Tuesday, July 19
Today was a day to remember and celebrate our partnerships with our German brothers and sisters and plant seeds for opportunities in the years to come.
We journeyed from Villahn to Dabel in the morning. Dabel is the church served by Hansherbert Lange when Pastor Larry Hoffsis was invited to partner with that congregation back in 1985. Hansherbert is Christian Lange’s father and Christian was 5 years old when Larry first came.
When we arrived at the church we were greeted by members of the congregation outside the church as the church bells rang. These five huge bells were dedicated on Easter Monday. On the front lawn there is a life-sized bronze statue of a handbell ringer. It was through the efforts of Epiphany that the Dabel started their bell choirs.
The church is known as the bell church – with the handbells, the tower bells and the bells on the organ, there are 78 bells in the church. See the video of the church bells playing at our arrival.
Following a history lesson in all the bells the pastor who now serves there welcomed us and lead us in a devotional service. We then were able to climb up to the bell tower to see the bells, each of which weigh hundreds of pounds each.
For lunch we went to the Wild West Saloon in Kukuw. Good Texas barbecue in Germany!
I told Hansherbert that what he and Larry had started 31 years ago, his son and I hope to continue for years to come. Please keep the Lange family in your prayers.
We drove to Schwerin, the capital of the state of Mecklenberg. There is a beautiful castle there on the lake that is now where the parliament meets. There is also a large Lutheran church called St. Peter’s Kirche. I gave misinformation in an earlier blog about the church that is home to the bishop. Since the merger of three state synods, THIS church now serves as the Dome Kirche – the home church of the bishop. Bishop Gerhard Ulrich is the bishop of the Church of North Germany. I met him last month in Ohio as he was here for the Southern Ohio Synod assembly. He joined us for a boat ride around the lake.
We then returned home for meals with our hosts. Lisa, Christian and I were joined by his brother Andreas – he spent 8 weeks in Ohio several years ago and has great memories of Epiphany.
Another wonderful day of good friends, good food and great memories.
Peace,
Charlie
