Eklézsiák jövedelmi osztályozása a reformkori Bihari Református Egyházmegyében

Abstract

The income classifications of parishes within an ecclesiastical administrative unit offer exciting opportunities for historical research. This study focuses on the Reformed Diocese of Bihar and explores the factors behind the formation of its parish classifications using two methodological approaches. The legitimacy of the classification from 1820 is examined through the collection of ministers’ salary records from 1823, while the classification from 1844 is analyzed on the basis of payments made by congregations to the agents’ treasury between 1822 and 1843. One of the key findings is that within a single ecclesiastical unit, multiple rankings based on different considerations could coexist simultaneously. Furthermore, neither the pastors’ salaries nor local trends in charitable donations exerted an exclusive influence on the classification of parishes.