Danubius International Conferences, 14th International Conference The Danube - Axis of European Identity
Religious Structure of the Swiss Community of Bessarabia
Last modified: 2024-06-17
Abstract
Having separated from their historical homeland, the Swiss settlers who founded a community in the Bessarabian village of Shabo were forced to adapt their spiritual life to new social conditions. In this regard, pastors of Swiss origin acquire an exceptional role as spiritual guides, and then as the main guardians and popularizers of the Swiss national consciousness. A distinctive feature of the religious structure of the Shabian community was the presence of representatives of two faiths - Reformation and Lutheranism. A successful consensus was the joint construction in the mid-nineteenth century of a common church in the name of the Holy Trinity - Le Temple de Trinité. This leads to an exceptional feature in the structure of the spiritual life of the Swiss settlers in Shabo. Therefore, we can confidently say that the history of their spiritual life in Bessarabia acts as an integral part of Swiss culture outside of Switzerland.
