In a display of support for their colleagues, representatives from these foreign communities attended the peace conferences allegedly sponsored by the Romanian religious communities in the 1980s. The church had occasional difficulties with the Communist state. Its entire leadership was dismissed in 1984 for failing to exercise the required supervision over its assemblies regarding unofficial religious services. Local and regional officials of the Department of Religious Affairs viewed as responsible for allowing these unofficial gatherings to take place were also fired. Church officials were indicted for failing to expel members who had been convicted of illegal Bible distribution. The Department of Religious Affairs intervened and appointed the church's new leadership. Following the 1989 Revolution and the fall of the regime, the two branches split, ostensibly over the issue of baptism, with the second becoming the Evangelical Church of Romania. Beliefs and organisation Members see as their forerunners those who thought the church had lost its ability to preach the Gospel after Constantine the Great's Edict of Milan proclaimed religious toleration for Christians in 313 AD. They thus seek a restoration of early Christianity and recognise no hierarchy other than the "headship of Christ". Their focus is on the supreme importance of inner religious life; perceiving the world to be corrupt, they look forward to the premillennial era. The church stresses a strong focus on the Bible and spontaneous divine leading in its services rather than carefully orchestrated worship. Romanian Orthodox theologian Petru Deheleanu noted doctrinal similarities to the Tudorites and the Baptists. According to the 2011 census, the church had 42,495 members, making up 0.2% of the population; it was the country's 11th largest recognised religious body. There is no hierarchy; instead, the church is completely reliant on a lay ministry. Bible readings and expositions, prayers and fervent singing are a feature of services. There is a spontaneity that leads to considerable member participation, and individual churches express a strong measure of autonomy. At the local level, each church or "gathering" has at least twenty adult members and is led by two to five "elders" or presbyters, who also function as preachers of the Gospel. As of 2008, there were 678 churches and 724 preachers. In 1994, a new structure, the zonal community, was introduced. There are sixteen of these, led by a brethren assembly that elects a leadership committee and is itself elected by the general conference. At the