THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
church of Neuchatel down to 1848, governing the church completely, independently of the State, and maintaining with great fidelity the preaching of the pure Gospel. For the material sustenance of the church a fund was provided, formed partly from old-church property, partly from private contributions. But in 184S the revolution which dissolved the relation in which the state of Neuchatel had stood to Prussia since 1707 overthrew the ecclesiastical sovereignty of the Company of Pastors. From the negotiations between that body and the new authorities resulted a reorganization of the church, according to which its administration was confided to a synod, composed of ecclesiastics and laymen chosen by the forty churches of the country. The synod also appointed the professors of theology, without any interference from the side of the State. The former church property was absorbed by the State treasury, which then was charged with the payment of the ecclesiastical officers.
Under this constitution the church lived until about 1865. At that time a number of freethinkers who had acquired great influence in the circles of the government resolved to disrupt the stubborn dogmatic unity. A revision of the ecclesiastical law was decided upon in the grand council; and shortly after a new law was carried by a majority of seven votes. According to Art. 4 of the new law, every citizen of the State is by birth a member of the church, and has the franchise. According to Arts. 6 and 12 every minister is eligible to an office in the church, if he has a license to preach; and he can not be bound in advance by any measure, regulation, or creed. Art. 17 leaves the synod no authority outside of the administration; and an article added during the debate transfers the appointment of professors in theology from the synod to the council. This led to a debate as to the measures necessary under the circumstances, in which differences of opinion developed.
Some thought that it was their duty to submit to the new law, though it was ruinous to the church, and to live on under the deplorable constitution, waiting for better times. Others thought that the new establishment had nothing whatever in common with the Church founded by Christ himself, and insisted upon the necessity of an organization independent of the State. The adherents of the latter opinion assembled in 1873, and charged the members of the old synod who were present with taking the necessary measures for the organization of the new church. The professors of the theological faculty were invited to open their lectures at the ordinary term, and under the direction of the synod. Out of the forty parishes of the country, twenty-one groups of faithful were formed, which, with their pastors, declared in favor of forming the new church. The most numerous groups contained between five and six hundred voters; others, however, only about thirty. A synod was elected, consisting of all the pastors, and three laymen for each pastor. A new constitution was also drawn up, and submitted to the churches, which adopted it with a unanimous vote.
A synodical committee governs the church in the intervals between the sessions of the synod.
The pastors are paid, not directly by their parishes, but from a central fund formed by voluntary gifts. The annual budget, comprising the maintenance of the theological faculty of four professors, amounts to over 110,000 francs, each pastor being paid from 2,500 to 2,800 francs a year. As the use of the church-buildings is by law guaranteed to all religious denominations, the independent congregations can use the buildings; and about onehalf of them do so. But the others, having met with various impediments in the exercise of their right, have built their own places of worship, and spent for that purpose another million. These sacrifices, however, are not considered a burden since by those sacrifices the contributors have preserved the preaching of the pure Gospel, not only for themselves and their children, but also in the state church; for the government has felt compelled to give up the introduction of rationalism in the state establishment, feeling convinced that a number of pious persons who still cling to that institution would, in such a case, immediately enlist in the ranks of the independent church. F. GoDETf.
In 1906 it was conceived by a political party that for financial reasons the time had come to disestablish the national church of the canton, giving to all who care for religion the opportunity to apply some of the principles taught for twenty-five years by the independents. The motion was rejected by a majority of five in the grand council, but was again brought forward by the central commission in September of the same year. The electoral campaign which followed was marked by the admission of the state church that if the new motion should not carry, yet a new financial basis ought to be found for the support of their church. The popular vote of Jan., 1907, was against disestablishment by a majority of 6,679 in 23,500 votes, showing that free-church principles had not won.
The statistics of 1908 show 24 parishes with 4,429 voters, 6,140 female members, and a body of adherents of about 15,000. N. Weiss.
Bibliography: The Bulletins de Synodes ; G. Godet, La Question ecclesiastique de Neuchatel, in Revue chretienne, Sept., 1873-Jan., 1874; C. Monvert, Hist, de la fondation de Veglise &vangelique neuchdteloise independante de Vital, Neuchatel, 1898.
NEUDECKER, nei-dek'er, JOHANN CHRISTIAN GOTTHOLD: German Protestant; b. at Gotha (27 m. w. of Weimar), Germany, Apr. 10, 1807; d. there July 11, 1866. He was educated at the University of Jena (1826-29), and after a brief residence at Leipsic, followed by a tour of southern Germany and Alsace, he became a private tutor at Cassel. From 1832 to 1842 he resided at Gotha as a private scholar, but in the latter year was appointed teacher at the Knabenbiirgerschule; he became titular conrector there in the following year, and in 1855 was made second rector of the garrison and Erfurt Vorstadtschule, while from 1860 until his death he was director of the Gotha Biirgerschule. Among his writings of theological interest are: Allgemeines Lexikon der Religions- und christlichen Kirchengeschichte fur alle Konfessionen (4 vols, with supplement, Weimar, 1834-37) ; Urkunden aus der Reformationszeit (Cassel, 1836); Merkwurdige Ak-