To Margrethe and our dearest friends and family,
Today, we worshiped at the Augustinian cloister in Erfurt--the church where Martin Luther took his monastic vows. We stood on the same floor that Luther paced during church council meetings and saw the original stone where he laid flat on the floor when he promised to dedicate his life in service to the lord. It is an amazing space full of rich history, beautiful breath-takingly tall stained glass windows, and a certain holiness, a quietness and peacefulness that seems to permeate the surroundings.
The service was not held in the huge cathedral (it would be too expensive to heat in the cold German winter). Instead, the 50 American Lutherans were welcomed into the tiny "winter church", a smaller room less than half the size of Holy Trinity in Chapel Hill -- but there was heat! Despite the language barrier, I wasn't lost. We sang the songs in German, mispronouncing a few words here and there. We might have said the Lord's prayer in the wrong place, we caught on quickly. Our fellow congregation members were welcoming, understanding, and gracious hosts.
We were also blessed to have Pastor Scott, an American Lutheran pastor working on his doctorate in theology at the University of Erfurt, leading us through the service and providing English translations of the gospel and sermon. He also gave us a tour of the church and told us many interesting stories. (The Augustinians who first built the church were actually kicked out of town for a year before being allowed to come back by the people of Erfurt).
The summary of the sermon was enlightening -- a nun from a nearby convent gave her views on the passage -- the story of Mary and Martha. A quick summary: Jesus is invited into Martha's home and Mary sits at Jesus' feet and listens to his teachings. Martha rebukes her sister and asks Jesus to tell Mary to help her with the chores. Jesus actually tells Martha that Mary is right to just stop and listen, to not be so worried about everything that needs to get done. Sister Dominica told us that we must find a balance between listening and doing what needs to be done. We must discern which is the time to listen, and when is the time to take action. That is true wisdom.
I definitely struggle with this -- oh, how often do I jump into things without fully listening, blinded by my haste, and listen to something (like an injustice in the world) but don't do anything to stop it. I think today, I learned that I need to slow down, listen to God speaking, enjoy the journey of life that I'm living and not just look to the destination/get bogged down by worry and stress. I need to put some more God time in my day -- a time where I'm actually listening. Sometimes I feel like God has to hit me with a brick wall or some seemingly insurmountable object just so I'll slow down because I run on turbo speed all of the time.
The most touching aspect of today was saying the Lord's Prayer in English (at the right time!) with the congregation members saying the prayer in German. It sounded so dissonant with the German words being longer than the English ones, but each line had a pause, a collective breath, after it. We were able to stay together until the very end when both sides of the church said 'Amen' together in perfect unison. It was amazing. God transcends language, culture, and location. We were not just Americans and Germans. We were Christians -- Lutherans, celebrating God's grace and affirming our faith together. God was there and I'm sure he was smiling.
A woman came up to our group after the service and told us how much she appreciated our laughter -- in the old times, laughter was seen as a sign of sin. Church was serious and laughter was disrespectful. She was so glad that we had brought joy with us today, and that we had found happiness in the service. Our laughter was a blessing -- and certainly a product of the congregation's open arms and patience with us.
This will be our last day in Erfurt, and honestly, I'm sad to go! This is a fantastic place with gorgeous architecture, delicious food, and kind people. I've greatly enjoyed getting to know my fellow LCMers better -- I'm so blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful people who share so much love! I can't wait to see what the next few days bring!
Talk to ya'll soon!
Auf Wiedersehen!
-Katie Weinel
Thank you for addressing it to me! I wish I could have been there to hear the prayer said in unison. Kind of reminds me of the service (embarrassing but I'm fairly certain it's epiphany) in which the lesson is read simultaneously in multiple languages to show that very connection that transcends cultural divides. You are a great writer!
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