December 1, 2003

Dear Family and Friends,

I would like to tell you about one of our partner church’s congregations here in Prague and the Czech Reformer after whom that congregation’s new building is to be named. But first, some background.

The congregation in the Sporilov district of Prague was established more than fifty years ago. Under the adverse political circumstances of the early 1950s, members of this congregation saved money for a building and constructed it with their own hands. In fact, the money they were saving was lost twice, through communist-era “currency reform.”

The intervening years have seen many changes—certainly political changes, but other changes too. Since then, both the population and the territory encompassed by this congregation have multiplied many times. This is because of the development of a huge housing project of panel-construction apartment buildings—the “Southern City” section of Prague. Today, the population of the area is about 100,000. The size of the church building, built in the 1950s, was far too small for the current congregation, and especially for its projects of reaching out to and serving the surrounding community. With this in mind—and with an awareness that foundation problems were limiting the usable life of its old building—the church decided to build right in the middle of the new complex of apartment buildings.

Milic of Kromeriz, also referred to as the father of the Reformation, was born in the town of Kromeriz in Moravia (today, the Czech Republic) in 1305 and died in Avignon, France, in 1374. He was educated in Prague and ordained around 1350.

He devoted himself to preaching church reform, asceticism, and ecclesiastic and secular poverty. To lend emphasis to his words, Milic led a fully ascetic life. He emphasized the Scriptures as the rule for life, preaching in Czech and German rather than the traditional Latin. His use of the language of the people and his reforming zeal soon gained him wide popularity among the laity.

He lacked neither courage nor convictions, and in 1357 traveled to Rome, where he preached penance and moral conversion before the papal court. For his efforts, he was imprisoned by the Inquisition but later released by Pope Urban V. Afterward, he returned to Prague.

Milic wanted to be a good, moral priest, and he longed for the church to have such priests. His following consisted of his students and women, repentant prostitutes, whom he gathered at two separate places in the Old Town of Prague. One of these gathering places was called the “New Jerusalem.” He was deeply involved in the society of his day, and he realized his vision of a complete congregation, where the underprivileged are taken care of.

The vision of Milic is alive today, in a church that, in multiple ways, speaks the language of the surrounding community and serves those in need. That vision is seen in its cooperation with (and, at this point, its worshiping in the building of) the shelter house and social-service agency that is its neighbor and partner, the Walking Together Center. It is also seen in its commitment to other organizations, like the Scouts, and in its desire to serve the high-rise neighborhood that surrounds it.

Construction of the church building has progressed rapidly, but much remains to be done. In order to finish the building, the church needs help with the construction costs. Your help with this would be greatly appreciated. Checks may be sent to: Central Receiving Service, Section 300, Louisville, KY 40289. Write the title (Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, New Church Building and Partnership with Social Service Agency) and the ECO number (ECO # 051738) on the subject line of the check and put it on your cover letter, too. Send a copy of the cover letter to Worldwide Ministries Division’s Office for the Middle East and Europe at 100 Witherspoon St. Louisville, KY 40202-1396. For more information, contact me at John Michael or at my other email address (or by regular mail) or call Mark McCabe at (888) 728-7228 x5324. Or, click here to give online.

Thank you for considering this. May you have a blessed Christmas.

John & Joyce

The 2004 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 337