Church History Research Articles

“We Must Participate with the Fruits of Our Faith in Building Socialism”. The Preaching Committee in the Danubian Reformed Church District in the Mid-20th Century

As a result of the communist takeover in 1948, the Bishop of the Danubian Reformed Church District, László Ravasz was deposed, and Albert Bereczky took his place. In the end of 1951, Bereczky wrote a report to the general meeting of the Reformed Church in which he requested the authorization to set up a “preaching committee” with the aim of supervising sermons. He believed it was important for the pastors to talk about issues of their time in sermons because “we don’t preach in a vacuum space but to real people”. In reality, the committee’s function was the full control over pastors and the search for the ideological/theological content (which is called “narrow-road” theology) in preachings. That is why every pastor was asked to send in one sermon that was to be delivered between 1/01/1952 and 25/02/1952. József Bodonhelyi, head teacher of practical theology at the Faculty of Theology of the Reformed Church, who was also member of this preaching committee, wrote notes about these received texts and sermons where he probably appeared in person. We could find certain qualifications in his notes that seriously affected the careers of the pastors (for example, “he doesn’t address the issues of our time”; “his teaching is dangerous”; “he must urgently retire”). Keywords: Albert Bereczky, Reformed homiletics, history of preaching, preaching, Church history

Analysis of The Concept of Women's Careers According to Feminism as Well as Contradictions in The Islamic Perspective

Abstract: The development of feminism issues over time has led to this ideology increasingly dominating the views of women in various aspects of life. The doctrine of radical feminism has shaped the social view of women reviewed from a capitalist perspective, achievement, and work ethos. The historical events of the 1970s were full of discrimination against women by church culture, which sparked a rebellion for equal rights with men. It builds a paradigm that women must have achievements and social influence to gain societal rights and capacity. Therefore, a career becomes the main aspiration of feminism. However, this affects the shift in the roles and responsibilities of women traditionally identified as wives and mothers and responsible for the household. For feminism, being a career woman is the right of all women, and not limited to domestic roles. The study examines the contradiction between feminism and Islamic perspectives on women's careers. The method used is qualitative research based on library research, with descriptive analysis and critical analysis approaches. The results of this study reveal that the concept of women's careers according to feminism is based only on the trauma of the church's cultural history that intimidates women. But Islam is based on the good and the glory of women.

What Does It Mean to Be a Reformed Church Historian?

What Does It Mean to Be a Reformed Church Historian?

Transatlantic religion. Europe, America and the making of modern Christianity. Edited by Annette G. Aubert and Zachary Purvis. (Church History and Religious Culture, 82.) Pp. xii + 259. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2021. €116. 978 90 04 46501 5; 1572 4107

Transatlantic religion. Europe, America and the making of modern Christianity. Edited by Annette G. Aubert and Zachary Purvis. (Church History and Religious Culture, 82.) Pp. xii + 259. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2021. €116. 978 90 04 46501 5; 1572 4107

Christianity and modern Japanese society: An historical overview

AbstractThis review article provides an overview of studies on Christianity in modern Japan, with a specific focus on works that address its social and political impact from a historical perspective. It first seeks to orient readers in the historical context within which the religion was transmitted to Japan, before delving into the notable works in the field. The scholarship indicates an evolution from an initial focus on missionary evangelism and narrowly defined church history to a more expansive outlook that encompasses the rich and complex lives of Japanese Christian leaders and their broader societal impact beyond church walls. Topics covered include Protestant missions, indigenous movements, women's education, social reform, and biographical studies. As a reflection of the author's area of interest, special attention will be paid to the case of the Christian social reformer Kagawa Toyohiko. The review will be limited to English‐language scholarship, although brief references will be made to Japanese‐language scholarship where appropriate.

The Dynamics between the Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Polity in Modern Ethiopia and Its Role in Establishing Peace in the Country

The interaction between the Orthodox Church and the state in Ethiopia has undergone various phases throughout the country's history. Emperor Haile Selassie, who came to power in 1930, sought to modernise Ethiopia by adopting Western educational and administrative systems. This included restructuring the Church administration to establish a centralised hierarchy for easier control. The military regime that seized power in 1974, inspired by Marxist and Leninist ideologies, showed strong hostility towards religion. When this regime took over the Patriarchate in Addis Ababa, Church administration shifted back to influential monasteries in rural Ethiopia, leading to a period of reduced activity, often termed hibernation. Communist propaganda which aimed at secularising the urban youth population gained some traction until the regime's overthrow in 1991 following the collapse of the USSR. The quasi-democratic regime of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, which took power in 1991–92, liberated all religious communities from political suppression. They introduced an ethnic federalism system, dividing the country into states based on ethnicity. However, this regime later faced accusations of favouring a single ethnic group, leading to the rise of the current oligarchical government in 2017. Consequently, the Orthodox Church saw a decline in its political influence. This paper examines these historical and political developments in relation to Church history to understand the Ethiopian Orthodox Church's role in past, present and future peace restoration efforts, particularly following recent conflicts in northern Ethiopia.

Stropkov – An Unknown Chapter of the Upper Hungarian Reformation

The history of the Reformation in the Upper Zemplin town of Stropkov has remained outside the interest of history and church history. Nevertheless, Stropkov was Protestant for several decades. The establishment of the Reformation in the town was made possible by the lordship of Peter and Gábor Perényi in the second third of the 16th century. The existence of a Reformed parish is evidenced by three mentions from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The Protestant period in the history of Stropkov ended with a change of landlords when János Pethő of Gerse became the owner of the entire estate. Baron István Pethő invited Franciscans from Poland to the town, who re-Catholicized Stropkov in a short time. The town, along with the estate, thus became the first re-Catholicized area in the Zemplin region and one of the first in the whole of Upper Hungary. Keywords: Stropkov, Reformation, Reformed Church, re-Catholicization, Franciscans

The Cultural Heritage of Transylvanian Calvinists at the Establishment of the Library. The Development of the Book Collection of the Protestant Theological Institute of Cluj

The study examines the intellectual heritage of Transylvanian Calvinism, analysing the formation of the library collection of the Protestant Theological Institute in Cluj. As the sole documentation institution for Hungarian Protestant pastoral training in Transylvania, it represents a unique cultural legacy. The library served as an essential component of Calvinist ministerial and theological education in Transylvania. The creation of the collection was influenced by financial constraints, and its growth was determined by the annual budget, community support, and donations. The library reflected a demand for modernization and played a crucial role in elevating the cultural literacy of the Transylvanian society. The study highlights the organizational structure of the library, the leadership roles of Szász Domokos and Pokoly József, and the library’s societal responsibility in preserving and disseminating knowledge. Keywords: Transylvania, Cluj, 19th century, Calvinist church history, school history, pastoral training, library history, library foundation (1895), library development, acquisitions, donations, Domokos Szász, József Pokoly

The possibilities of using historical data on Tambov church monuments of the late 18th – first half of the 19th century in the development of an interactive map

Importance. A number of factors are considered: the possibility of providing relevant historical information to a wide audience, the use of modern technologies for analyzing and distributing historical information, and the significant interest of historians in working within the framework of the methodology used. The purpose of the study is to offer a resource for popularizing the church history of the region. The main sources are used in the work are plans of the city of Tambov and documents from the funds of the Tambov City Duma (16) and the Mezhevaya Chancellery (29) of the State Archive of the Tambov Region, some reference and visual materials, as well as a view of the city of Tambov in 1799.Research Methods. Both classical historical methods and the methodology of historical informatics are used.Results and Discussion. The relevance of modern information technologies use in scientific and educational activities is substantiated. A historiographical analysis of the problem has been carried out, which relates to the theoretical part of the study. The problems associateы with the localization of lost objects on modern maps and their solutions are described, which can be attributed to the practical part. Variants of references of the church history objects of Tambov city for an interactive map of the church history objects of Tambov at the end of the 18th – first half of the 19th century are proposed for consideration. The process of collecting and systematizing information for the formation of historical references of ancient religious buildings in Tambov: the Znamenskaya Church, the Church in the name of the Great Martyr Barbara and the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity is described.Conclusion. The main result of the study is the images demonstration of attaching cartographic, visual and descriptive data on the history of specific monuments of church history to maps.

Новые данные о новгородце Иване Шушерине – авторе биографии патриарха Никона

The article deals with the biography of Ivan Shusherin, the author of the “Life” of Patriarch Nikon. Based on new archival data, it was established the previously unknown circumstances of Ivan Shusherin’s ten-year stay in exile in Novgorod and his own letters, written in extremely beautiful handwriting are discovered. Analysis of the text of the “Life” allowed the author to clarify the dating of the “Life” and the intent of this work – the most important source on the history of the Russian church in the second half of the 17th century.

Urbanizace, industrializace, feminismus a ženské řeholní kongregace moderní doby: Několik poznámek k možnostem sociálních dějin k dalšímu výzkumu

The study deals with the typically modern phenomenon of European social and church history, which represents the origin and development of women’s religious congregations. It places the development of this specific form of women’s monastic life in the historical context and shows its connection with the modernization trends of Western society, especially with urbanization, industrialization and the rise of women’s and civic emancipation. Above all, it deals with the question of to what extent the methods and approaches of social history, historical anthropology and history of mentalities can still contribute to a deepened knowledge of this phenomenon. On the other hand, it demonstrates how the history of the activity of women’s congregations needs to be integrated into the economic and social history of the 19th and 20th centuries and what potential they entail for microhistory and history of everyday life.

Church Unity or Ecumenism: The Perspective of the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa 1967–2022

Right-wing politics is re-emerging all over the world, challenging the church to defy this trend and be true to her nature of oneness and Catholicism. This brings to the fore the question of unity and the ecumenical spirit. It is from this understanding that this article, which is an exercise in contemporary church history, seeks to contribute to the Reformed Church scholarship in the face of the current context of mission. The United Congregational Church of Southern Africa (UCCSA), as part of Reformed Churches, has a rich history of union. This discussion stems from the hermeneutical considerations of the reformed understanding of church unity, and particular focus is given to the UCCSA’s understanding of unity and ecumenism. After articulating what ought to be happening, the article delves into the historical considerations of the UCCSA and Church unity.

The Manchester Wesley Research Centre and the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History

The Manchester Wesley Research Centre and the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History

Half-Truths: The Irish College, Rome, and a Select History of the Catholic Church, 1771–1826 by Christopher Korten (review)

Half-Truths: The Irish College, Rome, and a Select History of the Catholic Church, 1771–1826 by Christopher Korten (review)

Activities of the Odessa branch of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society (1896-1916): the statistics essay

In the article, based on the annual reports' data, for the first time an attempt to compile the statistics on the activities of the Odessa branch of the Imperial Orthodox Palestinian Society (IOPS) was made. The studied structural division of the IOPS was opened on December 19, 1893 and became the second after the Yakut branch of the IOPS (March 21, 1893). Using diagrams, the author of the scientific research clearly showed the dynamics of changes in the quantitative composition of the Odessa branch of the IOPS and the ratio by category of membership in the period from 1896 to 1916, analyzed the financial and economic activities of the branch. The article concludes that the growth in the number of members of the Odessa branch before 1905 was associated with the administrative support and public popularity of representatives of the first generation of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society. The reduction in the number of members was subsequently facilitated by the banal non-payment of membership fees for three or more years, as well as the death of IOPS members, under which its active formation took place. The maximum economic viability of the Odessa branch of the IOPS was achieved by 1901, after which the organization's revenues began to fall. Grain harvests in the grain-growing regions of the Russian Empire, as well as domestic and foreign policy factors (the Russo-Japanese War, the First Russian Revolution, the Balkan Wars, the First World War, the Great Russian Revolution of 1917) contributed to the hard crisis in the Odessa branch. The article is intended for specialists in the field of church history, missiology, the history of public organizations, as well as for a wide range of researchers interested in the issues of Russia's presence in the Holy Land.

His Holiness Patriarch Sergius, Metropolitan Gregory and the Theological Schools of the Moscow Patriarchy from 1944 to 2024

The article commemorates two significant events marking the 80th anniversary of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2024: the passing of His Holiness Patriarch Sergius and the establishment of the first theological schools in Moscow during the Soviet era. The question of establishing theological schools was raised by Patriarch Sergius following the Council of Bishops in 1943 and his subsequent election as patriarch. These schools were inaugurated just a month after his passing. It’s emphasized that the swift preparation for the opening of the Theological Institute and Theological and Pastoral courses was facilitated by the quarter-century journey of the patriarch’s long-time faithful colleague, Archpriest Nikolay Chukov (Archbishop Gregory of Saratov and Stalingrad), who authored the project for spiritual educational institutions of the Moscow Patriarchate. He had substantial experience in establishing and overseeing higher theological institutions in Petrograd-Leningrad from 1920 to 1925. For the first time, a diary detailing the activities of Archpriest Nikolay Chukov is published in the appendix. His endeavors, undertaken with the support of Metropolitan Sergius and the Synod from 1928 to 1930, aimed to establish a Theological Institute in Leningrad. Unfortunately, his plans were thwarted by his arrest in 1930. The entries in the published diary confirm Olga Vasilyeva’s assertion that Metropolitan Sergius’ interview, which sparked widespread protests due to its denial of Church persecution in the USSR, was a quid pro quo for allowing him to submit a memo to Pyotr Smidovich. One of the memo’s points emphasized the necessity of opening a theological school. This memo played a pivotal role in obtaining permission, which, in turn, significantly hastened the process of opening theological schools in Moscow in 1943–1944. The article concludes with excerpts from books and articles by a professor from the Department of Church History at Saint Petersburg Theological Academy. This academic offers a negative and ironic assessment of both the ascetic work of Metropolitan Gregory of Leningrad and Novgorod, and the martyrdom of Patriarch Sergius, who endured humiliation primarily to preserve a legalized church organization, which was essential for the establishment of theological schools within the Patriarchate. This aspect became particularly significant when considering the pivotal choice by the authorities between the patriarchal Church and the Renovationists in 1943.

Федеративная модель Церкви в западном богословии

The author attempts to reconstruct in the most general detail the history of the application of federative terminology to the description of the structure of the Christian Church. The concept of federation appeared in the 18th century in the works of Protestant church historians who believed that the formation of the initial church structure was modeled on the federative political structures that emerged in Greco-Roman antiquity. Further mastering of the relevant political terminology by church authors was facilitated by the formation of the theory of political federalism in the 19th century and its popularization in the political and public life of many states. The author shows how since the end of the 19th century the concept of federation has been applied to the church constitution at its modern stage. This practice was especially characteristic of the representatives of the Anglican Church, in whose official rhetoric the image of federation took an important and prominent place. It was in the midst of the Anglican Church that the formula of the Church as a federation was born. Thanks to Protestant influence, federative terminology enters the language of ecumenical theology, being used there in particular to denote an intermediate form of ecclesiastical union. However, federative formulas in ecclesiology were accompanied by constant criticism, mainly for allegedly bringing with them alien and profane associations. An irreconcilable position was taken by Catholic authors, who for a whole century have been developing a theological refutation of ecclesiastical federalism. Under the influence of their criticism, as well as significant historical and ideological changes, the image of federation gradually disappeared from the language of Christian theology, surviving ultimately in the form of a general and unanimous denial that the Church is not a federation. The author is trying to show that despite some artificiality in the use of federative terminology, there were certain theological insights behind its use concerning the status of particular Churches and the nature of their mutual unity. These intuitions were largely ignored by the general development of ecclesiology in the twentieth century with its main interest in the global and universal dimension of the Church.

Reforming Church History. The Impact of the Reformation on Early Modern European Historiography, edited by Gehrt D., Matthias M, and Salatowsky S2023

Reforming Church History. The Impact of the Reformation on Early Modern European Historiography, edited by Gehrt D., Matthias M, and Salatowsky S2023

Between the king and the emperor: the epistles of the popes to the bishops of Arles during the Three Chapters Controversy

The discussion surrounding the posthumous condemnation of Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret of Cyrus and Iva of Edessa occupies an important place in the church history of the VI century. The attempt at reconciliation with the Monophysites, undertaken by Justinian, not only failed to achieve its original goal, but also led to a new schism. To support his initiative, the emperor turned to the Roman bishops, which put them in a difficult situation: on the one hand, Justinian demanded from the popes support for the condemnation of the Three Chapters, on the other – the churches of the western provinces reacted to this initiative with condemnation and distrust, seeing in it the undermining of the authority of the Roman Church and the entire institution of ecumenical councils. One of the episcopal sees closely associated with Rome was Arles (Arelate), an important ecclesiastical center of Gaul. An analysis of the papal epistles to the bishops of Arles, as well as to the Frankish kings, allows us to conclude that the Gallic clergy were rather poorly aware of the essence of the contradictions that developed around the condemnation of the Three Chapters: the popes repeatedly sent messages confirming their adherence to the canons, but without touching on the very essence of the differences. Such a streamlined position also testifies to the difficult position of the Roman see, which was forced to take into account the position of both Justinian and the Western churches. To convey their point of view to the Gallic clergy, the popes used the bishops of Arles, who had serious regional influence, which Vigilius and Pelagius further strengthened by granting them the status of papal vicars. The appointment and activities of the vicar were actively discussed with the secular authorities – the Byzantine ruling couple, as well as the Frankish kings – which also indicates the weakness of the papal positions during this period

Women and Christianity in Southwestern Nigeria from 19th to mid-20th Century: Implication for Contemporary Churches in Nigeria

Women have played significant roles in the development of Christianity in Nigeria, but with little attention given to their roles in historical accounts. Therefore, this research focuses on the roles of women found scattered in some documented history of Christianity in Southwest, Nigeria from 19th century till mid- twentieth century when missionaries came from America and Europe to Nigeria to establish Mainline Churches and in addition assesses their activities in the African Indigenous Churches (AICs) in Nigeria. The paper leaned on Dorcas Akintunde’s assertion that the official history of churches and Christian ministries in Nigeria takes a very little account of the role of women. She observed that the history of Christianity till the mid-twentieth century when Aladura churches (Praying Churches) were founded was basically patriarchal. Having explained these endeavours, the research also makes some recommendations for women activities in contemporary Christianity in Nigeria. The research uses qualitative approach with primary and secondary sources from In-depth Interview (IDI), participant observations and bibliographical and archival search. Women were found out to have served as missionaries, acted in men’s absence, and deployed their professional expertise on the mission fields, founded churches and were actively involved in pulpit ministry. Hence, their roles contributed significantly to the growth of Christianity in southwest Nigeria.