History



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            * A brief history of the Protestant Theological Faculty of Charles University
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            The Protestant Theological Faculty (originally known as the Hus Czechoslovak Protestant Th

            Faculty) was founded in Prague on 28 April 1919. Before the First World War, there had bee
            restrictions on Protestants in the Czech lands (which were part of Catholic Austria at the
            candidates for the ministry had to go to Vienna to study. With the establishment of the ne

            state after the War came full religious freedom. Reformed and Lutheran Protestants united 
            Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, and one of its first actions was to establish a Facu
            Theology to train its theology students and those from other churches. In the first year o

            the Faculty had 14 students, but this soon grew to 78 in 1923 and 160 in 1929. Women start
            the Faculty in 1922; their number increased considerably after the Synod of the Evangelica

            Brethren decided to ordain women to the ministry in 1953. During the German occupation the
            closed down, along with most other institutes of higher education, but it resumed its acti
            Second World War was over. In 1949-50 there were 230 students. In 1950 the Communist state

            Faculty should be divided into two schools: the Hus Theological Faculty for students from 
            Hussite Church, and the Comenius Protestant Theological Faculty for students from the Evan
            of Czech Brethren and the smaller churches. Under the Communists the Comenius Faculty expe

            difficulties and the number of students dropped to below 100. For most of the 1950s and 19
            was the leading Czech Protestant theologian Josef Lukl Hromádka. After the fall of the Com
            in 1989, new opportunities opened up for the Comenius Faculty. There was a tremendous incr

            number of students. In 1990 the Comenius Faculty was incorporated into Charles University 
            Protestant Theological Faculty. In 1995 it moved to larger premises on its present site. I
            Faculty had around 500 students and some 25 teaching staff.