Simultaneum

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A shared church (German : Simultankirche), simultaneum mixtum, a term first coined in 16th-century Germany, is a church in which public worship is conducted by adherents of two or more religious groups. Such churches became common in the German-speaking lands of Europe in the wake of the Protestant Reformation. [1] The different Christian denominations (such as Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Reformed, or United, etc.), share the same church building, although they worship at different times and with different clergy. [1] Simultaneums have been seen as a manifestation of Christian ecumenism. [2] [3]

Contents

Simultaneum as a policy was particularly attractive to Christian rulers who ruled over populations which contained considerable numbers of both Catholics and Protestants. It was often the opposite of cuius regio, eius religio and used in situations where a ruler was of a different religion than the majority of the people, and not strong enough to impose his religion on the population. [1] These have been seen as a form of religious toleration.

During the Nine Years' War (1688–1697), Louis XIV of France occupied the Electorate of the Palatinate, a Protestant region situated mainly in the western part of what is today Germany, where he introduced the simultaneum. At the end of the war the region returned to Protestant control, but a last-minute addition to the Treaty of Ryswick provided for a continuation of the simultaneum. Although intended to apply only to the Palatinate, the simultaneum was subsequently also applied in portions of Protestant Alsace (a region ruled by France, but where the Edict of Fontainebleau was not enforced).

Examples

Following the compromise between the Reformed Aniconism and Lutheran Adiaphora in Ringstedt's Reformed-Lutheran simultaneum of St. Fabian there is a Lutheran altar, but it shows no Lutheran crucifix, but only candles, in compromise with Reformed sensibilities. Ringstedt Kirche Altar.jpg
Following the compromise between the Reformed Aniconism and Lutheran Adiaphora in Ringstedt's Reformed-Lutheran simultaneum of St. Fabian there is a Lutheran altar, but it shows no Lutheran crucifix, but only candles, in compromise with Reformed sensibilities.
Map of all simultaneum churches in Germany Karte Simultankirchen Deutschland.jpg
Map of all simultaneum churches in Germany
Lutheran and Catholic altars in St. M. Kozal church in Gniezno, Poland Prezbiteria kosciol bl. M. Kozala Gniezno.jpg
Lutheran and Catholic altars in St. M. Kozal church in Gniezno, Poland
Since 1530, the Cathedral of St Peter in Bautzen has shared by the Catholic Church and the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Saxony Bautzen - Dom in 20 ies.jpg
Since 1530, the Cathedral of St Peter in Bautzen has shared by the Catholic Church and the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Saxony

Belgium

France

Germany

Netherlands

Poland

United Kingdom

United States

Holy Land church-sharing

The main traditional pilgrim churches of Jerusalem and Bethlehem are shared between several denominations. The regulatory work is known as the "Status quo", a type of church-sharing which is in no way related to the West European Protestant-Catholic sharing system described here (the "simultaneum").[ citation needed ][ who? ]

See also

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Religious Conflict and the Practice of Toleration in Early Modern Europe, Harvard University Press, 2007, Chapter 8, pp. 198. ff.
  2. ↑ Spink, Kathryn (April 2006). A Universal Heart: The Life and Vision of Brother Roger of Taizé. GIA Publications. p. 71. ISBN   978-1-57999-568-3.
  3. ↑ "Dom St. Petri" (in German). Ev.-Luth. Kirchgemeinde St. Petri. 2025. Zunehmend gehen beide Konfessionen aufeinander zu. Das ökumenische Martinsfest ist seit Jahrzehnten die größte Veranstaltung für Kinder in der Stadt. Im Juli 2007 wurde von den beiden Gemeinden das erste ökumenische Gemeindefest vor dem Dom gefeiert. Dazu kommen jährlich gemeinsame Gottesdienste (Buß- und Bettag, Altjahresabend) und Seminare sowie mehrere gemeinsame Beratungen der Pfarrer und der Vorstände.
  4. ↑ Simultaneum in Boos (Nahe) [ permanent dead link ]
  5. ↑ Boos (Nahe), photos of the simultaneum
  6. ↑ Kaplan, Benjamin J. (2019). Reformation and the Practice of Toleration: Dutch Religious History in the Early Modern Era. Brill. pp. 273–274. ISBN   978-90-04-35395-4.
  7. ↑ "St Nicholas' Church Arundel - a brief history" (undated, apparently published by the Vicar and Churchwardens)
  8. ↑ "Unique "shared" church to close next month". 21 October 2022.
  9. ↑ "Two Altars, One Mass: Catholics and Episcopalians worship together in a unique church". TIME . Vol. 117. 1981. p. 20.
  10. ↑ "The Union Church: A Case of Lutheran and Reformed Cooperation".
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