Foundation and Expansion

From the beginning, all the life of The Christian Community has been built upon the initiative of the individual human being, who wants to put his/her abilities and goals into this religious community.

Like every evolving living being, Christianity is also subject to transformation. It must constantly wrestle to more and more become an expression of the being whose name it bears.

Thus every renewal in this field is dependent on the ability to receive contemporary forms out of the being of Christ for the religious life.

In this respect, The Christian Community owes its foundation to the expansion of modern science through 'Spiritual Science' which arose as Anthroposophy at the beginning of the 20th century.

The encounter with Anthroposophy and its founder Rudolf Steiner, in 1920, inspired firstly students, and then a number of other individuals, to ask the question of a possible religious renewal, which was strongly living in their hearts after the First World War.

Rudolf Steiner had already given many indications for renewal in different realms of life, out of which arose the Waldorf (Stei- ner) Schools, Bio-Dynamic Agriculture, Anthroposophical Cu- rative Education, a new art of movement called Eurythmy and indications for a threefold social order, Anthroposophical Medi- cine and much more.

In several courses and seminars, Rudolf Steiner responded to the searching of those looking for a renewal of christian religi- ous life.

As a mediator to the divine-spiritual world, he opened up the possibility that finally, in September 1922, led to the foundation of The Christian Community in the first Goetheanum in Dor- nach, which still existed at that time.

The first Act of Consecration of Man was celebrated on the 16 September of that year. In the following days, all 45 individuals gathered for this founding event were ordained as priests.

Among them were Dr. Friedrich Rittelmeyer and Lic. Emil Bock as two significant and decisive personalities. Three women also belonged to the circle of the first priests. For the first time in Christian history priesthood was also entrusted to women.

Since then, the collaboration between male and female priests has been reflected in the life of The Christian Community as a blessing. All one-sidedness can be complimented and overco- me.

From the founding of The Christian Community, it has been an independent institution, (with no bonds to other existing chur- ches or their associated organisations), carrying the Christian impulse into the future out of the spirit of reformation.

The first congregations in Switzerland were founded in 1925 three years after the foundation of numerous congregations in Germany.