Protestantism in Germany
, a branch of Christianity, was founded within Germany in the 16th-century Reformation. It was formed as a new direction from some Roman Catholic principles. It was led initially by Martin Luther and later by John Calvin.
History
The Protestant Reformation began with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses by Augustinian friar Martin Luther in 1517. The key element of this religious upheaval was a break from Roman Catholicism's emphasis on tradition, favouring a focus on the Bible. The lasting effects of Luther's Protestant movement within Germany was to question its existing power structures, imploring lay nobles for church reformation, critiquing the Roman mass, sacraments and seeking to reaffirm the importance of faith in good works. His subsequent excommunication from the Church ensured Germany had an ideological divide between Protestant sects and other Christian denominations. Another prominent reformer, Martin Bucer, introduced the rite of communion to German Protestantism and promoted Protestant unity, ensuring the anti-Baptist sect re-joined the wider church. John Calvin, whose writings formulated the Calvinist movement, emphasised the importance of Old Testament Law. Luther called upon the assistance of German princes to further the Protestant movement, namely Phillip of Hesse who convened the Marburg Colloquy where key Protestant theologians agreed on theological questions relevant to Germany. The Marburg Colloquy reforms included a restructuring of the Protestant Church in the light of the early church, the dissolution of monastic communities, establishment of Protestant universities, the regular inspection of Parishes and the conversion of nuns and monks. The Thirty Years' War, which took place from 1618 to 1648, stunted the theological development of Protestantism in Germany due to the severe reduction in population it triggered, with estimates suggesting as much as 90% of the German population was lost and barbary was common.Branches
Lutheranism in Germany
spread in Germany through the work of Martin Luther. Lutheranism teaches three sacraments, including baptism, confession and absolution, and eucharist. The Independent Evangelical-Lutheran Church is a Confessional Lutheran body in Germany. A number of Lutheran monasteries, convents and religious orders are present in Germany, such as the Priory of St. Wigbert.Reformed Christianity in Germany
spread in Germany, originating through the efforts of the reformer John Calvin. Reformed Christianity gained support in Germany in 1604 when Maurice, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel converted from Lutheranism. His conversion prompted serious backlash against the Calvinists from the predominantly Lutheran population in Hesse. In 1613, the Reformed gained another prominent convert, John Sigismund, Elector of Brandenburg. Eventually, Brandenburg would become a bi-confessional state, allowing for both Lutheranism and Calvinism, and the Electors of Brandenburg often advocated for their persecuted Reformed brethren.Reformed Christianity upholds covenant theology.
Two Reformed denominations are members of the Protestant Church in Germany including the Protestant Reformed Church and the Church of Lippe.
Political effects
Separation of church and state
In the early 1500s, the Holy Roman Empire led by Charles V treated German Protestantism as a competitor to its geo-political power, issuing a decree in 1524 banning the recitation of its Lutheran works. This prompted riots across Germany and in 1529 a formal protestation was issued by a body of Protestant leaders and Princes, claiming the need for a clear separation from the Imperial Diet and the right to autonomy. In February 1531, prominent Protestant Princes formed the League of Schmalkalden, endorsed by Luther, with the intent to defend the rights of princes and the religion. The league became central to the spread of Protestantism by using its political sway in Germany, helping the restoration of the Lutheran Duke of Wurttemberg in 1534, enabling the establishment of Protestantism in the region. Conflicts with the Holy Roman Empire, resolved by the 1548 Council of Trent, maintained a lack of concessions to the German Protestants, and country-wide riots ensured it was not accepted. The official separation of Protestantism and the state in Germany came with the adoption of the Weimar Constitution in 1919.Rebirth of political Protestantism
In the 19th century, Johann Hinrich Wichern pioneered a Protestant movement, the Inner mission, that sought a rebirth of the Church in Germany but also a greater emphasis on gaining support for social welfare and relief programs among Protestants. Throughout the 19th century Protestant churches in Germany were reactionary and politically conservative. Protestant theologians rejected the tenets of the French Revolution, seeing instead an increase in nationalism. This nationalism, was combined with piety, evidenced by the notable addresses of Johann Gottlieb Fichte's "Address to the German Nations" and Ernst Moritz Arndt's writings against Napoleon Bonaparte.Nazi Germany
During the Third Reich, over three-fifths of the population were Protestant and were divided among the Confessing Church, German Christians and those unaffiliated to either. In the early 20th century, anti-Semitic writings of Martin Luther were used by some Protestant pastors and Nazi leaders to bolster their political movement. Protestant pastors, bishops and theologians utilised Luther's writings, such as Von den Juden and ihren Lügen, to reaffirm the anti-Jewish prejudice escalating in Germany. During one 1927 Protestant Church Congress in Konigsberg, Paul Althaus gave a famous keynote address deriding the Überfremdung of the arts, fashion and finance industries, reflecting the anti-Semitism of many church leaders. There were actions taken by some church members to fight against Nazism, such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer who rescued multiple Jews in Operation 7. The Confessing Church in particular maintained objections to merging of the Protestant Church and Nazi state, resulting in some being sent to concentration camps. Several leading church figures, however, published substantial anti-Semitic publications, such as the Thuringian bishop who distributed thirty-seven thousand copies of Martin Luther über die Juden: Weg mit ihnen!. As the Nazi Party gained power, it actively destroyed the institutional structures of the Protestant church itself. After the fall of Nazi power post-1945, the wider church conducted a de-Nazification effort. At the conclusion of World War II, leading church clergy issued the Stuttgart Declaration of Guilt, which acknowledged the inadequacy of church opposition to Nazism and their culpability in the regime's power. With an increase in Protestant church pacifism after the end of Nazism, the German Protestant Church Assembly was formed as a forum to discuss the direction of the church. Former German chancellor Angela Merkel has been a regular attendant.Communism and the German Democratic Republic, 1949–1990
In the initial years of communist rule, despite pressure on pastors to endorse the new form of government, the Protestant church insisted on remaining impartial. The Communist Party, however, grew hostile to the church, moving to replace the festival of Christmas with celebrations of the birthday of Joseph Stalin, along with the jailing of more than 70 Evangelical pastors and lay workers from January 1953. One popular Protestant pastor, Siegfried Schmutzler, was imprisoned for five years after a show trial, charged with "agitation to boycott the republic". Censorship against Protestantism was also employed, with several West German church periodicals banned by the government, including the official Lutheran Church organ Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirchenzeitung. Official government orders, such as the 15 February 1956 Fechner Decree, banned religious instruction before school. In terms of political involvement, Protestant Church leaders also pushed for the introduction of the policies of Mikhail Gorbachev, including glasnost and perestroika policies in the German Democratic Republic. As a result of concerted state intrusions against Protestantism, the church became a place to organise opposition against the Soviet rule of the region. This opposition increased citizens' church involvement; however, the end of the German Democratic Republic led to a demographic decline in the Protestant church as the role of political activism was lost. In terms of political affiliations throughout the German Democratic Republic era, members of the Protestant Church ranged from far-left Stalinists to anti-communist conservatives.| Protestants in East Germany 1949–1989 | No. of members | No. parishes | No. of pastors |
| Lutheran | 6,435,000 | 7,347 | 4,161 |
| Methodist | 28,000 | 400 | 140 |
| Baptist Federation | 20,000 | 222 | 130 |
| Reformed | 15,000 | 24 | 20 |
| Old Lutheran | 7,150 | 27 | 22 |
| Total | 6,505,150 | 8,020 | 4,473 |