ALLEANZA. – Under this name are known several Protestant organizations, the principal ones being:
1) ALLEANZA EVANGELICA MONDIALE (World's Evangelical Alliance). – In 1844 Gregory XVI, with the encyclical Inter praecipuas of 5 May, condemned the Christian A. that had been founded in the United States. Two years later, in 1846, the World Evangelical A. was established in London. Eight hundred delegates from various sects and many countries came together there. The “Doctrinal Basis,” consisting of 9 articles or points, was immediately approved; these were not, however, regarded as an obligatory “creed,” but as the essential doctrines of Christians wishing to belong to the A. Among the aforementioned points, particular notice should be taken of the 2nd: the right and duty of private examination in the interpretation of Holy Scripture; and the 6th: the justification of the sinner by faith alone. It is therefore a purely Protestant institution. The purpose of the A., repeated on the cover of each issue of the journal The Evangelical Christendom, which is its official organ, is that “English Christians and those of other nations should realize within themselves and manifest to others the living and essential union of all believers in the school of Christ.” The A. professes to work to foster cooperation and unity, defend religious liberty, assist persecuted Christians, promote union in prayer, preserve evangelical truth and love, etc.; from its writings and its history of almost a century, it is clear that it has always opposed every attempt at union with Catholics; it has never defended their religious liberty when they were persecuted, for example during the German Kulturkampf, by Calles in Mexico, and by the revolutionaries in Spain; and never, in its pamphlets and writings, has it shown evangelical love toward Catholics, but rather an aversion scarcely distinguishable from hatred.
The A. found a favorable response among the sects of nearly all countries, including those of Italy, whose journals and newspapers publish the themes for the week of prayer every year. In the individual nations, the sects united to the A. have a national committee, but the principal committee has always been that of London. Every four or five years general meetings are held, at which some attack against the Catholic Church is never lacking. The principal elements of the A., besides the general congresses, are the week of prayer and the press. During the week of prayer, from 7 to 14 January, more general subjects are ordinarily proposed. The publications, both regular and occasional, are
generally opposed to the Catholic Church, with a hostility reminiscent of that of the worst periods of the religious controversies of the sixteenth century.
2) ALLEANZA PRESBITERIANA O ALLEANZA DELLE CHIESE RIFORMATE CHE SI REGGONO CON IL SISTEMA PRESBITERIANO (Alliance of Reformed Churches through the World holding the Presbyterian System). – Presbyterianism is not synonymous with Calvinism. The latter concerns the doctrines of Calvin, the former the ecclesiastical system or regime established by him, according to which the Church must be governed by elders (presbyters), both lay and ecclesiastical. There are Presbyterian churches that do not profess all Calvinist doctrines.
The foundation of the World Evangelical A. aroused among Presbyterians the idea of establishing an a. among themselves which, without undermining the independence of the individual Reformed churches, might serve as a bond for mutual assistance and for handling common affairs concerning missions, etc. The Presbyterian A. was founded in 1875.
The A. is formed not by individuals but by Churches (synods or consistories), with a number of delegates proportionate to the number of their communities or congregations. The delegates meet every four years in a kind of council, which examines all affairs of common interest but has no authority to impose its decisions or recommendations. At these gatherings, attacks against the Catholic Church are sometimes launched; but truths are also heard that cannot fail to give the congress members food for thought, as happened at the 1913 congress in Belfast, at which one of the delegates contrasted the unity of the Catholic Church with the division of the Protestants, and applied to the latter Coleridge’s saying: “I belong to that holy and infallible Church of which I am now the only member.” Among the 108 allied churches is also the Waldensian Church.
3) ALLEANZA BATTISTA MONDIALE (Baptist World Alliance). – It was founded in London in 1905, with the purpose of promoting a spirit of cooperation and fellowship among all the Baptist churches scattered throughout the world. Given the congregational system of the Baptists, according to which the individual Churches do not gather into synods, consistories, etc., but each remains completely isolated and independent, it was not possible for the general board of the A. to bring together representatives of the individual churches, since there are approximately 70,000 of them throughout the world and more than fifty in Italy alone. For this reason, the general board or council consists of only 22 members, 7 of them from the United States, 5 English, 2 Canadian, and another 8 representing the rest of the Baptist world.
The independence of the individual Churches and the division of the Baptists themselves into approximately 20 different sects have contributed to the silence surrounding this A. in their yearbooks or manuals. Except for a few manuals, such as the English one of 1912, in which all the articles and clauses of the A. are found, the others contain scarcely more than a very brief reference, with the names of the principal officers and a faithful citation of the annual con-
tribution. The last general congress of the World Baptist A., held in Berlin in 1934, was notable for the number of participants (said to have been 10,000) and for the circumstances in which it was held.
In imitation of the Baptists and Presbyterians, some of the principal sects have also formed their a. under various names. The Lutherans have their World Lutheran Convention; the Methodists, the Methodist Ecumenical Conference; etc.
4. WORLD ALLIANCE FOR PROMOTING INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP THROUGH THE CHURCHES (World Alliance for Promoting International Friendship through the Churches)
The Italian Committee of this A. recounts its history as follows (1930): “Its first origins go back approximately 25 years, that is, to the merging of two movements that had simultaneously appeared in the United States and Europe from 1905 to 1907, among representatives of the various Churches gathered in solemn congresses in Nuova York and London. A federation or union of the various divisions of Christendom was envisioned, with a view to a common undertaking; and among all such undertakings, that of placing religious forces at the service of international peace appeared the most important and urgent.” Its purpose, therefore, is to create among peoples a state of mind that will inspire and support governments in their decisions for the maintenance of peace and the definitive abolition of war. The first great international conference was convened at Constance on 2 July 1914, precisely when the European war was breaking out. After the war, further conferences were held every three years. Although the Catholic Church praises the purpose for which the A. prays and causes others to pray, it officially keeps apart. It cannot regard itself as a division of Christendom; moreover, the committees—including the Italian one—frequently include former priests; nor does it believe that the methods adopted by the A. lead to the desired end.The A. has national committees reporting to a central committee, which gathers and communicates information, coordinating the work, and is based in Geneva; the Official Yearbook of the Church of England called it, without qualification, the spiritual counterpart of the “League of Nations.” The Italian committee also introduced into Italy the Protestant youth organization known as the “Knights of Peace.” The A. has been unable to achieve its purpose, despite its excellent organization, its great activity in giving and promoting conferences, and its publication of numerous pamphlets and books.