Italian Protestant Churches

ITALIAN PROTESTANT CHURCHES. - The so-called Italian Protestant Churches, some of which continued their feeble existence down to our own days, are the following:

1) The "Independent Church" or "Christian Evangelical Church" (1854-65), founded by Luigi de Sanctis (1808-69) and by Bonaventura Mazzarella (1818-89) when both separated from the Waldensians. Owing to internal dissensions, and because not a few of the followers of the new Church were attracted by Plymouth Brethrenism, introduced into Italy by P. Guicciardini (v.), de Sanctis returned to Waldensianism, and Mazzarella, occupied with public and private affairs, lost interest in it. Deprived of their leaders, 20 independent Congregations joined Gavazzi (v.) and, with the help of various foreign Protestants, at the Congress of Bologna in 1865 formed a new Church, namely: 2) The "Italian Free Church" (1865-89), also called the "Free Christian Church", which lasted until the death of Gavazzi (1889), lived on foreign aid, bestowed chiefly by the Scottish Presbyterian MacDougall, and tried in vain to unite with the Waldensians. 3) "Italian Evangelical Church" (1889-1905). On the death of Gavazzi, the Free Church assumed a name more in keeping with the other Protestant sects and called itself the "Italian Evangelical Church", and was erected into a moral body by royal decree of 2 July 1891. But this too went to pieces through the inexperience and errors of its head Luigi Fera, and its property was absorbed by the Methodist missions, American and English, so that it ceased to be a moral body (1905). A small handful of faithful who did not wish to become Methodists constituted themselves as a simple association, which continued (1905-29) under the same name and under the direction of Notarbartolo, helped by the "Italian Section in behalf of the Evangelical Church of Italy", which formed part of an American Protestant society. Finally, with the exception of a few who continued grouped under the same name, a new organization was formed in 1929: 4) The "National Protestant-Presbyterian Church of Italy". The followers of this sect, which has about twenty stations, say that they represent the genuine Italian Protestant element as against the Italian Protestants affiliated with foreign sects.

To these few Churches, deriving one from another and issuing in the last-mentioned one, it is fitting to add, at least as a historical notice, certain others, such as the "Italian Catholic Church" (v. CAMPELLO); the "Liberal Catholic Church", which in 1932 had a secretariat in Milan; the "Free Catholic Church", which it was sought to found after the publication of the encyclical Fascendi, and the "Italian National Catholic Church", devoid of any importance, of which Luigi Prota-Giurleo was founder and vicar general.

Camillo Crivelli