History

The Beginning (1975)

The year 1975 marked the beginning of this evangelistic activity in Padua. Pietro and Lydia Bolognesi, then in Belgium, had been contacted by four Italian churches. The latter had long had a desire for an evangelical church to be born in the Veneto, but although they had prayed and even made a few timid attempts, they had not found satisfactory solutions!
The four churches were in the sphere of the churches "of the brethren," and thus in that area of free churches that had played a not inconsiderable role in the evangelization of Italy in the past. Their spirituality was marked by pietistic veins, but with that initiative they seemed to show an 'authentic openness to change. The church of St. Lazarus, then animated by particular fervor, played a leading role, but the others also showed openness and were willing to follow new itineraries.
After a time of reflection and prayer, Pietro and Lydia Bolognesi left their professional activity in Brussels to settle in Padua.
They had never been to that city before, but they went there in the certainty that the Lord was starting something important. It was a matter of taking up a serious challenge, but there was a serene awareness that they were following God's will. The irrepressible feeling of wanting to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ to participate in the grand design of founding a church had been established in those churches and in them. Would it have been just a dream? They arrived in Padua in June 1975 with a barely one-year-old son. They had hoped to go there as part of a group, but it was not easy to find other willing people. Despite existing interest and sympathy for that adventure of faith, no one was found ready to move with them. They arrived there in their white Volkswagen with Belgian license plates and the key to the 'apartment that had been rented for the purpose. They ventured out with the few directions they had and the hope that they would not make the wrong street and apartment in a still unfamiliar city. They did not know much about the city, nor had they had any contact with local people.
It was a pioneering activity in its own right. So the first few months were devoted to organizational matters and to visiting evangelical or non-evangelical groups existing in the city. It was a matter of making contact with the territory, understanding the existing realities, gathering any suggestions and communicating transparently the intentions of that new presence.

Development (1992)

The year 1992 marked the beginning of a new phase in the life of the Paduan church. The term "multiplication" rendered very well what the motivations and character of the choice were. "In 1992 another evangelical mission, this time supported by the evangelical Christian church in Via Bonporti in Padua, was started in Vicenza. At the base of the first nucleus were a group of evangelicals of Vicenza origin who were already members of the Padua church. The history of the Vicenza evangelical community was intertwined with that of the Paduan community."
At the stroke of midnight on the 'last day of 1998, the church learned with great joy, the news of the transfer by the City of Padua of a plot of land intended for the construction of a multipurpose center for Ifed. The enthusiasm, usually very restrained, was also accompanied by spontaneous fundraising for the first brick of the new building. The church's involvement in this project was dictated not only by the prospect of more church space, but also by a desire to want to contribute to the promotion of an alternative evangelical culture.
Indeed, it would have been very difficult to argue the usefulness of such an endeavor only in selfish terms. Reasoning only for one's own little church, it did not make much sense. But one of the characteristics of the church had been precisely this openness for a broader vocation. A vocation that was not content to cultivate only the dimension of personal and communal piety and that invested in the cultural field. This was clearly a countercultural path. The dominant picture seemed marked by boredom and mediocrity. The jolts caused by lotteries, media escapades and entertainment, and religious "overdoses" were "holding" for a very short time. They were succeeded by times marked by loss of meaning and direction.

Maturation (2003)

In August 2003 the church moved to new premises at 13 P. M. Vermigli St. It was a sober move. Without fuss and without snobbery. No festivals, no oratory. The belief was that the triumph over time was not so much appearances as reality. And what could be more beautiful than a place that was homogeneous with respect to its professed identity? The backbone of everything remained preaching and studying the Word of God. It may have been early to realize it, but at last, an evangelical church, stood on a street named after an evangelical! Instead of "the name of some cardinal, pope or bishop, continuity with an important personage of the past was evoked. The architecture of the building also underscored how worship and culture could be closely connected and could thus have a real impact. Such an interrelationship, referred back to God Lord of all life. The whole building evoked a particular worldview.
It focused attention on the place where God's Word was preached, but at the same time sought to suggest a connection to context and history. There was hearing the Word and celebrating God. There was proclamation and sharing. Next to it, at the pulpit, like two petals, baptism and the Holy Supper were evoked as two ordinances of the Lord and responses to the Word of God. The seven pillars that supported the auditorium were a reminder that true worship had to do with the whole week. So much for Sunday religion! With that architecture, too, they wanted to emphasize the power of a faith engaged in all dimensions of daily life.
God's plan may seem bold, too demanding, too lofty, too daring, but since it is God who demands such dimensions, the church has no right to settle for less. To console oneself by saying that the Lord accepts as one is is not healthy. The issue is not that others accept us, but that we accept the world in which we have been accepted. There is nothing worse than being a misfit inside a mansion. There can be epochs of respite. Epochs when reflection and self-examination prevail over action, but the gamble cannot be evaded.

Taken from Pietro Bolognesi, An Evangelical Witness in Padua, DID, Padua 2005