Evangelical Church of the Palatinate (german: Evangelische Kirche der Pfalz (Protestantische Landeskirche)) is a

United United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

church in parts of the German states of

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

and

Saarland The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...

, endorsing both

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

and

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

orientations. The seat of the church is in Speyer, where

Protestation at Speyer On April 19, 1529, six princes and representatives of 14 Imperial Free Cities petitioned the Imperial Diet at Speyer against an imperial ban of Martin Luther, as well as the proscription of his works and teachings, and called for the unhin ...

happened. During this historical event, German Lutheran princes protested the

Reichsacht The imperial ban (german: Reichsacht) was a form of outlawry in the Holy Roman Empire. At different times, it could be declared by the Holy Roman Emperor, by the Imperial Diet, or by courts like the League of the Holy Court (''Vehmgericht'') or t ...

against

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

and called for unhindered spread of the Protestant faith. As the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

party urged for religious unity in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

, it dismissed all those participants who argued against an Imperial Ban on Luther as "Protestants"; it has since entered various other languages beside

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is als ...

, and became a dominant term to describe churches coming out of the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, as well as all these derived from them. It is the only EKD member church to formally use the word ''Protestant'' (''protestantisch'' in

) in its name, since most EKD member churches call themselves ''Evangelical'' (''evangelisch'' in

). It is a full member of the

Evangelical Church in Germany The Evangelical Church in Germany (german: Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland, abbreviated EKD) is a federation of twenty Lutheran, Reformed (Calvinist) and United (e.g. Prussian Union) Protestant regional churches and denominations in German ...

(EKD). The current President of the Church (''"Kirchenpräsident"'') is Dorothee Wüst. The Evangelical Church of the Palatinate is one of 20

United Protestant A united church, also called a uniting church, is a church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protestant churches were enforced by the state ...

and

Reformed churches Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Calv ...

of the EKD. As of December 2020, the regional church had 482,731 members in 431 parishes. The Evangelical Church of the Palatinate is a member of the UEK and of the

Community of Protestant Churches in Europe The Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE, also GEKE for ''Gemeinschaft Evangelischer Kirchen in Europa'') is a fellowship of over 100 Protestant churches which have signed the Leuenberg Agreement. Together they strive for realizing c ...

. In Speyer, the church has its own Evangelical academy. The principal church is the Gedächtniskirche in Speyer. Because the church has no

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

, it is not a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

History

Since 1816, the Palatine Reformed and Lutheran congregations were subordinate to the Protestant church administration of the

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...

, of which the then Governorate of the Palatinate formed a part. Following the parishioners' plebiscite in 1817, all Palatine Lutheran and Reformed congregations merged into confessionally

united Protestant A united church, also called a uniting church, is a church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protestant churches were enforced by the state ...

congregations. In 1848, the Palatine Protestant congregations formed a regional church, then called ''Vereinigte protestantisch-evangelisch-christliche Kirche der Pfalz (Pfälzische Landeskirche)'' (i.e. United Protestant Evangelical Christian Church of the Palatinate alatine State Church, independent of that regional church in the rest of Bavaria. In 1922, the United Church of the Palatinate counted 506,000 parishioners.Sebastian Müller-Rolli in collaboration with Reiner Anselm, ''Evangelische Schulpolitik in Deutschland 1918–1958: Dokumente und Darstellung'', Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1999, (=Eine Veröffentlichung des Comenius-Instituts Münster), p. 30. . The official Palatine church body became a ''destroyed church'' (german: zerstörte Kirche) since it was taken over by Nazi-submissive German Christians, who gained a majority in the synod by the unconstitutional election imposed by

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

on 23 July 1933. Nazi opponents then formed the Confessing Church of the Palatinate. In 1976, the Palatine church renamed into ''Evangelische Kirche der Pfalz (Protestantische Landeskirche)'' (i.e. Evangelical Church of the Palatinate rotestant State Church. In 1941 the commander of the

CdZ-Gebiet Lothringen The Civil Administration Area of Lorraine (CdZ=Chef der Zivilverwaltung) () was an administrative division of the Gau Westmark from 1940 to 1945. History After the outbreak of the Second World War and the defeat of France in 1940, the ''départe ...

subjected the Protestant congregations in that occupation zone of France to the jurisdiction of the United Church of the Palatinate. In 1944 they returned to their previous umbrellas the Reformed Church of Alsace and Lorraine and the

Protestant Church of Augsburg Confession of Alsace and Lorraine The Protestant Church of the Augsburg Confession of Alsace and Lorraine (french: Église protestante de la Confession d’Augsbourg d’Alsace et de Lorraine, ''EPCAAL''; german: Protestantische Kirche Augsburgischen Bekenntnisses von Elsass und ...

Practices

Ordination of women and blessing of same-sex marriages were allowed. Protestant Church of the Palatinate (german)

Elected leaders

The leading person is the "Kirchenpräsident" (Church President), until 1921 titled Konsistorialdirektor ( consistorial director), which is elected from the synod for seven years. *1886 - 1896: Theodor Michael von Wand, Konsistorialdirektor *1896 - 1915: Ludwig von Wagner, Konsistorialdirektor *1915 - 1930: D. Dr. Karl Fleischmann, Konsistorialdirektor, since 1921 Kirchenpräsident *1930 - 1934: Jakob Kessler, Kirchenpräsident *1934 - 1945: Ludwig Diehl, *1946 - 1964: Dr. Hans Stempel, Kirchenpräsident *1964 - 1969: Dr. Theodor Schaller, Kirchenpräsident *1969 - 1975: Walter Ebrecht, Kirchenpräsident *1975 - 1988: Heinrich Kron, Kirchenpräsident *1988 - 1998: Werner Schramm (Speyer), Kirchenpräsident *1998 - 2008: Eberhard Cherdron, Kirchenpräsident *2008 - 2021:

Christian Schad Christian Schad (21 August 189425 February 1982) was a German painter and photographer. He was associated with the Dada and the New Objectivity movements. Considered as a group, Schad's portraits form an extraordinary record of life in Vienna a ...

, Kirchenpräsident * since 2021: Dorothee Wüst, Kirchenpräsidentin

Books

* Gesangbuch zum gottesdienstlichen Gebrauche für protestantisch-evangelische Christen, Speyer, 1823 * Evangelisch-protestantisches Gesangbuch für Kirche und Haus, Speier * Gesangbuch für die vereinigte protestantisch-evangelische christliche Kirche der Pfalz, Speyer, 1861 ? * Evangelisches Kirchen-Gesangbuch - Edition for ''Vereinigte, protestantisch-evangelische, christliche Kirche der Pfalz'', Speyer, * ', Edition for ''Evangelische Kirche der Pfalz (Protestantische Landeskirche)'', Speyer, 1994

Notes

External links

* http://www.evpfalz.de (Protestant Church of the Palatinate) * http://www.ekd.de (Evangelical Church in Germany) {{Authority control Palatinate Palatinate Church Palatinate Palatinate Palatinate Palatinate Church Calvinist and Reformed denominations