The Evangelical Movement in Austria from 1945 to the Present

Abstract

This essay examines the development of the Evangelical Movement in Austria from 1945 to the present. The history of the Evangelical Movement can be divided into four phases: The beginnings (1945-1961), which can be characterized above all by missionary work among ethnic German refugees of the World War II, a second phase from 1961-1981, which can be described as an internationalization of the Evangelical Movement especially through the work of North American missionaries. During this time new ways of evangelism were sought and also church planting projects were started. A third phase is characterized by a growing confessionalization and institutionalization of the Evangelical Movement. While free church congregation were increasingly taking on denominational contours, the evangelical movement as a whole began to increasingly establish its own institutions. The last phase since 1998 is characterized by the Evangelical Movement breaking out of isolation towards social and political acceptance.