The Development and Activities of Christ’s Church of Brethren in Zagreb

Abstract

Christ’s Church of Brethren in Zagreb, from its founding in 1946 until the early 1970s, was one of the largest and most active communities in Croatia. Located in the very center, near the main square of Zagreb, at Gajeva 9a, it had approximately a hundred members. The members of the church were actively involved in evangelization, primarily through distributing tracts, sharing personal testimony, and visiting surrounding areas, despite the restrictions imposed by the communist regime. Conferences were held twice a year, bringing together all the Brethren communities from the former Yugoslavia. The church was visited by famous foreign preachers such as Bakht Singh and Roger T. Foster. Visits by various foreign missionaries, especially from Switzerland and England, and later also from Germany, opened up new opportunities, especially for young people, to participate in Christian events outside the country. In addition to trips and conferences, trips for young people and camps in Gorski Kotar, near Lake Lokvar, were regularly organized, as well as trips to England, all of which left a great mark on the lives of young people. Publishing occupied an important place in evangelization and encouragement, discipleship, and the upbringing of believers. Dr. Branko Đaković, one of the elders of Christ’s Church of Brethren in Zagreb, left behind a significant number of translations of Christian literature. His most notable translation work is a complete translation of the entire Holy Scripture. Also, his Bible Dictionary is the first Protestant Bible dictionary in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, and his Bible translations are the first standard Protestant translations in Croatia. The first part provides an overview of the emergence of Brethren churches in Europe, their spread to the former Yugoslavia, and the development of Christ’s Church of Brethren in Zagreb...