The Christian Community (german: Die Christengemeinschaft) is an esoteric

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

denomination. It was founded in 1922 in Switzerland by a group of ecumenically oriented, mainly Lutheran theologians and ministers led by liberal theologian Friedrich Rittelmeyer, who had been the most prominent representative of liberal Lutheranism in Germany during the First World War and whose early theological work had focused on the concept of a socially engaged "Christianity of deeds" (''Tatchristentum'').Johannes Hemleben, ''Rudolf Steiner: A documentary biography'', Henry Goulden Ltd, 1975, , pp. 134–138 (German edition: Rowohlt Verlag, 1990, ) Rittelmeyer and the other founders were inspired by Rudolf Steiner, the Austrian philosopher and founder of anthroposophy. The Christian Community Founders

The community has its historical roots partially in the broader liberal Christian tradition, and partially in the esoteric and gnostic tradition as well as German new humanism, as well as anthroposophy, though The Christian Community was a separate movement founded by Rittelmeyer, and most anthroposophists are not members of The Christian Community. Christian Community congregations exist as financially independent groups with regional and international administrative bodies overseeing their work. There are approximately 100,000 worldwide. The international headquarters are in Berlin, Germany. Its first priests included three women, and it was one of the first Christian denominations to practise the

ordination of women The ordination of women to ministerial or priestly office is an increasingly common practice among some contemporary major religious groups. It remains a controversial issue in certain Christian traditions and most denominations in which "ordina ...

. Women such as Maria Darmstädter played a major role in the development of The Christian Community. The Christian Community is led by the "circle of priests," with leaders known as coordinators appointed within the circle. A first coordinator (Erzoberlenker) is consulted by two second coordinators (Oberlenkers). There are also third coordinators (Lenkers) on the regional level and a synod of priests. The Christian Community is primarily a liturgical community, and practises freedom of teaching. It does not have an official theology or articles of belief, does not accept the concept of

Christian dogma Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Islam o ...

s, and does not engage in missionary work. The community also views other religions as equally valid as Christianity. Its rejection of Christian dogmas and its views of other religions have led some theologians of other denominations to question whether The Christian Community is truly Christian. The Christian Community in Germany was banned by the Nazis in 1941 and its leader

Emil Bock Emil Bock (born 19 May 1895 in Barmen; died 6 December 1959 in Stuttgart) was a German anthroposophist, author, theologian and one of the founders of The Christian Community. In 1914 he began a study of languages at the University of Bonn. Howeve ...

imprisoned due to the community's alleged "Jewish" and "Masonic" nature, but the community continued its activities in Switzerland and England, and was reestablished in West Germany after the war.

Practice

The Christian Community does not require its members to conform to any specific teaching or behaviour. Seven sacraments are celebrated within the community: the

Eucharist The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instit ...

, generally called the Act of Consecration of Man, and six other sacraments: Baptism,

Confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...

, Marriage, the Last Anointing, Sacramental Consultation (replacing Confession), and Ordination. There is also a special Sunday service for children of school age. Rituals and sacraments are the same wherever they are celebrated. Services are generally celebrated in the language of the country in which they celebrated. The Act of Consecration of Man lasts approximately one hour. Sunday services are longer than weekday services because they contain a sermon in addition to holy communion. For the sacramental wine used in communion non-fermented grape juice is used rather than alcoholic wine. Three Christmas services are celebrated, one on December 24 (at midnight) and two on December 25. There are also added prayers for different liturgical seasons of the year. Some chapels have an organ, and occasionally the organ has quarter tones in addition to the conventional (equal temperament) tuning.

Tenets

The Christian Community practices a complete freedom of teaching. The Priests may exert this freedom of teaching, provided that they do not contradict the sacraments which they celebrate. There is no official theology, nor articles of belief. Whatever is taught or written is a personal view. Basic tenets of some priests of the Christian Community are 1) free will, 2) reincarnation and 3) focus on Christ. For example, Jesus of Nazareth is seen as a physical vessel that enabled the spiritual being called Christ to influence the world. The ideology of some priests of the Christian Community could be summarized with the following points: * Modern man requires modern religion (movement) * The soul is immortal via reincarnation * Jesus and Christ are separate entities, focus is on both. When Christ is spoken of in the sacraments, it is “Christ Jesus”, the risen Christ Jesus that is meant. * Christ is both external and internal reality (Christ is not only ‘out there’ but at the same time ‘in here’) * The New Testament should have priority over other documents in Christianity

* No missionary work or public marketing should be done because finding this religion should be based on free will.

Ecumenical relations

The Christian Community is one of several faiths, including Mormonism and the

Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

, whose baptisms are not considered valid by the Roman Catholic Church. The Evangelical Church in Germany also does not accept the Christian Community's baptisms, however, neither does it deny its Christianity. A study commissioned by the World Council of Churches in 1950 recommended it be accepted into membership in the organization, however, its application was ultimately refused. The community itself states it operates "without attachment to any existing church or ecumenical movement".

References

External links

The Christian Community in North America
with extensive introductory articles
The Christian Community in the UK and Ireland
also with introductory articles
The Christian Community in Ireland
Based in the Republic of Ireland with services mainly in County Clare.
Die Christengemeinschaft
German site of The Christian Community
The Christian Community in Australia and New Zealand
with full programmes for all congregations in the region * priest seminaries of the Christian Community i
Spring Valley, NYStuttgart (Germany)
an
Hamburg (Germany)

by Michael Tapp, retired priest in The Christian Community, former national coordinator for the UK and then Australia/New Zealand
The Journal for the renewal of religion and theology
An online peer-reviewed open access journal inspired by the theology of The Christian Community ( (now defunct; access via Archive.org)
Religion Section at the Rudolf Steiner Archive
an On-line Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Christian Community, The New religious movements Liberal Christianity denominations Christian organizations established in 1922 Esoteric Christianity Anthroposophy

Practice

Tenets

Ecumenical relations

See also

References

External links