|
The beginnings of the history of Christianity in Slovakia can most probably be traced back to the period following the collapse of the Avar Empire at the end of the 8th century. Slavic principalities emerged in the territories that had up to that time been under Avar control, and in time their rulers were ready to accept Christianity. The first Christian church erected in Slavic lands seems to have been the one consecrated for a local ruler named Pribina in Nitra around 830. The second half of the 9th century witnessed the first flourishing of Christian culture in the territories what now form Slovakia when the "Apostles of the Slavs", Cyril and Methodius were active in "Great" Moravia, an early medieval Slavic empire in Central Europe. They translated sacred and liturgical texts, and introduced Old Church Slavonic into the liturgy. Although their disciples were expelled from Moravia after 885, the "Slavic liturgy" had an enduring effect on the Slavic peoples. In the course of the 11th century, the plains north of the river Danube and the territories covered by the Western Carpathian Mountains were gradually incorporated into the multiethnic medieval Kingdom of Hungary. Here three Roman Catholic dioceses, many monasteries and other ecclesiastic institutions were established in the Middle Ages. In this period the Church had many responsibilities that are now assumed by state authorities (for instance, it administered schools and social institutions, and took part in royal administration), thus it was richly endowed with landed properties and other sources of income. Among the early movements for Church Reform, the presence of Waldensians can be detected in the 14th century. Although significant parts of Slovakia were dominated by Czech Hussite soldiers in the middle of the 15th century, their behaviour (they were engaged mainly in plundering) seems to have not won them many supporters. The ideas of the 16th-century Reformation first spread among the German-speaking inhabitants of the towns, but in the middle of the century many Slovaks also embraced the Lutheran version of Protestantism. In contrast with them, a significant part of the local Hungarians became adherent to the more radical theology of Calvinism. == Antiquity == Around the time when Jesus was born, a new power-structure was emerging in the territory of present-day Slovakia, inhabited for centuries by Celtic tribes.〔Spiesz ''et al.'' 2006, p. 13.〕 First the Germanic Marcomanni and Quadi arrived from the north and chased away the Celts.〔〔Kirschbaum 2005, p. 16.〕 Next the borders of the expanding Roman Empire reached the river Danube from the south.〔〔 Subsequently, the southwest regions of Slovakia turned into a battleground between the Germans and the Romans.〔Kirschbaum 2005, pp. 16-17.〕 The "Miracle of the Rain", often cited in early Christian literature, happened during a campaign the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius launched against the Quadi in 172.〔Mócsy 1974, p. 188.〕〔Kirschbaum 2005, p. 17.〕〔Heather 2010, p. 94.〕 Rather than giving battle, the Germanic warriors were luring the Romans up to the point that they were caught without supply, and without water.〔 Their situation looked set for disaster, but "suddenly many clouds gathered and a mighty rain" burst upon them.〔 Energized by the pouring rain, the Romans were able to defeat the enemy.〔Heather 2010, p. 95.〕 Although the Roman historian Dio Cassius attributed the "miracle" to the efforts of an Egyptian mage, Christian writers claimed that the prayers of a Christian legion from Syria had worked it.〔 There are very few indications that Roman religious cults had any impact on the Germanic peoples outside the Roman Empire.〔Todd 2004, p. 118.〕 Scarcely was greater the impact of Christianity.〔 One of the few examples is Fritigir, queen of the Marcomanni, who met a Christian traveller from the Roman Empire shortly before 397.〔 He talked to her of Ambrose, the formidable bishop of Milan (Italy).〔 Impressed by what she heard, the queen converted to Christianity.〔Mócsy 1974, p. 345.〕〔Todd 2004, p. 119.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「History of Christianity in Slovakia」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|