| Union of Christian Baptist Churches in Romania | |
|---|---|
| Uniunea Bisericilor Creștin Baptiste din România | |
| Type | Western Christianity |
| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Evangelical |
| Scripture | Bible |
| Theology | Baptist (bothArminian andCalvinist) |
| Polity | Congregationalist |
| President | Sorin Bădrăgan |
| Regional Communities | 14 |
| Associations | |
| Region | Romania |
| Language | Romanian,Hungarian |
| Headquarters | Str. Dâmbovița nr. 9-11,Sector 6,Bucharest |
| Origin | 1920 Bucharest |
| Recognition | 1948 (by the state) |
| Absorbed | Hungarian Baptist Union of Romania (1922) |
| Congregations | 1,223 |
| Members | 87,468 |
| Pastors | 700 |
| Secondary schools | 8 |
| Tertiary institutions | Emanuel University |
| Seminaries | Baptist Theological Institute |
| Other name | Baptist Union of Romania |
| Publications | Creștinul-azi |
| Official website | uniuneabaptista |
TheUnion of Christian Baptist Churches in Romania (Romanian:Uniunea Bisericilor Creștin Baptiste din România) is aBaptistChristian denomination inRomania. It is affiliated with theRomanian Evangelical Alliance, theEuropean Baptist Federation and theBaptist World Alliance. The headquarters is inBucharest.
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The first modern-era Baptists in Romania were of German extraction.Karl Scharschmidt came to what is nowsouthern Romania fromHungary in 1856 and settled inBucharest.[1][2] Scharschmidt, a carpenter by trade, had been baptized byJohann Gerhard Oncken inHamburg in 1845. By 1863 enough converts had been made to form a church, and Oncken sentAugust Liebig to serve them as pastor. This church, the oldest Baptist church in Romania, in still in existence and meets on Popa Rusu Street (Bethany Baptist Church). Russian Baptist immigrants, mostly from the southern Ukraine, came toDobruja around 1862 and founded a church inCataloi in 1869. Hungarian Baptists formed a church inTransylvania in 1875.
Baptist witnesses did not enterOld Romania until the 20th century, andOrthodox opposition was strong. Nevertheless, a church was organized in Jegalia in 1909. An ethnic Romanian church was formed in Bucharest in 1912 by Constantin Adorian (1882–1954), a Romanian who had previously joined the German Baptist church in Bucharest. Adorian led in forming the Baptist Union of Romania in 1920.[3] He met in June 1919 with Radu Tașcă, Vasile Berbecar, Teodor Sida and other baptist pastors fromCrișana inButeni to discuss the formation of a "Union of Romanian Baptist Communities". The organization was formally created in February 1920, when, after gaining approval from the authorities, a congress was held in the same location with representatives from baptist churches from all around the country.[4]
In 1921, it founded the Bucharest Baptist Theological Institute, which would later become the Faculty of Baptist Theology, affiliated to theUniversity of Bucharest.[5]
In 1930, the Union had 45,000 members.[6] Before 1944, the legal status of evangelical groups such as the Baptists was not well-defined. Due toWorld War II and the military dictatorship ofGeneral Antonescu, laws were passed in 1942 and 1943 dissolving all religious associations in Romania. As a consequence, Baptists could not meet, worship or evangelize. On August 31, 1944, these laws were abrogated, and the Baptists (and others) could once again engage in religious activity legally. In 1948 Baptists were officially recognized by the state as a legalcult[a].
According to a census published by the association in 2025, it claimed 1,223 churches and 87,468 members.[7] The members of theConvention of the Hungarian Baptist Churches of Romania, a subgroup of the national Baptist Union, were counted separately and are 8,321 in 253 churches,[8] making for a total of 92,174 members and 1,900 churches.
Historically, the baptist churches in Romania were very much influenced bycalvinism. This was no surprise given the fact that the church had German roots. According to the Romanianhistoriographer, Alexa Popovici, early baptists had a "Calvinist inclination". There is evidence to suggest that, at some point, calvinistsoteriology, includingdouble predestination, was preached in some congregations inTransylvania. Theliberal tendencies of theReformed Church made some Hungarians switch to the baptist tradition which also contributed to the predominant calvinist view among Romanian baptists.[9] However the church would experience a shift towardsarminianism during theinterwar period due to the founding of a formalseminary in collaboration with theSouthern Baptist Convention and the theological influences ofEdgar Young Mullins.[10] The arminian position will remain the predominant view among Romanian baptists for much of thecommunist period. After the1989 Revolution, the calvinist position would reemerge and gain popularity once again, although it would still remain a minority view.[11]
Theseparation of church and state is a core doctrine in baptist tradition.[12]
Out of the 19 officially recogniseddenominations in Romania, the Baptist Union is one of the only three which do not accept subsidies from thegovernment for the salaries of itsministers, believing that it is the deliberate duty of every believer to financially support the activities of hischurch.[13][14] However, the Union accepts subsidies from the local authorities for the construction or reparation of its churches when their funds are insufficient.[15] The church also runs its ownpension fund for its retired pastors.[12]
The Union has 8 theological high schools and 2 post-secondary non-tertiary educational institutions,[16] as well as 2tertiary institutions: The Baptist Theological Institute inBucharest (accredited by theUniversity of Bucharest)[17][18] and theEmanuel University inOradea,Bihor.[19]
| State-recognised |
|  |
|---|---|---|
| Semi-recognised (as a religious association, but not adenomination) | ||
| Not state-recognised | ||
| Others | ||
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