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105-730: The EPCAAL adheres to the Apostles Creed , Nicene Creed , Luther's Small and Large Catechisms , the Formula of Concord , and the Tetrapolitan Confession . The EPCAAL has approximately 210,000 members (as of 2010) in 208 congregations. Congregations holding services in German language use the current German Protestant hymnal Evangelisches Gesangbuch (EG) in a regional edition (Ausgabe Baden / Elsass-Lothringen) that includes traditional hymns from Alsace, Baden, and

210-657: A Great School was opened, now known as the Gymnase Jean-Sturm , which is still run by the EPCAAL today. It was directed by the humanist Johannes Sturm and educated the elite of Lower Alsace. The Augsburg Interim (1548), demanding the re-institution of Catholicism, had little effect in Alsace and northeastern Lorraine, so that most Protestant states were able to maintain their faith until the Treaty of Augsburg granted

315-688: A daughter of Duke Louis the Rich . He held posts as canon in Mainz , Trier and Speyer and was Provost in Mainz from 1499 to 1506. From 10 November 1502, he was also Dean of St. Donatian in Bruges . Later, he was priest at Hochheim and Lorch. On 12 February 1513, he became Bishop of Speyer. He studied theology in Heidenberg in 1514 and received his Holy Orders on 10 July 1515. On 22 July 1515, he

420-819: A faithful summary of the apostles' faith." The following gives the original Latin text, with the traditional division into twelve articles, alongside an English translation. Underlined passages are those not present in the Old Roman Symbol as recorded by Tyrannius Rufinus . 1. Credo in Deum Patrem omnipotentem, Creatorem caeli et terrae , 2. et in Iesum Christum, Filium Eius unicum, Dominum nostrum, 3. qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, natus ex Maria Virgine, 4. passus sub Pontio Pilato, crucifixus, mortuus , et sepultus, 5. descendit ad inferos , tertia die resurrexit

525-648: A majority in the German overall population. In all the then three German federal states adjacent to Alsace-Lorraine, Baden , the Bavarian Palatinate and Prussia, the Reformed and Lutheran church bodies had merged, either through a united Protestant confession ( Evangelical State Church in Baden as of 1821, Protestant State Church of the Palatinate as of 1817) or in administration only (by way of

630-480: A mortuis, 6. ascendit ad caelos, sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris omnipotentis , 7. inde venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos. 8. Credo in Spiritum Sanctum, 9. sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam, sanctorum communionem , 10. remissionem peccatorum, 11. carnis resurrectionem, 12. vitam aeternam. Amen. There is also a received Greek text, which alongside

735-604: A preacher of their choice. He opened negotiations with the rebels at Philippsburg and signed an agreement with them on 5 May 1525. The revolt was later struck down by forces from the Electoral Palatinate and other principalities. George participated in the Diet of Speyer in 1529 and died on 27 September 1529 of the sweating sickness . He was buried in the Speyer Cathedral . The monument on his grave

840-753: A priest at the Strasbourg Cathedral , to propagate Reformatory theses to a large, enthusiastic community. In the same year theologians and exegetes including Wolfgang Capito , Caspar Hedio , and Martin Bucer , strengthened and built up the Reformatory movement amongst craftsmen and the moderately well to do of Strasbourg. In 1524, St. Aurelia , the market gardeners' parish, asked Bucer to become its pastor and preacher. Bucer had met Martin Luther in 1518 and adopted his ideas. He then helped implement

945-571: A united umbrella) maintaining separate confessions in the local congregations ( Evangelical State Church of Prussia's older Provinces ; united umbrella since 1817). So Protestant officials from interior Germany delegated to posts in Alsace-Lorraine often had no routine with a Reformed and a Lutheran church existing side by side. This caused their expectation for the Reformed and the Lutheran churches in Alsace-Lorraine to unite, especially since

1050-631: Is here referring to the Old Roman Creed , the immediate predecessor of what is now known as the Apostles' Creed. The narrative of this creed having been jointly created by the Apostles, with each of the twelve contributing one of twelve articles, was already current at that time. The Old Roman Creed had evolved from simpler texts based on Matthew 28:19, part of the Great Commission , and it has been argued that this earlier text

1155-476: Is paid with government funds, the State University of Strasbourg runs a faculty of Protestant theology, religious instruction is a subject in public schools and denominational schools are allowed. On the other hand, all elected functionaries and pastors of the EPCAAL are to be government-confirmed and can only then be appointed. This legal difference between Alsace and Moselle and interior France prevents

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1260-528: Is recorded in the late 5th century. However, the Old Roman Creed remained the standard liturgical text of the Roman Church throughout the 4th to 7th centuries. It was replaced by the "Gallic" version of the Apostles' Creed only in the later 8th century, under Charlemagne , who imposed it throughout his dominions. The phrase descendit ad inferos (' he descended into hell ') is not found in

1365-700: Is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of the saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. George of the Palatinate George of the Palatinate (10 February 1486 – 27 September 1529) was Bishop of Speyer from 1513 to 1529. His parents were Elector Palatine Philip and his wife Margaret of Bavaria-Landshut ,

1470-567: The Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles , is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". The creed most likely originated in 5th-century Gaul as a development of the Old Roman Symbol : the old Latin creed of the 4th century. It has been used in the Latin liturgical rites since the 8th century and, by extension, in the various modern branches of Western Christianity , including

1575-521: The Concordat of 1801 with the Vatican he decreed the organic articles also concerning the non-Catholic communities of religion (Calvinists, Jews, Lutherans) imposing on them parastatal executive bodies ( consistories ), constituting and recognising these communities as établissements publics du culte (public bodies of cult ) and subjecting them to state control. On 8 April 1802 Napoleon decreed

1680-596: The Council of Florence (1431–1449) explicitly challenged the western tradition that attributed the Apostles' Creed to the Twelve Apostles. This tradition was also shown to be historically untenable by Lorenzo Valla . The Roman Church does not state that text dates back to the Apostles themselves, the Roman catechism instead explaining that "the Apostles' Creed is so called because it is rightly considered to be

1785-520: The Décapole ) and portions of certain ecclesiastical principalities (prince-bishoprics of Metz , Speyer , and Strasbourg ). While the prince-bishops tried to suppress any change towards the Reformation , the monarchies either adopted it or fought it, depending on the positions of their lords. The free imperial cities went through a process of discussion and conflict, winning over a majority of

1890-546: The Evangelical Lutheran Church of France . In the early 16th century Alsace and northeastern Lorraine were part of the Holy Roman Empire with the region being partitioned into many different imperial states . Most were monarchies ( Duchy of Lorraine , County of Saarwerden , Landgraviate of Upper Alsace , County of Salm), but also several republics (ten free imperial cities federated in

1995-535: The German Peasants' War spread to the diocese of Speyer and rebellious peasants raided the bishop's cellars. George fled to Heidelberg and the peasants occupied Kislau Castle , Rothenberg and Bruchsal Castle , set up a provisional government, invaded the Udenheim district and threatened Speyer itself. On 29 April 1525, George met the rebels at Herrenalb and promised them they would be allowed to appoint

2100-634: The Great Chapter , the chapters of Strasbourg's Old St. Peter's and Young St. Peter's , like much of the traditional clergy, rejected the Reformation, the prince-bishop of Strasbourg, William III of Hohnstein  [ de ] , failed to satisfy the demand for change. Already before the start of the Reformation, adherents of the Bundschuh movement in Alsace had demanded the right to elect their pastors on their own. The Lutheran church

2205-638: The Nicene Creed . It thus says nothing explicitly about the divinity of either Jesus or the Holy Spirit. For this reason, it was held to predate the Nicene Creed in medieval Latin tradition. The expression "Apostles' Creed" is first mentioned in a letter from the Synod of Milan dated AD 390, referring to a belief at the time that each of the Twelve Apostles contributed an article to

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2310-730: The Our Father ) of prime and compline on certain days during Advent and Lent. Recitation of the Apostles' Creed or the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed is required to obtain a partial indulgence . The International Consultation on English Texts (ICET), a first inter-church ecumenical group that undertook the writing of texts for use by English-speaking Christians in common, published Prayers We Have in Common (Fortress Press, 1970, 1971, 1975). Its version of

2415-733: The Protestant Reformed Church of Alsace and Lorraine (EPRAL). This is not a united body, but it provides a common decision-making structure and a common body of pastors. However, the two churches maintain their own organization. The EPCAAL is also a member of the Fédération protestante de France (FPF, Protestant Federation of France ) and of the Lutheran World Federation , and the World Council of Churches . The EPCAAL had close fellowship with

2520-594: The Second World War many representatives of French statehood and politics fled Alsace and Lorraine or were evacuated in 1939 and 1940, among them Robert Hœpffner, president of the directory of the EPCAAL, who was exiled in Périgueux like many more EPCAAL pastors. The German occupation started in May 1940 and the occupants subjected Alsace to a Nazi party administration by joining Alsace with Baden through forming

2625-478: The Tetrapolitan Confession , adopted by the cities of Constance , Lindau , Memmingen , and Strasbourg. The Church of Strasbourg adopted this confession and developed a theology midway between Zwinglian symbolism and the Lutheran conception of Holy Communion. This midway position was of a moderate and diaconal nature, and quite characteristic of the Reformation along the Rhine. In the beginning, church discipline

2730-723: The cathedral chapter of the Strasbourg diocese , Lutheran capitular canons formed the majority ( Strasbourg Chapter Strife , 1583–1604). In 1592 this majority elected John George of Brandenburg as the first Lutheran prince-bishop of Strasbourg. After the Catholic counts of the House of Nassau-Saarbrücken, ruling the County of Saarwerden, became extinct in the male line in 1574, the Lutheran House of Nassau-Weilburg inherited

2835-546: The quire . The Episcopal Church (United States) uses the Apostles' Creed in Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer. Before the 1955 simplification of the rubrics of the Roman Breviary by Pope Pius XII , the Apostles' Creed was recited at the beginning of matins and prime , at the end of compline , and in some preces (a series of versicles and responses preceded by, eleison ("Lord, have mercy") and

2940-418: The summepiscopate  [ de ] to the regnant princes or magistrates ruling the respective imperial states. Summepiscopate included the cuius regio, eius religio privilege to impose the faith of the inhabitants of one's state. At the end of the 16th century, under the guidance of Johann Marbach , Alsace adopted the orthodox Lutheran ideas contained in the Formula of Concord of 1577. Even within

3045-563: The "Symbol of the Trinity ", and recognizing it as an integral part of the rite of baptism . The term Symbolum Apostolicum appears for the first time in a letter, probably written by Ambrose , from a Council in Milan to Pope Siricius in about AD 390: "Let them give credit to the Symbol of the Apostles, which the Roman Church has always kept and preserved undefiled". Ambrose's term

3150-520: The 26 December as Second Christmas Day, as public holiday. Also labour on Sundays is much more restrained in Alsace and Moselle than in interior France. So the EPCAAL – like the Catholic dioceses, the Israelite consistories and the Reformed church – retained its status as établissement public du culte , whereas other religious bodies rank as religious associations in French law. This meant that clergy

3255-651: The Alsace-Lorrain legislation or the Reichstag, would persist if they were doomed better or without adequate French counterpart replacing them. So the organic articles, the concordat, Bismarck's social security laws (later replaced when French social security developed) became the system of the Local law in Alsace-Moselle . As to Christianity Alsace and Moselle have two more Christian feasts, Good Friday and

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3360-636: The Alsatian and Lorrain territories annexed by France after 1648 enjoyed a certain protection by the Treaty of Westphalia , of which France was a signatory. The treaty guaranteed to maintain the religious status quo as given in the reference year of 1624 in all the territories acquired since. So Alsatian and Lorrain Protestants were spared from the worst persecutions such as compulsory reconversion, galley slavery or religious child abduction. But other restrictions were imposed. The Lutheran Strasbourg Minster

3465-533: The Alsatian denominations. When the combat actions reached Alsace in late 1944 Maurer resigned from church leadership. On 1 May 1945 Hœpffner resumed his office and EPCAAL resumed existence including the Lutheran congregations in Moselle. In 1947 Maurer was arrested and sentenced as collaborationist in the following year. After the Second World War French authorities again aimed at levelling

3570-836: The Apostles' Creed as part of a Baptismal Covenant for those who are to receive the Rite of Baptism. The Apostles' Creed is recited by candidates, sponsors and congregation, each section of the Creed being an answer to the celebrant's question, "Do you believe in God the Father (God the Son, God the Holy Spirit)?" It is also used in an interrogative form at the Easter Vigil in The Renewal of Baptismal Vows. The Church of England likewise asks

3675-543: The Apostles' Creed was adopted by several churches. I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and

3780-407: The Calvinist and Jewish proposals, arguing he would interfere as little as possible in the current state of legal affairs of Alsace-Lorraine as long as no Alsace-Lorrainese legislative body were established. After 1871 many people from interior Germany settled in Alsace-Lorraine, among them rather few Calvinists, because Calvinism is a minority faith among the German Protestants, who then still formed

3885-401: The Christological part of the Old Roman Creed. While the individual statements of belief that are included in the Apostles' Creed – even those not found in the Old Roman Symbol – are found in various writings by Irenaeus , Tertullian , Novatian , Marcellus , Rufinus , Ambrose , Augustine , Nicetas , and Eusebius Gallus , the earliest appearance of what we know as the Apostles' Creed

3990-412: The Directory were both based in Strasbourg. With most French Lutherans living in Alsace-Lorraine the church and its parishes remained intact, while the 45,000 Lutherans in interior France were cut off from their central bodies. With the Reformed Church in Alsace-Lorraine the situation was reversed, the 35,000 Calvinists were disconnected from their mainland and central institutions in interior France. Also

4095-564: The EPCAAL to reunite with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of France (this name as of 1906), which is subject to strict laïcity. After France – in the scope of French centralism – had abolished the parliament of Alsace-Lorraine and many other features of regional autonomous administration the religious communities and the droit local form elements establishing Alsatian and Lorrain identity. In 1927 - after substantial doctrinal quarrels – some congregations split from EPCAAL and form today's Evangelical Lutheran Church – Synod of France and Belgium . In

4200-460: The Landtag. After the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 the imperial administration forbade using French as preaching language. Curtius and other church leaders sharply protested at the administration. When it did not revoke the prohibition, Curtius resigned as president of the directory of the EPCAAL in 1914. According to the ceasefire German troops had to leave Alsace-Lorraine still in November 1918 and French troops, warmly welcomed, captured

4305-632: The Latin is found in the Psalterium Græcum et Romanum , erroneously ascribed to Pope Gregory the Great . It was first edited by Archbishop Ussher in 1647, based on a manuscript preserved in the library of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. The Latin text agrees with the "Creed of Pirminius" edited by Charles Abel Heurtley ( De Fide Symbolo , 1900, p. 71). Four other Greek translations with slight variations were discovered by Carl Paul Caspari , and published in 1879 ( Alte und neue Quellen zur Geschichte des Taufsymbols , vol. 3, pp. 11 sqq.). The tradition of assigning each article to one of

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4410-464: The Magistrate (Kirchenpfleger), in order to deal with all matters concerning teaching and doctrine. Later, upon more reflection, some liturgical aspects of iconographic nature as well as other previously abolished traditions of church life were reintroduced (such as the Christmas Feast Day). On the occasion of the Diet of Augsburg in 1530, where Luther's followers presented the Augsburg Confession , theologians from Strasbourg, Bucer and Capito, authored

4515-438: The Missal gave for use at Mass , except in Masses for children; but in some countries use of the Apostles' Creed was already permitted. The Apostles' Creed is used in Anglican services of Matins and Evening Prayer (Evensong) . It is invoked after the recitation or singing of the Canticles , and is the only part of the services in which the congregation traditionally turns to face the altar, if they are seated transversely in

4620-453: The Moselle. In 1961 the EPCAAL was a founding member of the Conference of Churches on the Rhine , which now functions as a regional group of the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE). The first conference took place in EPCAAL's conference centre, the former convent of Liebfrauenberg near Gœrsdorf . Since 2006, the EPCAAL has been a member of the Union of Protestant Churches of Alsace and Lorraine , an administrative umbrella with

4725-474: The Nazi party Gau Baden-Alsace . The Moselle department became the CdZ-Gebiet Lothringen , to be administered by Nazi officials of the Gau Westmark . The Nazi administration suspected EPCAAL to be a potential obstacle to the streamlining. So EPCAAL was territorially divided into an Alsatian and a Lorrain branch. The Lutheran congregations in the CdZ-Gebiet Lothringen were assigned to the united Protestant German United Protestant-Evangelical-Christian Church of

4830-454: The Nazi-opposing Confessing Church movement the Alsatian Lutheran church could prevent its incorporation into the Protestant Reich Church . The Alsatian Lutheran church smarted from shortage of funds and pastors, of whom many were exiled in interior France. Under Maurer the church could carry on the work of several expropriated charitable associations and endowments, however, under restrictive conditions. The remaining pastors tried to compensate

4935-421: The Nicene Creed. It echoes Ephesians 4:9, " κατέβη εἰς τὰ κατώτερα μέρη τῆς γῆς " ( ' he descended into the lower earthly regions ' ). This phrase first appeared in one of the two versions of Rufinus (d. 411), the Creed of Aquileia , and then did not appear again in any version of the creed until AD 650. Similarly, the references to the communion of saints is found neither in the Old Roman Symbol nor in

5040-453: The Nicene Creed. The reference to God as "creator of heaven and earth" likewise is not in the Nicene Creed of 325, but it is present in the extended version of the Nicene Creed (the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed ) of 381. The Eastern Orthodox Church does not use the Apostles' Creed, not because of an objection to any of its articles, but because of its omissions necessary for the definition of Nicene Christianity . The Orthodox delegates at

5145-460: The Organic Articles the 208 congregations (paroisses, literally parishes) of the EPCAAL (as of 2005) are grouped in 40 consistories, terming the board and its district alike. The consistories are établissements publics des cultes too, each disposing of property of its own and receiving contributions by the member parishes. Each consistory comprises all the pastors active in its district and the double number of laypersons, elected in three year terms by

5250-444: The Palatinate , a synod governed by a majority of proponents of the so-called Movement of German Christians . The Alsatian rump of the Lutheran church with its supreme consistory and directory was reconstituted as the Evangelical Lutheran Regional Church of Alsace ( Evangelisch-lutherische Landeskirche des Elsass ). On 26 June 1940 the Nazi administration appointed Charles Maurer, Pastor in Schwindratzheim , as acting president of

5355-413: The Reformation in the Free Imperial City of Wissembourg in Alsace , which resulted in his excommunication by George of the Palatinate , the bishop of Speyer , and his conviction as outlaw . In 1523 he found asylum in Strasbourg, where he set up Bible reading classes and later, in 1529, presented the Reformation. He received John Calvin , who had been expelled from Geneva in 1538. Bucer tried to safeguard

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5460-409: The Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, is seated at the right hand of the Father, and will come again to judge the living and the dead. Do you believe in the Holy Spirit? I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins,

5565-411: The altered political situation and its transformation into a regionally confined Protestant church within Alsace-Lorraine . Bruch was a member of the interim church directory and pushed through the reconstitution of the Lutheran church in the German-annexed area as the Kirche Augsburgischen Bekenntnisses von Elsass und Lothringen . This smooth transformation was possible since the Supreme Consistory and

5670-432: The annexed areas and other immigrants, had to reorganise their religious community forming new bodies. The new German administration was very reluctant to alter or pass new laws concerning the religion. Jean-Frédéric Bruch  [ fr ] , already since 1849 consistorial councillor in the Supreme Consistory and a member of the Directory since 1866, rendered great service to the Lutheran church during its adaptation to

5775-457: The apostles specifically can be traced to the 6th century. In Western sacral art, Credo Apostolorum refers to the figurative representation of the twelve apostles each alongside one of the articles. This artistic tradition extends from the high medieval to the Baroque period. The precise division of the text and the sequence of attribution to the apostles has never been entirely fixed. For example, Pelbartus Ladislaus of Temesvár , writing in

5880-411: The basics of its constitution. The chief executive body, the directory (directoire) was also seated in Strasbourg. The strong parastatalism within consistorial system proved in March 1848, when after overthrowing the monarchy the royalist Lutheran directory was forced into resignation under the accusation of antirepublicanism. The then planned democratisation of the Lutheran bodies did not materialise for

5985-495: The burghers for the Reformation or not. The Free Imperial City of Mulhouse adopted Calvinism and joined the Swiss Confederation until the French blockade forced the city to accept French supremacy in 1795. In 1523 and 1524, the Free Imperial City of Strasbourg became the next state in Alsace to adopt Lutheranism. Most publishers in Strasbourg agreed to diffuse new ideas by issuing Reformers' tracts and numerous pamphlets. This allowed well-known preachers such as Matthäus Zell ,

6090-401: The candidate(s); for confirmands, it is the professing of the faith before and among the congregation. For the congregation, it is a reaffirmation of their professed faith. Do you believe in God? I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. Do you believe in Jesus Christ? I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of

6195-452: The candidate: "Dost thou believe in God the Father ..." The response is: "All this I stedfastly believe." Lutherans following the Lutheran Service Book ( Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and the Lutheran Church–Canada ), like Catholics and Anglicans, use the Apostles' Creed during the Sacrament of Baptism: Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth? Do you believe in Jesus Christ, His only son, our Lord, who

6300-402: The candidates, sponsors and congregation to recite the Apostles' Creed in answer to similar interrogations, in which it avoids using the word God of the Son and the Holy Spirit, asking instead: "Do you believe and trust in his Son Jesus Christ?", and "Do you believe and trust in the Holy Spirit?" Moreover, "where there are strong pastoral reasons", it allows use of an alternative formula in which

6405-411: The celebrant says: This is our faith. This is the faith of the Church. We are proud to profess it, in Christ Jesus our Lord. And all respond: Amen. The Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand uses the Apostles' Creed in its baptism rite in spite of the reservations of some of its members regarding the phrase "born of the virgin Mary". The Episcopal Church in the United States of America uses

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6510-417: The congregations in Alsace and the new German Department of Lorraine only. In the last quarter of the 19th century quarrels over the Catholic joint use of Lutheran (and Reformed) church buildings rose. 120 Lutheran and Reformed church buildings were jointly used for Holy Masses in the 1880s. Between 1903 and 1914 Friedrich Curtius  [ de ] , son of Ernst Curtius , led the EPCAAL as president of

6615-431: The county and Philip IV, Count of Nassau-Weilburg introduced the Reformation there. The territory of the former county in the environs of Sarrewerden still shows a high Lutheran share among the overall population. In the course of the 16th to 19th centuries during its eastward expansion France gradually annexed more and more territories of the Holy Roman Empire. Unlike in France proper (or interior France) Protestants in

6720-419: The decree of 1684. The EPCAAL has its headquarters in Strasbourg. The Church has a presbyterial - synodal system of church government. The legislative body of EPCAAL is the supreme consistory, consisting of elected and ex officio members . Before formally taking on office each member is to be appointed, and thus confirmed by the French prime minister. The central executive body is the directory. According to

6825-511: The directory (French: président du directoire ) and their vice presidents are ex officio members of the supreme consistory. Furthermore, the president is ex officio president of the Lutheran Chapter at  [ fr ] St. Thomas in Strasbourg (Chapitre de Saint-Thomas; confirmed on 29 November 1873). Presidents of the directory were: International churches Apostles Creed The Apostles' Creed ( Latin : Symbolum Apostolorum or Symbolum Apostolicum ), sometimes titled

6930-404: The directory. He had earlier been the editor of the weekly «Friedensbote» and active within the movement of Alsatian autonomists. After the outbreak of the war in 1939 the French government had interned him and other autonomists in Arches , from where he was released when the French forces withdrew into interior France. In 1941 the Nazi administration repealed the Organic Articles, stopped salarying

7035-429: The directory. In 1905 he was further elected president of the supreme consistory. Together with Bishop Adolf Fritzen  [ de ] he tried to calm down the quarrels over the simultaneum churches but in vain. Many disputes only ended when the Catholic parishes moved out into new-built Catholic churches. The charitable fund of the Œuvre des églises mixtes enabled the construction of new Catholic churches so that

7140-449: The establishment of 27 Lutheran consistories, with their ambits comprising several congregations with parishioners amounting to at least 6,000 souls altogether. The chief spiritual board, the General Consistory (Consistoire générale) was established in Strasbourg in Alsace, the region with the biggest share of Lutherans among the overall population. Thus the Église de la Confession d’Augsbourg de France (under this name until 1906) received

7245-448: The fear of our Lord, and to instruct people, not only by teaching them the wholesome Catholic doctrine, but also by good actions, by an irreproachable conduct and to encourage them by example to be pious, so that when all the trouble and the contempt for the clergy have been removed, we, as fighters for Christ and mediators between God and the people, may be able to prevent our eternal damnation by prayer and by good works Around Easter 1525,

7350-442: The forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting? Following each question, the candidate answers: "Yes, I believe". If the candidates are unable to answer for themselves, the sponsors are to answer the questions. For ELCA ( Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ) Lutherans who use the Evangelical Lutheran Worship book, the Apostles' Creed appears during the Sacrament of Holy Baptism Rite on p. 229 of

7455-426: The hardcover pew edition. The United Methodist Church in the United States uses the Apostles' Creed as part of their baptismal rites in the form of an interrogatory addressed to the candidate(s) for baptism and the whole congregation as a way of professing the faith within the context of the Church's sacramental act. For infants, it is the professing of the faith by the parents, sponsors, and congregation on behalf of

7560-603: The head of state of Alsace-Lorraine, the German Emperor himself, in personal union king of Prussia was as such the supreme governor of the united old-Prussian church body. Also among the Lorrain Calvinists was a strong preference for a united church. However, the Protestant Church of Augsburg Confession perpetuated its existence with the ambit of its supreme consistory and directory restrained to

7665-419: The interrogations, while speaking of "God the Son" and "God the Holy Spirit", are more elaborate but are not based on the Apostles' Creed, and the response in each case is: "I believe and trust in him." The Book of Common Prayer may also be used, which in its rite of baptism has the minister recite the Apostles' Creed in interrogative form. Asking the godparents or, in the case "of such as are of Riper Years",

7770-524: The late 15th century, divides article 5 in two but combines articles 11 and 12 into one, with the following attributions: The Apostles' Creed is used in its direct form or in interrogative forms by Western Christian communities in several of their liturgical rites, in particular those of baptism and the Eucharist . The Apostles' Creed, whose present form is similar to the baptismal creed used in Rome in

7875-870: The local church presbyteries, as well as some members coöpted by the church executive Directory. The consistorial members elect from their midst their executive, the consistorial council (Conseil consistorial) of four members. Consistorial decisions are presented to the French minister of the Interior , who may oppose them within a two-months period, and reported to the superior EPCAAL Supreme consistory (Consistoire supérieur). The 40 consistories form again part of seven ecclesiastical inspections (inspections ecclésiastiques), seated in Bouxwiller (Lower Alsace) , Brumath , Colmar (Upper Alsace), Dorlisheim , La Petite-Pierre , Strasbourg and Wissembourg in Alsace. The presidents of

7980-426: The majority and had their headquarters, while Calvinists were underrepresented there. Thus in Alsace-Lorraine the relative strength of the two Protestant churches was reversed, enforcing Lutheran self-confidence with intact institutions. Proponents of Calvinism and Judaism then took the endeavour to form new statewide umbrella organisations. But in 1872 Upper President Eduard von Moeller  [ de ] rejected

8085-572: The modern liturgy and catechesis of the Catholic Church , Lutheranism , Anglicanism , Presbyterianism , Moravianism , Methodism , and Congregational churches . It is shorter than the full Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed adopted in 381, but it is still explicitly trinitarian in structure, with sections affirming belief in God the Father , God the Son , and God the Holy Spirit . It does not address some Christological issues defined in

8190-410: The new Evangelical Lutheran Church of France unless the EPCAAL would waive its concordatary status, which also provides for the clergy being paid by the government and Lutheran pupils in public schools entitled to participate in religious instruction classes following EPCAAL guidelines. In the 21st century still about 50 Protestant churches in Alsace-Moselle are co-used for Catholic masses as provided by

8295-433: The number of simultaneous uses of Protestant church buildings decreased to 64 cases by 1914. By the 1911 constitution of Alsace-Lorraine the heads of the établissements publics du culte, of the 1898-formed Calvinist EPRAL, of the two Catholic dioceses, of the community of the three Israelite consistories and of the EPCAAL were ex officio members of the upper house of the parliament of Alsace-Lorraine  [ de ] ,

8400-585: The official church bodies but in spontaneously formed unofficial circles (such as the Pfarrkonvente, pastors' conventions). Maurer succeeded to rescue the personal belongings left behind by exiled pastors and professors from being seized by the occupants. When the occupation force offered Maurer to restitute the Catholic Strasbourg Cathedral for Lutheran service Maurer refused recognising this proposal as attempt to rule and divide

8505-475: The other afore-mentioned communities, enjoys government cofinancing of denominational schools, the faculty of Protestant theology at the Strasbourg University , which anyway had emerged from the former Lutheran academy of Strasbourg, is used by students to become theologians or pastors and its professors of theology are appointed with consent of the church. Therefore, the EPCAAL cannot merge with

8610-565: The pastors, closed the denominational schools, forbade religious instruction in public schools and confiscated the estates of religious associations and foundations. The status as établissement public du culte was repealed too and the church turned into a mere private association, similar to the legal situation of the churches in the Warthegau . With support by the Martin Luther Federation  [ de ] and aided by

8715-468: The poor. In 1529 the city government, supported by a large part of the population, decided that the Holy Mass should be abolished. Violent iconoclasm spread – notably among craftsmen – destroying many religious images. The Church of Strasbourg built up its liturgical, doctrinal, and ecclesiastical structures. The church authorities instituted a bimonthly meeting of the pastors and three representatives of

8820-529: The regional peculiarities in Alsace-Moselle, however, the plans never materialised. Since 1905 strict laïcité is the organising principle in most of France, whereas the previously recognised religious communities of the Calvinists, Catholics, Jews, and Lutherans in Alsace-Moselle preserved their concordatary status of the period between 1802 and 1904 including the Organic Articles. So EPCAAL, like

8925-566: The resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Since the 2002 edition, the Apostles' Creed is included in the Roman Missal as an alternative, with the indication, "Instead of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed , especially during Lent and Easter time, the baptismal Symbol of the Roman Church, known as the Apostles' Creed, may be used." Previously the Nicene Creed was the only profession of faith that

9030-623: The same decree. After France had declared war on North Germany and invaded its component state of Prussia in 1870 the latter's troops and allied forces had defeated France in 1871 ( Franco-German War ). By the Treaty of Frankfurt France then ceded Alsace and northeastern Lorraine, becoming the new Alsace-Lorraine . 286,000 French Lutherans and their chief bodies then happened to reside within Unified Germany . The 45,000 Lutherans living in remaining France (la France intérieure), soon growing in number to 80,000 through Lutheran Optants from

9135-631: The shortage of clergy by copying preaches then read by laymen from the pulpits (so-called Lesepredigten ) and pupils got religious instruction in newly formed Sunday school courses. Collegial bodies, like the Alsatian Lutheran consistories, were replaced by deaneries (Dekanate) supervised by one-man hierarchies following the Führerprinzip . In order to escape the supervision by the Gestapo, important items were not discussed anymore in

9240-402: The territory in the same month. The Landtag continued to govern, but revolutionary revolts were only to be subjected by the French troops. Between 1918 and 1920, the year when the Treaty of Versailles by which Germany ceded Alsace-Lorraine to France became effective, the autonomy continued before the French law was implemented in the reannexed territory. After much of debate and complaints over

9345-546: The territory of Belfort accounted for one third of the population, and lived mostly in ancient free cities such as Munster , Colmar in Alsace , and Wissembourg, but mainly in Strasbourg where 25,000 out of the 38,000 inhabitants were Protestants, mostly Lutherans. There were 160 Lutheran parishes and over 200 active pastors. The Protestant churches in France experienced a restructuring under Napoléon I. After he had concluded

9450-440: The third and fourth centuries, actually developed from questions addressed to those seeking baptism. The Catholic Church still today uses an interrogative form of it in the Rite of Baptism (for both children and adults). In the official English translation ( ICEL , 1974) the minister of baptism asks: Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth? Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who

9555-647: The three Israelite consistories in the area had been cut off from the Paris-based Central Consistory. Catholics formed the majority in Alsace-Lorraine but Lutherans, a religious minority, came second before the Calvinists, whereas in interior France this ranking among the Protestants was reversed. In centralist France Calvinists had a certain influence with their vivid and active community in Paris, in Strasbourg Lutherans formed

9660-478: The time being. With Louis-Napoléon's takeover the decree of 26 March 1852 streamlined and further centralised the governing body of the church, renaming the General Consistory as Supreme Consistory. Accounting for the population growth and migration (mostly labour migration) new congregations emerged in the former Lutheran Diaspora; therefore the number of Lutheran consistories was increased to 40 by

9765-426: The twelve articles of the creed. The ecclesiastical use of Latin symbolum for ' creed ' —in the sense of "a distinctive mark of Christians", from the sense of Greek σύμβολον , ' a sign or token used for identification ' —first occurs around the middle of the 3rd century, in the correspondence of St. Cyprian and St. Firmilian , the latter in particular speaking of the trinitarian formula as

9870-402: The uneducated believers in many places and parishes in our diocese by pastors and preachers and others, who were not nominated by us or our vicars general, causing not only aberrations, riots, murder and dangerous movements among the communities .... We urge you to hold Mass without any improprieties, with seclusion, seriousness, respect, dignity and prudence, with as much devotion as possible, in

9975-484: The uniformity by which existing law and practice in Alsace-Lorraine would be levelled to French standards, a compromise was found. All French law, never abolished in Alsace-Lorraine, but in France, such as the 1801 concordat and the Organic Articles done away with by the French Law on separating Religion and state in 1905 , would continue in Alsace and the Moselle department. Other laws, also newer regulations enacted by

10080-470: The unity of the Church, but failed in reconciling Luther and Zwingli , or bringing Catholics and Protestants to agree at least on some points. At his urging, the city of Strasbourg granted asylum to the persecuted anabaptists . By 1525 the Reformation was gradually spreading not only into the countryside possessions of Strasbourg, but also into territories of other overlords. Although most capitular canons in

10185-598: Was already in written form by the late 2nd century (c. 180). The earliest known formula is found within Testamentum in Galilaea D[ominus]. N[oster]. I[esu]. Christi written between 150 and 180. This formula states: "[I believe] in the Father almighty, – and in Jesus Christ, our Savior; – and in the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, in the holy Church, and in the remission of sins." As can be seen, it lacks

10290-513: Was born of the Virgin Mary, was crucified, died, and was buried, rose from the dead, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father? Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting? To each question, the catechumen, or, in the case of an infant, the parents and sponsor(s) (godparent(s)) in his or her place, answers "I do." Then

10395-484: Was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead? Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints,

10500-592: Was consecrated as bishop. George sought to improvide discipline among the clergy in his diocese and forbade the study of the writings of Martin Luther . However, he could not prevent his suffragan bishop Engelbrecht from converting to the new faith. On 28 April 1523, he published his most memorable letter to his clergy, which states: The suspect teachings of Luther, which oppose the Holy Catholic Church and our ancient traditions, we must mention to our great distress, have been sprinkled and sown among

10605-511: Was expropriated and Prince-Bishop Franz Egon of Fürstenberg reconsecrated it as Catholic Cathedral on 30 September 1681. In 1684 Louis XIV decreed that all Lutheran and Reformed congregations have to leave the quires of their church buildings for celebrating Holy Masses if there was no Catholic church at the place but at least seven Roman Catholic families. Thus hundreds of church buildings owned by Protestant congregations became de facto simultaneums . In 1800 220,000 Lutherans in Alsace and

10710-463: Was in the De singulis libris canonicis scarapsus ( ' Excerpt from Individual Canonical Books ' ) of St. Pirminius ( Migne , Patrologia Latina 89, 1029 ff.), written between 710 and 714. Bettenson and Maunder state that it is first from Dicta Abbatis Pirminii de singulis libris canonicis scarapsus ( idem quod excarpsus , excerpt), c. 750. The text of what is now known as the Apostles' Creed

10815-415: Was most likely developed in southern Gaul around the midpoint of the 5th century. A creed that is virtually identical to the current one is recorded by Faustus of Riez . It is possible that Faustus had the identical text, as the original text written by Faustus cannot be reconstructed with certainty. A version that is identical to the current one with the single exception of infera in place of inferos

10920-529: Was not too strict. Various religious groups were tolerated within the parishes until 1534, when the Magistrate, for fear of dissent, put an end to the toleration. A decree of that year emphasised the importance of the study of the Bible and of inner piety. The educational level of the pastors enabled the development of a catechism and the improvement of the quality of instruction given to future pastors. In 1538

11025-478: Was the state church in the Free Imperial City of Strasbourg, administered by the city government (Magistrate). The city government passed laws on preaching and appropriated the Strasbourg Cathedral for the Lutheran state church in 1524. It granted the Lutheran church the right to induct pastors in the seven parishes in the town and took the responsibility, normally attributed to deacons, of supporting

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