Church of the Palatinate
Domplatz 5
67346 Speyer Germany (Europe) Telephone: +49 6232 667-0 Fax: +49 6232 667-480 Email: landeskirchenrat@evkirchepfalz.de Address-No.: 12120 / 6211
Information in the internet:
URL: http://www.evpfalz.de Languages of the website: German, English (http://www.zentralarchiv-speyer.de)
The Church of the Palatinate owes its existence to both Luth (Wittenberg) and Ref (Zurich, Geneva, and Strasbourg) influence. In the wake of the Counter- Reformation the RCath Church had regained strength. In order to consolidate the Reformation in his area and to end the controversies between strict and moderate Luth, as well as the Ref, the prince elector, Frederick III, introduced the Palatinate church order whose main feature is the well-known Heidelberg Catechism. The efforts to achieve a rapprochement among Prot was pursued after the Thirty Years War. The changing confessional allegiance of the princes in the 16th and 18th centuries led to bitter controversies as well as disenchantment with religion. Only the French Revolution, which had gained considerable influence in the Palatinate, opened the door to a new era. In 1818 the Prot churches united to form the Evangelical Church of the Palatinate. The project of union was put to a vote. While 40,167 family heads voted for the union, only 539 voted against it. In order to avoid confessional disputes, the Church did not adopt any particular confessions but declared Holy Scripture to be the only basis for the teaching of the church.
The Church of the Palatinate owes its existence to both Luth (Wittenberg) and Ref (Zurich, Geneva, and Strasbourg) influence. In the wake of the Counter- Reformation the RCath Church had regained strength. In order to consolidate the Reformation in his area and to end the controversies between strict and moderate Luth, as well as the Ref, the prince elector, Frederick III, introduced the Palatinate church order whose main feature is the well-known Heidelberg Catechism. The efforts to achieve a rapprochement among Prot was pursued after the Thirty Years War. The changing confessional allegiance of the princes in the 16th and 18th centuries led to bitter controversies as well as disenchantment with religion. Only the French Revolution, which had gained considerable influence in the Palatinate, opened the door to a new era. In 1818 the Prot churches united to form the Evangelical Church of the Palatinate. The project of union was put to a vote. While 40,167 family heads voted for the union, only 539 voted against it. In order to avoid confessional disputes, the Church did not adopt any particular confessions but declared Holy Scripture to be the only basis for the teaching of the church. 