June 2009

We were in the paper!

- The Washington Post - 18 Juni 2009

Correction to This Article

The article incorrectly said that Martin Luther translated the Bible into German from Latin. Luther primarily translated the New Testament from Greek and the Old Testament from Hebrew.

In German Birthplace of Reformation, a Revival of Interest

By Craig Whitlock

Washington Post Foreign Service

Thursday, June 18, 2009

WITTENBERG, Germany -- Martin Luther, a renegade monk, triggered the Reformation here five centuries ago by nailing a long list of grievances to the door of the Castle Church. But as Wittenberg celebrates the founding of Protestantism, it is finding one thing in short supply: Lutherans.

Generations of secularism and communism have exacted a severe toll on church membership in this eastern German city. Today, fewer than one in five people identify themselves as Christian, one of the lowest percentages in the country. Most worshipers who fill the pews in local churches are tourists longing for a glimpse of the holy sites frequented by Luther when he lived here between 1508 and 1546.

"It's a very strange experience for foreign visitors, especially Americans, to come to the city of Luther and discover that east Germany is perhaps the most atheistic region in the world," said Stefan Rhein, director of the Luther Memorials Foundation of Saxony-Anhalt.

The presence of organized religion is so limited in Wittenberg that some U.S. Lutheran organizations are trying to fill the void. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America established a ministry here 10 years ago to cater to the thousands of American pilgrims who visit annually. Study abroad programs for American students have proved so popular that the city plans to open a residential college next year for visiting scholars.

The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the second-largest Lutheran body in the United States, has bought a building next to the old Town Church, where Luther used to preach, and plans to turn it into a welcome center for U.S. visitors. The Missouri Synod also plans to start a congregation by reaching out to German atheists, although organizers acknowledge that won't be easy in a city still recovering from 40 years of communist rule.

"In east Germany, you actually have to go up to people and tell them who Jesus was," said Wilhelm Torgerson, a German Lutheran pastor who serves as the Missouri Synod's representative in Wittenberg. "They say, 'Oh yes, Christ. Didn't he have something to do with Luther?' "

"We would like to proclaim the Gospel to unbelievers, and there are certainly a lot of them here," Torgerson added. "Obviously, there is enough work for all of us without stepping on anyone's toes."

Wittenbergers have welcomed the growing American presence for the most part, but there have been some bruised feelings.

Some Missouri Synod leaders have declared that their congregation would be the only true Lutheran church in Wittenberg -- an assertion that irritated members of the Evangelical Church in Germany, the largest Protestant body in the country. The Evangelical Church comprises Lutherans, Calvinists and other denominations.

"It was strange for them to come here and say, 'We are the first real Lutherans,' " said Siegfried T. Kasparick, the Evangelical Church's bishop for Wittenberg. "We've had a Lutheran congregation here since Luther."

In Germany, about 30 percent of the population belongs to the Evangelical Church. An additional31 percent count themselves as Roman Catholic.

In Wittenberg, however, the number of churchgoers is among the lowest in the country. About 15 percent are members of the Evangelical Church, and 3 percent are Catholic. The city also has a small number of Baptists. ( That would be us! Baptisten Bible Gemeinde )

National leaders of the Evangelical Church acknowledged that they have taken Wittenberg's theological and historical significance for granted in the past. Many west Germans still regard the city, about 60 miles southwest of Berlin, as an east German backwater.

But such attitudes have gradually changed, in large part because of the influx of foreign pilgrims in Wittenberg since the fall of communism two decades ago.

Kasparick, the Wittenberg bishop, said the strong interest from international Lutheran groups has prompted German Protestants to take more pride in their heritage. "They make us stronger," he said.

Commemorations

Wittenberg began a decade-long celebration of the Reformation in September, on the 500th anniversary of Luther's arrival in the medieval city as a priest and teacher at the local university.

A succession of festivals, lectures and other events will run until Oct. 31, 2017, the anniversary of when Luther publicly challenged the authority of the church in Rome by nailing his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church.

The theses were a list of complaints about church doctrine. Luther reserved particular scorn for the sale of indulgences, or the practice of promising salvation in exchange for money. Pope Leo X excommunicated Luther for heresy three years later, but the German's theological rebellion spread across Europe and divided Christianity.

One public-television series a few years ago ranked Luther as the second-most admired figure in German history, behind post-World War II Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. But many Germans are unfamiliar with Luther's theological achievements. He is primarily known as a father of the modern German language, the first person to translate the Bible from Latin into German.

For decades, authorities in communist East Germany tried to suppress Luther's teachings. They promoted the story of an even more radical Reformation-era priest, Thomas Muentzer, who helped spark the peasant rebellion of 1524. Muentzer, a rival of Luther, was seen as more ideologically compatible with the Communist Party.

The East German state later softened its opposition to Luther and sponsored international events to commemorate the 500th anniversary of his birth in 1983. But Wittenberg still became better known for its manufacturing base than its religious heritage.

"People didn't associate Wittenberg as Luther's city, but rather as a city of industry and chemical production," said Eckhard Naumann, mayor of Wittenberg. After the fall of communism, he added, "the city of Wittenberg had to ask itself a lot of questions: 'What are we? Are we the city of Luther? What does that mean in this new world?' "

Today, Wittenberg strongly embraces the old Augustinian monk as central to its identity. Christians may be a minority in Wittenberg, but everybody seems to agree that "Luther Tourism," as they call it, is good for business.

Luther's image is omnipresent in the well-preserved 700-year-old town center, even adorning restaurant menus. Every June, the city holds a festival to commemorate Luther's scandalous 1525 wedding to a runaway nun, Katharina von Bora. The Castle Church attracts 200,000 visitors a year. It is scheduled to undergo a $45 million renovation by 2015.

German church leaders, however, also see the Luther renaissance as an opportunity to bolster dwindling membership across the country. In October, the Evangelical Church in Germany dispatched a senior pastor, Stephan Dorgerloh, to work in Wittenberg full time to help coordinate and promote the religious aspects of the 500th anniversary commemorations.

In the past, Dorgerloh said, international Protestant leaders would visit Evangelical Church officials in Berlin and ask to visit Wittenberg. "The German church would say, 'Why do you want to go there?' " he recalled.

Since then, he said, "there's been a rediscovery of Wittenberg by the German national church. Church leaders have rediscovered that this is the heart of the Reformation."

Special correspondent Shannon Smiley contributed to this report.

Blooming blessings

Each year since we moved into our apartment here in Wittenberg, God has allowed us to enlarge our garden a little. This year, we were able to add some raised beds and some hanging baskets with fresh herbs. We are even trying our hand at potato barrels. Being in an apartment we have to concentrate on plants that take up little space and have a big yield tomatoes, peppers, zucchini herbs, berry bushes, etc. God has blessed with plenty of rain and with 12 hands to pull the weeds, things are looking good. It is amazing each year to see how God provides for us at harvest. He brings us goodies from all corners of Wittenberg and it is rarely from the same person twice. Just today, two acquaintances showed up with buckets of cherries for us. That is one more opportunity to speak to these people about the blessings on Christ. So far this summer, we have been blessed with blooming flowers from several different gardens, new plants to plant in our garden, lettuce, radishes, kohlrabi, herbs, and cherries. From our own garden and the church garden we have been blessed with strawberries, cherries and herbs - lots of cilantro. I love cilantro. I add it to my ranch dressing and dip. Its awesome!

I discovered peonies this year. They are gorgeous and smell even better. The whole house smells wonderful when they are in bloom. First, a neighbor cut us a bouquet and I fell in love with them. Then, yesterday the same neighbor showed up on our front step with a bucket full of plants for us to add to our garden so that I could enjoy the peonies even more. The neatest part is, I hadn't had the chance to tell our neighbor how much I loved them yet. I had only shared my new discovery with God and planned on telling our neighbor the next time we met. Such a great God thing. It is a true blessing to know that God knows the desires of my heart and they are important to Him.

God takes such good care of us. Thank you for praying for us. I know that financial times are hard for so many of us right now. I just want to thank you for praying for us and thank God for providing. He is an awesome God.

Have a blooming good time this week!

Chelli

Anniversary

Paul and I celebrated our Anniversary with Luther at the city festival. It was a full 3-day weekend with parades, fan fare, music and one-of-a-kind costumes.

We are so thankful for God's guidance and wisdom in the building of our tent. On Friday, we had wind, rain and storm, but our booth remained standing and we stayed dry. Saturday and Sunday brought beautiful weather and lots of visitors to our booth. We were able to distribute over 1200 Gospel tracts as well as several Bible, Christian books and lots of children's materials. We painted faces and demonstrated paper making. For our first go of it, it was a great success.

Despite the fact that I kept telling people that "Anna is wet and green" instead of our paper is made from "Pineapple leaves", we drew a good crowd and have already seen a spike in our Internet visitors.

Probably the most exciting contact of all was our booth neighbor, Werner. He is very open to the Lord and full of questions. We exchanged email addresses and plan to stay in contact. He will be back in Wittenberg for the Reformation Festival in the fall. Please pray for Werner in the meantime.

On Wednesday we will be making a presentation in the local high school introducing our church to the teens there. Please keep us in your prayers.

Blessings,

Chelli

Hear yee, hear yee

It is City Festival time in Wittenberg again. Every year the city of Wittenberg celebrates the wedding anniversary of Martin Luther and his bride, Katharina von Bora. This year we will have a booth in front of the church where Luther posted his 95 Thesis. We will be demonstrating how paper was made in the middle ages using common plants. A book table will also be set up with Bibles, tracts, and other printed materials about Luther, God and salvation. Please pray for us during the next three days. We will be downtown from mid-morning till sunset (10 pm) each day. Some of our prayer concerns include:

• safety for all involved
• safe and easy set-up of our booth
• good weather
• that many will receive the Gospel
• That those already seeking Christ will be drawn to the church
• that all of the materials we have purchased will get into new hands and be read
• wisdom in managing this undertaking
• God's blessings that we will find favor in the sight of the program coordinator
• for our children during this long, very busy weekend.
• health and stamina for our workers
• wisdom as we speak to thousands of people this weekend

Thank you so much for praying with us.

Blessings,

Chelli

Denglisch

Denglisch runs rampant in our house. For us it is just a normal part of everyday life. I don't normally stop to think about it, but then yesterday, a friend of ours who teaches English here in Wittenberg heard us speaking Denglish and laughed. She said it was very comforting to know that she isn't the only who is fluent in everyday Denglisch. Among Denglisch speakers there is a special camaraderie that only this 3rd culture group can truly understand. I would guess it is the same with other English hybrid languages and their speakers. This morning as the girls were getting ready for church, I had to laugh as I listened to their conversation. Probably the most proficient Denglisch expert in our house right now is Sadie Jane. Just a year ago, she spoke hardly more than a few sentences in German. Now she is doing quite well and getting ready to start the first grade in a German public school. So, it was very encouraging this morning to hear her say, " But I am looking for something hellisch to wear to church this morning." Being translated that would mean she wanted a light colored dress and she settled on lilac. Then this afternoon, she came running through the house, "Skyler, did you want to borg me out for something?" Being translated, "did you want to borrow me for something?"

Not only do our children speak some odd phrases here at home, but their German phrasing can raise a few eyebrows at school as well. It is not only their language skills that make them stand out at school though. They are a peculiar lot. They don't know the most recent pop songs or collect the newest power cards. They don't wear rock star clothing or recite their horoscope. And to top it all off, on Sundays, they don't go to sporting events, they go to Sunday School. Now we are talking really weird!

Okay, so we are weirdos. For adult Christians that is nothing new, but for missionary kids, that can be a little hard to handle sometimes. When things get a little rough, you know, normal third grade stuff, it isn't unusual to hear an, "I hate Germany." "All Germans ever do is complain." "If I were only in America. . . " Those are the times when we get to sit down and think about all the benefits of being fluent in Denglisch. Those are also the times when I am so glad that we have wonderful friends and family back home who are praying for us. So, now that the weather is getting nicer and the sun is shining brighter, don't forget to pick out something hellisch to wear to church next week.

Love and blessings,

Chelli Sudbrock