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The Czechoslovak Hussite Church ( cs, Církev československá husitská, ''CČSH'' or ''CČH'') is a
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'' (Χρ ...
church that separated from the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
after
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
in former
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
. Both the Czechoslovak Hussite Church and
Moravian Church , image = AgnusDeiWindow.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , caption = Church emblem featuring the Agnus Dei.Stained glass at the Rights Chapel of Trinity Moravian Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States , main_classification = Proto-Pr ...
trace their tradition back to the
Hussite The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Hus ...
reformers and acknowledge
Jan Hus Jan Hus (; ; 1370 – 6 July 1415), sometimes anglicized as John Hus or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as ''Iohannes Hus'' or ''Johannes Huss'', was a Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and the insp ...
(John Huss) as their predecessor. It was well-supported by Czechoslovakia's first
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...
, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, who himself belonged to the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren. The Czechoslovak Hussite Church describes itself as neo-Hussite.


History

Both the Czechoslovak Hussite Church and
Moravian Church , image = AgnusDeiWindow.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , caption = Church emblem featuring the Agnus Dei.Stained glass at the Rights Chapel of Trinity Moravian Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States , main_classification = Proto-Pr ...
trace their tradition back to the
Hussite The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Hus ...
reformers and acknowledge
Jan Hus Jan Hus (; ; 1370 – 6 July 1415), sometimes anglicized as John Hus or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as ''Iohannes Hus'' or ''Johannes Huss'', was a Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and the insp ...
(John Huss) as their predecessor. The forerunner of the CČSH was the Jednota (Union of the Catholic Clergy), which was founded in 1890 to promote
modernist Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...
reforms in the Roman Catholic Church, such as use of the vernacular in the liturgy and the adoption of voluntary rather than compulsory clerical celibacy. The radical movement that resulted in the foundation of a new Church began in the Christmas season of 1919, when Christmas masses were celebrated in Czech in many Czechoslovak churches. The CCH was established on January 8, 1920, by Dr. Karel Farský, who became its first Patriarch and author of its liturgy. It was known until 1971 as the Czechoslovak Church. The head of the church continues to bear the title of
Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in ce ...
. The church had a working-class membership and supported a socialist economic system in the years leading up to the
1948 Czechoslovak coup Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...
. According to 2021 censuses it has less than 25 000 adherents, mostly in the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. Th ...
and some in
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...
. There are 304 congregations divided into five dioceses situated in
Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
, Plzeň,
Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; german: Königgrätz) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 91,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected by law as a ...
, Brno, and
Olomouc Olomouc (, , ; german: Olmütz; pl, Ołomuniec ; la, Olomucium or ''Iuliomontium'') is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 99,000 inhabitants, and its larger urban zone has a population of about 384,000 inhabitants (2019). Located on th ...
in the Czech Republic and three congregations in the Bratislava Diocese in
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...
. There are approximately 266 priests in active ministry, of whom 130 are women. Candidates of ministry are prepared at the Hussite Faculty of Theology at
Charles University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , underg ...
in Prague.


Doctrine and liturgy

It draws its teachings from the traditional Christianity presented by the Church Fathers (Patristics), with the first Seven Ecumenical Councils, the work of
Saints Cyril and Methodius Cyril (born Constantine, 826–869) and Methodius (815–885) were two brothers and Byzantine Christian theologians and missionaries. For their work evangelizing the Slavs, they are known as the "Apostles to the Slavs". They are credited wi ...
, and the
Protestant 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 ...
tradition, especially
Utraquist Utraquism (from the Latin ''sub utraque specie'', meaning "under both kinds") or Calixtinism (from chalice; Latin: ''calix'', mug, borrowed from Greek ''kalyx'', shell, husk; Czech: kališníci) was a belief amongst Hussites, a reformist Christ ...
and
Hussite The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Hus ...
thought. Like Orthodox Christians, Roman Catholics, and
Anglo-Catholics Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglican ...
, the Czechoslovak Hussite Church recognizes seven sacraments. Like some of the
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
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their na ...
churches, it emphasizes the
freedom of conscience Freedom of thought (also called freedom of conscience) is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints. Overview Every person attempts to have a cognitive proficiency b ...
of individual believers, practices 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 "ordin ...
, and emphasizes the equal participation of the
laity In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a laype ...
in church leadership. The Hussite Church, as with its sister church, the
Moravian Church , image = AgnusDeiWindow.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , caption = Church emblem featuring the Agnus Dei.Stained glass at the Rights Chapel of Trinity Moravian Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States , main_classification = Proto-Pr ...
, teaches the doctrine of apostolic succession. The celebration of the liturgy is the center of worship practice. It used to be two forms, which have much in common with the texts of the
Catholic Mass The Mass is the central liturgical service of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, in which bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ. As defined by the Church at the Council of Trent, in the Mass, "the same Christ ...
, but there are also elements of Luther's German Mass and the tradition of the Utraquist mass. Clergy wear a black robe with an embroidered red chalice and a white stole during the service. There is no
veneration of saints Veneration ( la, veneratio; el, τιμάω ), or veneration of saints, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions. Etym ...
as practiced in the Apostolic Churches, but images of saints are employed in the church decoration. In the post-1920 period new churches were built, but only a few portraits were considered appropriate to place in them, particularly representations of Christ, and occasionally pictures of Jan Hus. In the iconography of the church the chalice plays a major role, usually depicted in red, as it was used in the 15th century as a battle standard on the flags of the Hussites. It is found in the church, to the sacerdotal, the bindings of liturgical books, church steeples and church banners.


Demography

After a split from the Catholic Church, amidst the post-war atmosphere of anti-Catholic agitation and euphoria about the Czech independence, the Czechoslovak Church's membership increased rapidly. In the 1921 Czechoslovak census, the first post-war census, 523,232 people claimed to be adherents of this church in what is today the Czech Republic. In 1930, the membership further grew to 779,672. With 7.3% of total population, it became the prevailing religion in several regions of Bohemia and to a lesser degree in
Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. Th ...
. At the beginning of Communist rule, the 1950 census recorded 946,497 adherents of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church. In the following decades there was no official census of religious affiliation in what is today the Czech Republic, although it is apparent that under Communist rule, membership started to collapse.


Relations with other churches

At its beginning, the Hussite Church sought relations with the Serbian Orthodox Church and the
Old Catholic Church 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 Chu ...
, and also espoused a tendency to a rationalist and
Unitarian Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present ...
Christian theology, but when adopted its creed in 1958 it was founded on the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. The church is a member of the Ecumenical Council of Churches in the Czech Republic, the
Conference of European Churches The Conference of European Churches (CEC) was founded in 1959 to promote reconciliation, dialogue and friendship between the churches of Europe at a time of growing Cold War political tensions and divisions. In its commitment to Europe as a who ...
, and the
Leuenberg Community of Churches 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 ch ...
. Relations between the church and other members of the ecumenical movement are cordial, but remained strained with the country's Roman Catholic leadership. The first woman to become a bishop of the Czechoslovak Hussite church, Jana Šilerová, was elected to a seven-year term of office in April 1999. In January 1999, Catholic Archbishop Miloslav Vlk made a public statement of disapproval, warning against election of a woman to this position and saying that it would cause deterioration of ecumenical relations. Following criticism by the Czechoslovak Hussite Church for interfering in its affairs, the Roman Catholic Church distanced itself from the archbishop's remarks and stated that it would exert no pressure against her election. In 2000, Catholic representatives attended the consecration of Jana Šilerová as the Hussite Church's first woman to become a bishop.


Patriarchs

* Karel Farský (1924–1927) * Gustav Adolf Procházka (1927–1942) *
František Kovář František Kovář (2 September 1888, in Sebranice – 12 June 1969, in Prague) was the third patriarch of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church. Hr was formerly a Czech Roman Catholic reformist priest, later a theologian, journalist, translator, edi ...
(1946–1961) *
Miroslav Novák Miroslav Novák (26 October 1907, Kyjov, Czechoslovakia – 5 May 2000, Rouen, France was a Czech theologian of the Old Testament, a spiritual bishop and between 1961 and 1990, the patriarch of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church. Miroslav Novák (Doc ...
(1961–1990) * Vratislav Štěpánek (1991–1994) * Josef Špak (1994–2001) * Jan Schwarz (2001–2006) * Tomáš Butta (2006–present)


Dioceses

* Prague Diocese (bishop David Tonzar) * Olomouc Diocese (bishop Tomáš Chytil) * Plzeň Diocese (bishop Filip Štojdl) * Hradec Králové Diocese (bishop Pavel Pechanec) * Brno Diocese (bishop Juraj Jordán Dovala) * Bratislava Diocese (bishop Jan Hradil) *


See also

* Unity of the Brethren (Czech Republic) *
Hussite Theological Faculty, Charles University in Prague The Hussite Theological Faculty (Czech: ''Husitská teologická fakulta'') is one of three theological faculties of Charles University in Prague. The Faculty was founded with the Czechoslovak Hussite Church which was established at the beginning o ...


References


Bibliography

* * Nĕmec, Ludvík (1975) ''The Czechoslovak Heresy and Schism: the emergence of a national Czechoslovak church'' American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, * Tonzar, David (2002) ''Vznik a vývoj novodobé husitské teologie a Církev československá husitska'' Karolinum, Prague, in Czech * Urban, Rudolf (1973) ''Die tschechoslowakische hussitische Kirche'' J.G. Herder-Institut, Marburg/Lahn, , in German


External links


Ecumenical Council of Churches in the Czech Republic

Official Website of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church
{{Authority control Members of the World Council of Churches Protestantism in the Czech Republic Hussites