The Evangelical Church Conference (german: link=no, Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag) was a convention of delegates from the different

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

denominations in Germany and Austria. The conference originated in 1848, when the general desire for political unity made itself felt in the ecclesiastical sphere as well. A preliminary meeting was held at Sandhof near

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

in June of that year, and on September 21 some five hundred delegates representing 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 reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

, the

Reformed Reform is beneficial change Reform may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine *''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...

, the

United Protestant A united church, also called a uniting church, is a Christian denomination, church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestantism, Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protest ...

regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

and

state churches A state religion (also called religious state or official religion) is a religion or creed officially endorsed by a sovereign state. A state with an official religion (also known as confessional state), while not secular, is not necessarily a ...

and the Moravian church assembled at

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon language, Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the Ri ...

. The gathering was known as ''Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag'' (German Protestant church diet), and, while leaving each denomination free in respect of constitution, ritual, doctrine and attitude towards the state, agreed to act unitedly in bearing witness against the non-evangelical churches and in defending the rights and liberties of the churches in the federation. The organization thus closely resembles that of the

Free Church Federation Free Church Federation is a voluntary association of British Nonconformist churches for cooperation in religious social work. It was the outcome of a unifying tendency displayed during the latter part of the 19th century. History About 1890 the p ...

in England. The movement exercised considerable influence during the middle of the 19th century, convening fifteen times until 1871. Though no ''Kirchentag'', in such a form, has been convened since then, its place has been taken by the ''Kongress für innere Mission'', which held annual meetings in different towns. Since 1852 there was also a biennial conference of the executive boards of the evangelical churches held at

Eisenach Eisenach () is a town in Thuringia, Germany with 42,000 inhabitants, located west of Erfurt, southeast of Kassel and northeast of Frankfurt. It is the main urban centre of western Thuringia and bordering northeastern Hessian regions, situat ...

(german: link=no, Deutsche Evangelische Kirchenkonferenz der Kirchenregierungen; i.e. German Protestant Church Conference of the church governing bodies, more colloquially ''Eisenacher Konferenz'') to discuss matters of general interest. Its decisions had no legislative force. The Eisenach Conference was replaced by the

German Evangelical Church Confederation The German Evangelical Church Confederation (german: Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchenbund, abbreviated DEK) was a formal federation of 28 regional Protestant churches (''Landeskirchen'') of Lutheran, Reformed or United Protestant administration or co ...

, founded in 1922. The idea of the Evangelical Church Conferences, but based on a much broader foundation convening clergy and laymen, was revived in 1949 under the same German name, the present-day

German Evangelical Church Assembly The German Evangelical Church Assembly (German ''Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag'', DEKT) is an assembly of lay members of the Evangelical Church in Germany, that organises biennial events of faith, culture and political discussion. History ...

References

{{Reflist History of Protestantism in Germany Recurring events established in 1848 Recurring events disestablished in 1871 Protestantism in Germany 1848 establishments in Germany 1871 disestablishments in Germany