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1. Europe 1.1. Seventeenth Century The Thirty Years’ War (1618–48), which ultimately became a struggle for hegemony in Europe on German soil, also formed the apogee of the period of confessionalism (Denomination 4) and its many crises. The Peace of Westphalia (1648) at once gave modern Europe its basic law (F. Dickmann) and the new era a new outlook. A period of greater stability was created, resting on greater rationality in both foreign and domestic affairs and resulting in more power for absolute …

1. Early Church Tendencies 1.1. Two Fundamental Convictions Two fundamental convictions concerning the nature of the church, which are of great significance for the later development of church government, become evident in the NT writings. 1.1.1. The church has its origin in God’s actions in Jesus Christ. It is ekklēsia, or the people of the end time chosen and sanctified by God, to whom belongs the sphere of the sacred. Because he alone exercises his dominion over the church through the Holy Spirit, the church does not stand at the disposal of any human control or power (1 Cor. 3:16–17). Th…

1. Protestant and Roman Cathlic Church membership and adherence are related to the theological and institutional understanding of the church. Church membership has both spiritual and legal dimensions. 1.1. ¶ On the Protestant view, the church is the communion of saints instituted by the Holy Spirit. Church membership, then, is essentially being part of the communion of saints. It begins with the work of the Holy Spirit, who brings one into this fellowship through the preaching of the gospel. Baptism is incorporation into the…