's Church, Biberach, Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum until the present day * Biebelsheim, St. Martin's Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Boos upon Nahe, Simultaneum, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Brauneberg, St. Remigius Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day *

Braunfels Braunfels () is a town in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis in Hesse, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road. Geography Location The climatic spa of Braunfels lies at a height of some 100 m above the Lahn valley. It is 9 km southwes ...

, Castle Church, since 2005 a Catholic-United simultaneum * Wildenreuth, St. James' Church, Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum until the present day * Fröndenberg, Collegiate Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Gau-Odernheim, St. Rufus Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Goldenstedt, in

Vechta Vechta (; Northern Low Saxon: ''Vechte'') is the capital and largest city of the Vechta (district), Vechta district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is home to the University of Vechta. It is known for the 'Stoppelmarkt' fair, which takes place every ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

was a ''simultaneum'' between 1650 and 1850. * Groß Ammensleben, former Cloister Church, from 1614 until 1817 a Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum, since then a Catholic-United simultaneum * Hahn im Hunsrück, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day *

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; or ; ) is a city in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim (district), Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of t ...

, St. Michael's Church, since 1542 a Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum * Frankenhof, St. Margareth Church, Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum until the present day * Götzendorf in

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

, St. Magdalena Church, Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum until the present day * Illschwang, St. Vitus Church, Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum until the present day *

Kulmbach Kulmbach () is the capital of the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. The town, once a stronghold of the Principality of Bayreuth, is renowned for its University of Life Sciences, a branch of the University of Bayreuth, the massive Plasse ...

, the castle chapel on the

Plassenburg Plassenburg is a castle in the city of Kulmbach in Bavaria. It is one of the most impressive castles in Germany and a symbol of the city. It was first mentioned in 1135. The Plassenberg family were Ministerialis, ministerial of the counts of And ...

, Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum until the present day *

Mosbach Mosbach (; South Franconian: ''Mossbach'') is a town in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the seat of the Neckar-Odenwald district and has a population of approximately 25,000 distributed in six boroughs: Mosbach Town, Lohrbach, ...

, St. Juliana Collegiate Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Neuried-Schutterzell, St. Michael's Church, a Catholic-United since 1804 *

Neustadt an der Weinstraße Neustadt (German for ''new town'' or ''new city'') may refer to: Places * Neustadt (urban district) Czech Republic *Neustadt an der Mettau, Nové Město nad Metují *Neustadt an der Tafelfichte, Nové Město pod Smrkem * Nové Město na Mo ...

, Collegiate Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Otterberg, Otterberg Abbey, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Rheinberg-Ossenberg, Castle Chapel, a Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Ringstedt, St. Fabian Church, since 1706 a Reformed-Lutheran simultaneum * Rohrdorf in the Black Forest, John's Church, a Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day *

Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...

, Church of Peace (), an

Old Catholic The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches, or Old Catholic movement, designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the Great C ...

Russian Orthodox The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

simultaneum until the present day * Siebeldingen, St. Quintinus Church, a Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Thuine, St. George's Church, Catholic-Reformed simultaneum until the present day *

, Cloister Church (), since 1818 a Catholic-Lutheran simultaneum * Wachenheim an der Weinstraße, St. George's Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day *

Wetzlar Wetzlar () is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany. It is the twelfth largest city in Hesse with currently 55,371 inhabitants at the beginning of 2019 (including second homes). As an important cultural, industrial and commercial center, the un ...

, former collegiate church, colloquially Wetzlar Cathedral, since 1544–1817 a Catholic-Lutheran, from then on a Catholic-United simultaneum * Wilnsdorf-Rödgen, St. John the Baptist Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Worms-Pfeddersheim, simultaneum, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day * Worms-Rheindürkheim, St. Peter Church, Catholic-United simultaneum until the present day

Netherlands

* In the Lands of Overmaas in the 17th century, the government of the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

mandated that ''simultaneum'' applied to the region's churches, which were shared between Catholics and Calvinists.

Poland

Gniezno Gniezno (; ; ) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. The city is the administrative seat of Gniezno County (''powiat'') ...

, St. Michał Kozal Church, Roman Catholic and Evangelical (of the Augsburg confession) simultaneum (the church with two presbyteries)

United Kingdom

Arundel Arundel ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Arun District of the South Downs, West Sussex, England. The much-conserved town has a medieval castle and Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel has a museum and comes second behind much la ...

, St. Nicholas' Church and Fitzalan Chapel. This consists of an Anglican parish church, with a separate Roman Catholic chapel attached, the latter being the burial place of the Dukes of Norfolk. Although these exist within a single building, it is suggested that this should not be properly considered a simultaneum, as there is no worship space which is shared, but used at different times. The two spaces are separated by an iron grille, and a glass screen, which is kept locked, except during very occasional ecumenical services. The glass screen replaces a brick wall which was erected by a Duke of Norfolk in the 19th century. It was lowered in 1956 and entirely removed in 1970. *

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

, The Church of the Resurrection and St. Bridget was a shared church building between the Church of England's Church of the Resurrection and the Roman Catholic's St Bridget's RC Church. The building opened in 1988 after originally being planned in 1984 when Bishop

David Sheppard David Stuart Sheppard, Baron Sheppard of Liverpool (6 March 1929 – 5 March 2005) was a Church of England bishop who played cricket for Sussex and England in his youth, before serving as Bishop of Liverpool from 1975 to 1997. Sheppard remains ...

, the Anglican Bishop of Liverpool, and Archbishop Derek Worlock, RC Prelate of Liverpool, put forward the proposal. The worship space within the Church was shared by both communities, but Anglican and Catholic services were at different times throughout the week. The Church closed in November 2022 due to falling numbers of parishioners.

United States

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the List of cities in Virginia, most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeaster ...

, Church of the Holy Apostles, Roman Catholic and Anglican simultaneum *

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

; Historically, Lutheran ( ELCA) and Reformed ( UCC) German immigrants commonly shared churches, particularly in the

Pennsylvania Dutch Country The Pennsylvania Dutch Country (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Pennsylvanie Deitschland,'' ''Deitscherei,'' or ''Pennsilfaanisch-Deitschland''), or Pennsylvania Dutchland, is a region of German Pennsylvania spanning the Delaware Valley and South Central ...

region, although some congregations have since built their own separate churches.

Holy Land church-sharing

The main traditional pilgrim churches of Jerusalem and Bethlehem are shared between several denominations. The regulatory work is known as the "Status quo", a type of church-sharing which is in no way related to the West European Protestant-Catholic sharing system described here (the "simultaneum"). *

Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, is a fourth-century church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The church is the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchat ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

- Greek Orthodox-Eastern Orthodox-Oriental Orthodox-Catholic simultaneum until the present day *

Church of the Nativity The Church of the Nativity, or Basilica of the Nativity, is a basilica located in Bethlehem, West Bank, Palestine. The grotto holds a prominent religious significance to Christianity, Christians of various denominations as the Nativity of Jesus, ...

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

References

* HighBeam Research, dictionary definition: simultaneu

* Wiki-Protestants.org, ''Simultaneum'' (French language

* Musée virtuel du Protestantisme, "Le Simultaneum" (French language): "Le simultaneum résulte de l'histoire alsacienne. Il s'agit d'un édifice cultuel utilisé simultanément par les deux confessions catholique et protestante.

* '' heRhein and Laeng of Herrliesheim: Brief History of Alsace-Lorraine'

* Bernhard Brockmann, ''Simultaneum in Goldenstedt'

Notes

External links

Catholic-Protestant community in Germany making "ecumenical congregations" a reality - Novena News
{{Authority control Catholic–Protestant ecumenism Church architecture Protestantism in Germany Christian terminology Protestantism in France