The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren (ECCB) has maintained an unbroken continuity since 1781. It was then, following the issuance of the Edict of Tolerance, that the remaining Protestants of the Church of Both Kinds (Utraquists) and the Czech Brethren emerged from the illegality in which they had preserved their faith during 160 years of Counter-Reformation. They officially registered with one of the two permitted confessions: either the Helvetic (Reformed) or the Augsburg (Lutheran). Although these Protestants traced their origins back to the times of Jan Hus and the Czech Reformation—which had united its two streams in 1575 under the Bohemian Confession and later under a joint consistory—they were not permitted to express this heritage in the church’s name at that time.
This finally changed in 1918 with the unification of both branches of Protestant congregations in Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia. By its current name, the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, the church programmatically indicates its continuity with both the First (Bohemian) and the Second (World) Reformations. It also signifies that it recognizes the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as attested in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as its rule of faith and life.
The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren strives to remain faithful to the Lord of the church and the world, seeking to follow Christ even in the midst of the postmodern world. For various areas of its activities, the Synodal Council (the church’s central administrative body) establishes advisory departments (theological, liturgical, church music, clergy education, legal and organizational, ecumenical, social and international affairs, historical studies and archives, Christian education for children, youth department, advisory department for ministry to people with disabilities, lay education, evangelism, Christian service, construction, and economic). Ministers and laity work in these departments voluntarily alongside members of the Synodal Council and secretaries of the Central Church Office. Similarly, the Seniorates (administrative districts) have their own advisory departments.
These church-wide and Seniorate advisory bodies participate significantly in the tasks and life of the church, overseeing the continuous education of church members, and preparing and organizing meetings, courses, camps, and volunteer workdays. Some activities are delegated to independent church institutions, such as the Jerome Union (Jeronýmova jednota), which raises funds for the maintenance of church buildings; the Evangelical Academy, which coordinates seven schools for the education of social workers, catechists, musicians, etc.; and Diaconia, which has developed social care services in 28 independent centers caring for the elderly, youth, and adults with various types and degrees of disabilities.
The ECCB bases its financial management on voluntary sacrificial giving. Its primary sources of income are collections during assemblies, donations, and annual contributions from members collected in congregations (salár), which secure its activities. Clergy salaries are currently still dependent on state subsidies. Establishing a system of economic self-sufficiency is one of the church's urgent tasks. To transition to a system of self-financing with indirect state subsidies (a goal the ECCB has been pursuing in negotiations with the state administration for 10 years), the 28th Synod decided to create a so-called Personnel Fund (PF). Each occupied congregation contributes an annual amount to this fund, which is intended to increase gradually until it covers a substantial part of the pastor's annual salary. Furthermore, a solidarity collection is held to assist congregations that are in financial distress and cannot pay the full amount into the PF.
Ministers in ECCB congregations are predominantly ordained pastors. Their education is provided by the Protestant Theological Faculty (ETF), founded in 1919 and incorporated into Charles University (UK) in 1990. The vast majority of the faculty teachers are members of the ECCB. Students are admitted according to rules set by the school and belong to various churches (or are without denomination). Those expecting to pursue a vocation in the ECCB ministry can be enrolled in the so-called "List of Theology Students" (upon the recommendation of their congregation and Seniorate Committee, and after an interview with the Synodal Council). Twice during their studies, the church enables them to undertake internships in congregations, and they receive a church scholarship.
After graduating from the ETF UK, future ministers must complete a one-year Vicariate. Under the guidance of a mentor—an experienced pastor—they become familiar with congregational practice. The Vicariate is supplemented by four training sessions, each focusing on a central theme (catechetics, homiletics, pastoral care). The Vicariate concludes with a written thesis and an interview before a commission; successful candidates then receive a decree of eligibility for election as a pastor.
The ECCB has commissioned several of its ministers for special pastoral services and sent them to work in the media (Czech Radio and Czech Television), in correctional facilities, and in the military.
The ECCB is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (since 1875), the World Council of Churches (since 1948), the Conference of European Churches (since 1957), the Leuenberg Agreement (CPCE), and the Lutheran World Federation. In the Czech Republic, the ECCB is one of the founding members of the Ecumenical Council of Churches in the CR and strives for closer cooperation among Protestant churches. It has agreements on mutual ministry with Slovak and Silesian Lutherans and the Czechoslovak Hussite Church, and has signed a document on the mutual recognition of baptism with the Roman Catholic Church. Even during the totalitarian era, the ECCB was not abandoned by sister Protestant churches in Europe. Contacts have been renewed with Czech Protestant congregations in Romania, Yugoslavia, and Zelów (Poland), and new connections have been established with the Czech Protestant congregation in Bohemka, Ukraine.
The ECCB is governed by Presbyterian-Synodal principles, similar to most Protestant churches in the world. The basic unit is the local congregation (farní sbor), which often includes several preaching stations. The congregation calls its minister through an election and elects proven brothers and sisters from its midst as Presbyters (Elders), who, together with the minister, administer the congregation as the Session of Elders (staršovstvo).
The 258 congregations are divided into 13 Seniorates, which are administered by Seniorate Committees (consisting of four or six members), elected at the assembly of the Seniorate (Convent) by representatives of all congregations in the Seniorate. Deputies elected by the Seniorate Convents (in equal numbers of clergy and Presbyters), Seniors and Seniorate Curators, members of the Synodal Council, and representatives of the Protestant Theological Faculty form the highest legislative and governing assembly—the Synod. The Synod decides on church matters through its resolutions (requiring a two-thirds majority for fundamental issues) and elects the highest six-member administrative body—the Synodal Council—based in Prague. To fulfill its tasks, the Synodal Council establishes the Central Church Office, managed by a Leading Secretary confirmed by the Synod.
All administrative bodies are elected for a term of 6 years, and in all of them (except for the congregational Session of Elders), there is parity representation of clergy and Presbyters (laity). Representatives at all three levels always consist of one theologian and one layperson: in the congregation, it is the Pastor and the Curator; in the Seniorate, the Senior (the seat of the Seniorate is always in the congregation where the elected Senior is a pastor) and the Seniorate Curator; and for the whole church, the Synodal Senior and the Synodal Curator. The office of Presbyter is honorary and unpaid. The functions performed by ministers in the Seniorate Committee and the Synodal Council are in addition to their congregational duties. Only the Synodal Senior and the clergy secretaries of the office (as well as its lay employees) are in full-time church-wide service, while the Synodal Curator and their deputies serve on a part-time basis.
The ECCB publishes the Protestant magazine Český bratr (Czech Brother - a tri-weekly), a Collection of Sermons for Lay Readers, the youth magazine Bratrstvo (Brotherhood), Catechetical Aids, and other handbooks intended primarily for education and training.