wfn.org | Re: LWI 2008-082 FEATURE: Church Is Wherever People Gather Together

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FEATURE: Church Is Wherever People Gather Together
A Church Planting Project on the Baltic Island of Ruegen 

BERGEN-ROTENSEE, RUEGEN, Germany/GENEVA, 31 October 2008 (LWI) –
A breathtaking view greets visitors arriving on the Baltic Sea
island of Ruegen in Germany. Some 1,000 square kilometers of
varied natural attractions cover coastal cliffs, national parks,
fine sandy beaches, inviting dunes and the sometimes thundering
sea. A tour of Germany's largest island takes visitors through
picturesque sites renovated at great expense, including imposing
churches with richly decorated altars and ornate stain glass
windows. Ruegen is considered as one of the most popular holiday
destinations in Germany, with over one million vacationers
annually. 

Yet, there are pockets on Ruegen that draw only a small number of
tourists, such as Bergen-Rotensee—a community of around 5,000
people, pre-dating the 1989 political changes. Renovation work
here is getting under way very slowly. Unemployment is high,
affecting 19 percent of the population, while nearly 21 percent
live on the poverty line. Nearly all inhabitants are dissatisfied
with the housing situation. 

This is how Rev Mathias Thieme's working environment looks
statistically. Since early 2007, he has been in charge of the
church planting project site in Bergen-Rotensee, organized by the
Stralsund church district in an effort to bring the church into
contact with people in their daily lives. One out of ten Rotensee
inhabitants has a church affiliation and of these, only a small
number seek any contact with the church. "For me, the greatest
challenge is to reach people who are separated from the church or
in whose daily lives the church plays no role," Thieme explained
to a group of 90 church representatives visiting Ruegen
mid-September, in the context of the Lutheran World Federation
(LWF) European Church Leadership Consultation, held in
Greifswald, Germany. 

>New Approach

Making people interested in religious topics and establishing
long-term contacts with the population can be a difficult task,
remarked Thieme. "It has become clear to me that, in the case of
Rotensee, we must rethink our preaching style. Particularly in a
context in which people are hardly interested in academic
lectures, the 'church of the Word' must take a new approach. In
order to transmit Christian values, it must address people
without using big words," he explained. 

There is still no church edifice, but for 19 months there has
been a local church interlocutor. "Church is where one encounters
people and comes into their lives. The physical place is not the
determinant. What matters, is that I have time for people and
that they know I am available," asserted Thieme. Consequently, he
spends most of his time on the road, meeting people. "I visit
them at home. Sometimes we meet in the park or at a neighborhood
center," he said, describing a typical working day. When people
gradually begin to want to dialogue with him, he realizes that
his efforts are beginning to pay off. 

The wave of reconstruction sweeping the rest of the island seems
to have side-stepped Bergen-Rotensee. “On many days, the lack of
future prospects hits one right in the eyes,” the pastor
admitted. 

>Social Isolation

High unemployment and poverty "gnaw away at people, sometimes
sapping their strength to face the future," explained Thieme,
pointing out that even those with diplomas are often unable to
find jobs. Every household is short of money - for daily
survival, in some cases, mere subsistence. Alcohol abuse has
become a major problem in Rotensee, and violent behavior has
increased, as is evident in the willful destruction of telephone
booths and bus shelters. This could be due to the fact that
adolescents in Rotensee have no place to meet. "Out of
frustration, some adolescents have already turned to drinking,"
he said. 

Thieme attributed tsocial isolation. "For that reason, I am on the road all day long
visiting people who are lonely. I listen to them and sometimes
help with administrative formalities," he said. 

Giving people an alternative to their seemingly hopeless
situation is the overriding objective, according to the Rotensee
pastor, who hopes that renewed emphasis on church life would help
in realizing this. He pointed to the extremely encouraging
example of the collaboration with St Mary's parish in Bergen and
the Rotensee neighborhood center where many encounters and
services for children and adolescents are held. 

"The open air worship which we celebrated last summer was a
complete success. A hundred persons took part. This was totally
unexpected. The atmosphere was simply excellent," said Thieme. He
is enthusiastic about the interest shown in one of the two
worship services held in Rotensee so far, and plans to organize
regular worship for children and adolescents in the future, and
common services with St Mary's congregation in Bergen. And
perhaps no longer in the neighborhood center, but rather in a
church with its own team of collaborators. (809 words)

(A report by Claudia Schubert of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
of Hanover, Germany, currently doing a special pastoral
internship in the LWF Office for Communication Services)

>*        *          *

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF
currently has 141 member churches in 79 countries all over the
world, with a total membership of over 68.3 million. The LWF acts
on behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest such
as ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian
assistance, human rights, communication, and the various aspects
of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva, Switzerland.)

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