The Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony (''Evangelische Kirche der Kirchenprovinz Sachsen''; KPS) was the most important Protestant denomination in the German state of

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it th ...

. As a

united United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

Protestant church, it combined both

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 Reformed traditions ( Prussian Union). On 1 January 2009 the

church body A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, wors ...

merged with the

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia (''Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Thüringen'') was a Lutheran member church of the umbrella Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD). The seat of the church was in Eisenach. The church covered those part ...

into the

Evangelical Church in Central Germany The Evangelical Church in Central Germany (German: ''Evangelische Kirche in Mitteldeutschland''; ''EKM'') is a United church body covering most of the German states of Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia and some adjacent areas in Brandenburg and Saxony. ...

History

The Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony emerged on 1 October 1950, when the ecclesiastical province of Saxony within the

Evangelical Church of the old-Prussian Union The Prussian Union of Churches (known under multiple other names) was a major Protestant church body which emerged in 1817 from a series of decrees by Frederick William III of Prussia that united both Lutheran and Reformed denominations in Pr ...

assumed its independence as church body of its own. The history of the old-Prussian Union is tied with the history of the

kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...

. Following the second constitution of the

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **G ...

(GDR), enacted on 9 April 1968 and accounting for its de facto transformation into a communist dictatorship, the church bodies were deprived their status as statutory bodies (german: link=no, Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts) and the

church tax A church tax is a tax collected by the state from members of some religious denominations to provide financial support of churches, such as the salaries of its clergy and to pay the operating cost of the church. The constitution of a number o ...

, automatically collecting parishioners' contributions as a surcharge on the income tax, was abolished. Now parishioners had to fix the level of their contributions and to transfer them again and again on their own. This together with ongoing discrimination of church members, which let many secede from the church, effectively eroded the adherence of parishioners and the financial situation of the Evangelical Church. The Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony was a full member of the

Evangelical Church in Germany The Evangelical Church in Germany (german: Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland, abbreviated EKD) is a federation of twenty Lutheran, Reformed (Calvinist) and United (e.g. Prussian Union) Protestant regional churches and denominations in German ...

(EKD). The leader of the church was bishop

Axel Noack Axel Noack (born 23 September 1961 in Görlitz) is a German former race walker. On 21 June 1987 in Chemnitz he achieved a new world best time in 20 km walk with 1'19:12 hours. International competitions References * 1961 bir ...

(2006). The church had approx. 504,200 members (in December 2005) in 2,020 church parishes. The seat of the bishop was

Magdeburg Cathedral Magdeburg Cathedral (german: Magdeburger Dom), officially called the Cathedral of Saints Maurice and Catherine (german: Dom zu Magdeburg St. Mauritius und Katharina), is a Protestant cathedral in Germany and the oldest Gothic cathedral in the cou ...

. There are several former cathedrals in the territory retaining their original name, notably the

Halberstadt Cathedral The Halberstadt Cathedral or Church of St Stephen and St Sixtus (german: Dom zu Halberstadt) is a Gothic church in Halberstadt in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was the episcopal see of the Bishopric of Halberstadt, established by Emperor Charlemagne ...

, the

Merseburg Cathedral Merseburg Cathedral (german: Merseburger Dom) is the proto-cathedral of the former Bishopric of Merseburg in Merseburg, Germany. The mostly Gothic church is considered an artistic and historical highlight in southern Saxony-Anhalt. History Back ...

, the

Naumburg Cathedral Naumburg Cathedral (german: Naumburger Dom St. Peter und St. Paul, ), located in Naumburg, Germany, is the former cathedral of the Bishopric of Naumburg-Zeitz. The church building, most of which dates back to the 13th century, is a renowned landmark ...

and

Zeitz Zeitz ( hsb, Žič) is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river White Elster, in the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Saxony. History Zeitz was first recorded u ...

Cathedral. There are also some other imposing churches (often former

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by ...

es) called "

Dom Dom or DOM may refer to: People and fictional characters * Dom (given name), including fictional characters * Dom (surname) * Dom La Nena (born 1989), stage name of Brazilian-born cellist, singer and songwriter Dominique Pinto * Dom people, an et ...

" (often translated as cathedral) in the area. The Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony was a member of the Union of Evangelical Churches in Germany and the

Community of Protestant Churches in Europe 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 c ...

. In

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; 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 River Elbe, north o ...

the church had its own academy. The Ordination of women and the

blessing of same-sex unions The blessing or wedding of same-sex marriages and same-sex unions is an issue about which Christian churches are in ongoing disagreement. Traditionally, Christianity teaches that homosexual acts are sinful and that holy matrimony can only exi ...

has been allowed. Since 1 July 2004 the church was on the way to merge with the

into the

, with effect of 1 January 2009.

Area covered

The area covered by the Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony was equivalent to the old Prussian Saxony province, similar to the East German state of

(1946–1952; except of former

Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it the ...

) and small parts of the states of

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

and

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

General superintendents and bishops

The chief executive body was the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

in Magdeburg, however, there were three more consistories with regional competence in

Roßla Roßla (also: ''Rossla'') is a village and a former municipality in the Mansfeld-Südharz district, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the municipality Südharz. From 1706–1803, Rossla was the seat of Stolberg-Rossl ...

(for the Lutheran church of the mediatised County of Stolberg-Rossla; 1719–1947 then merged with the following), in Stolberg at the Harz (for the Lutheran church of the mediatised County of Stolberg-Stolberg; 1553–2005, then merged into the consistory in Magdeburg) and in

Wernigerode Wernigerode () is a town in the district of Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Until 2007, it was the capital of the district of Wernigerode. Its population was 35,041 in 2012. Wernigerode is located southwest of Halberstadt, and is picturesquely s ...

(for the Lutheran church of the mediatised County of Stolberg-Wernigerode; 1658–1930, then merged into the consistory in Magdeburg). A consistorial president chaired the consistory as an executive, as to the spiritual leadership there was one general superintendent, supported by a second and a third general superintendent (as of 1867 and 1911, respectively). Some holders of the general superintendency were royally styled as bishop, then still considered a rather non-Protestant title. In 1933 Nazi-submissive

German Christians Christianity is the largest religion in Germany. It was introduced to the area of modern Germany by 300 AD, while parts of that area belonged to the Roman Empire, and later, when Franks and other Germanic tribes converted to Christianity from t ...

, then dominating the legislative general and provincial synods, introduced the title bishop for the spiritual leaders, including their hierarchical supremacy over other church collaborators. The title was retained also after the end of the Nazi dictatorship, however, without any hierarchical supremacy.

General superintendents till 1867

* 1802–1815:

Johann Konrad Christoph Nachtigall Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

for the Principality of Halberstadt seated in

Halberstadt Halberstadt ( Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the capital of Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town center that was greatly destroyed by Allied bomb ...

* 1790–1817:

Karl Ludwig Nitzsch Karl Ludwig Nitzsch (6 August 1751 – 5 December 1831) was a German theologian, a professor of theology since 1790. Nitzsch was born in Wittenberg, where he studied from 1770 to 1775. He later served as a pastor in the towns of Beucha (from ...

for the Saxon Electoral Circle seated in

on the Elbe * 1823–1829: Ernst Friedrich Gabriel Ribbeck for the Governorate of Erfurt seated in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...

* 1812–1831: Franz Bogislaus Westermeier for the Elbe department seated in Magdeburg, styled bishop as of 1826, directing the royal consistory in Magdeburg since 1829 * 1832–1843:

Johann Heinrich Bernhard Draesecke Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

, styled bishop * 1843–1858:

Johann Friedrich Möller Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

* 1858–1866:

Johann Ludwig Daniel Karl Lehnerdt Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

(1803–1866)

General superintendents, 1st office (1867–1933)

* 1867–1890: Ludwig Carl Möller * 1891–1893: Leopold Schultze * 1893–1899: Ernst Adolf Friedrich Textor * 1899–1909:

Karl Heinrich Vieregge Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austria ...

* 1909–1924:

Justus Julius August Jacobi Justus (died on 10 November between 627 and 631) was the fourth Archbishop of Canterbury. He was sent from Italy to England by Pope Gregory the Great, on a mission to Christianize the Anglo-Saxons from their native paganism, probably arriv ...

(1850–1937) * 1925–1929: Otto Heinrich Meyer * 1929–1933: Johannes Eger (1873–1954)

General superintendents, 2nd office (1867–1933)

* 1867–1870: Ludwig Johann Carl Borghardt * 1871–1891: Leopold Schultze * 1891–1893: Ernst Adolf Friedrich Textor * 1894–1899:

* 1899–1906: Otto Gottlob Albin Holtzheuer (1836–1906) * 1907–1909:

August Julius Justus Jacobi August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and the fifth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Its zodiac sign is Leo and was originally named ''Sextilis'' in Latin because it was the 6th month in ...

(1850–1937) * 1909–1933:

Max Ludwig August Hermann Stolte Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

(1863–1937), Magdeburg Cathedral preacher

General superintendents, 3rd office (1912–1933)

* 1912–1917: Paul Johannes Gennrich * 1917–1931: Johannes Ludolf Theodor Schöttler * 1931–1933:

Karl Lohmann ''M'' is a 1931 German mystery suspense thriller film directed by Fritz Lang and starring Peter Lorre in his breakthrough role as Hans Beckert, a serial killer of children. An early example of a procedural drama, the film centers on the manhun ...

Bishops (1933–2008)

* 1933–1936?:

Friedrich Peter Friedrich Peter (13 July 1921 – 25 September 2005) was an Austrian politician who served as chairman of the Freedom Party of Austria from 1958 to 1978. He was an active Nazi between 1938 and 1946. World War II and SS service Born in Attnang-P ...

, bishop according to the new church laws legislated by the

majority in the old-Prussian general synod on 6 September 1933 * 1936?–1947: vacancy due to the struggle of the churches with the Nazi state and Nazi-submissive church functionaries against protagonists of the

Confessing Church The Confessing Church (german: link=no, Bekennende Kirche, ) was a movement within German Protestantism during Nazi Germany that arose in opposition to government-sponsored efforts to unify all Protestant churches into a single pro-Nazi German ...

* 1947–1955: Ludolf Hermann Müller * 1955–1968:

Johannes Jänicke Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, ''Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Yeh ...

* 1968–1983: Werner Krusche * 1983–1997:

Christoph Demke Christoph is a male given name and surname. It is a German variant of Christopher. Notable people with the given name Christoph * Christoph Bach (1613–1661), German musician * Christoph Büchel (born 1966), Swiss artist * Christoph Dientzenho ...

* 1997–2008:

Synod

The election of the synod was for six years. The synod met each year for one meeting. The elected leader of the "provincial synod" was called ''Präses'' ( preases).

Praesides of the synod

Praesides (since 1946): * 1946 – 1947: Ludolf Hermann Müller (later bishop) * 1947 – 1964:

Lothar Kreyssig Lothar Kreyssig (; 30 October 1898 – 6 July 1986) was a German judge during the Weimar and Nazi era. He was the only German judge who attempted to stop the Action T4 euthanasia program, an intervention that cost him his job. After the Second Wor ...

* 1964 – 1980: Helmut Waitz * 1980 – 1994:

Reinhard Höppner Reinhard Höppner (2 December 1948 – 9 June 2014) was a German politician ( SPD) and writer. Höppner held a Dr. rer. nat. in mathematics. In 1990, in the first (and last) free election in the assembly's history, he was elected a member of th ...

* 1994 – 2004: Jürgen Runge * 2004 – 2009: Petra Gunst

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20070304090926/http://www.ekmd-online.de/portal/ * http://www.ekd.de (Evangelical Church in Germany) {{DEFAULTSORT:Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony History of Saxony-Anhalt Former member churches of the Evangelical Church in Germany SaxonyProvince Church SaxonyProvince Christian organizations established in 1950 Christian organizations disestablished in 2008 SaxonyProvince Church