40 years of Communist rule in the Czech Republic following the German occupation during World War II all but destroyed the practice of religion in the Slavic countries.  After the fall of Communism in 1989, the Czech government returned some of the church buildings to the various religious organizations and began contributing some support to the established churches.  However, the strong anti-religion pressure under 40 years of communism had its toll.  Today almost 40 percent of the Czech people classify themselves as atheist or non-religious, and a small percent of those who describe themselves as Christian attend church.

 

Also, some members of Mount Olivet have strong family connections with the Czech Republic, or feel strongly that this would be an appropriate place to make a our contribution to the recuperation of societies and churches formerly under communism.