A Beautiful Sunday in Berlin-Wittenberg

Church in Berlin

Church in Berlin

Another trip with my wife and another chance to go to church in a foreign land. This time my wife and I were in Berlin over the weekend, and went to Church. The morning started with a typical sacrament meeting service. Except for one difference, everything was in German. But the Missionaries gave us translation head sets, so we could listen to the meeting in English. The Elders did a great job translating, but sometimes the translation was a bit delayed and some made up words came through a couple of times. It gave us a good laugh. The meeting was a good mix of local Germans and some expats from the United States. We weren't the only ones wearing headsets. 😀

Another thing we noticed right away was that the congregation was small but loved to sing. We have noticed this a common thread with small congregations. They love to sing and it was great to sing the hymns we are used to in
German. Or at least attempt to sing them in German.

We also enjoy the people that we meet when we go on these excursions. This time was no different. We met two families. One family, a mother and father and two little girls. They were both teachers at an international school there in Berlin. It was fascinating to hear their story on how they met. They met online while she was working in Berlin as a teacher and he basically moved out to teach at the school with her. They love Berlin and enjoy being at international school. They do miss family back in the states, but with skype and facetime they said it is more bearable.

Reformation Field Trip

After church we decided to go back in time to about 1500 AD. We drove out to Wittenberg, Germany the birth place of the reformation. This is the place where Martin Luther went to the University and taught biblical studies. This is also the place where he posted his 95 thesis that really kicked off the beginning of the
Reformation. Wittenberg is about 1 1/2 hour out side of Berlin. And it was a nice drive on the autobahn. Yes I got to try and see how fast our little ford focus could go. (200 KPH) Eat your heart out Allen (my older brother with the fast car.)

All Saint's Church

Arriving at Wittenberg we got to see a completely different part of Germany. A part of Germany that was not destroyed by decades of wars and conflict. Wittenberg is a small city that for the most part still has old buildings and churches. Some of the most important buildings in the start of the Reformation. Including Martin Luther's Home, his University and the churches he expounded his doctrinal teachings. This is the 500th year of Martin Luther posting his 95 thesis on the door of the All Saint's Church in Wittenberg.

Lutherstube

Another really cool aspect of Wittenberg is just the age of the city and the Martin Luther Museum (Lutherhaus). Lutherhaus was turned into a museum in 1883 after years of the house being used as boarding house for the university, Military hospital, and royal seminary. But one of the rooms remained primarily untouched Martin Luther's living room. This room was the place that he would give lectures after dinner. He and his wife were known to have several guest at dinner every night and then his guests would join him for a evening of conversation and debate about his views on moral authority and biblical teachings. This was the place that the reformation began to take hold.

Peter the Great

Even though the building became a museum in 1883. People from all over the world would come and visit Lutherhaus as earlier as the late 1600's to pay tribute to the founder of the Reformation. Many of the visitors would inscribe their name in chalk or carve their names in the walls of doors of the Living Room. This went on for about 200 years until in 1883 most of the names where cleaned up except for a few. One of the names they left behind is the name of Peter the Great Czar of Russia which he put there when he visited in 1712. Being from the United States my wife and I were astonished that this little house was basically a museum before the united states even existed.

It was a wonderful Sunday and we left impressed with the influence that one man has had on history and the world.

DWP