Church is where the people gather

|PIC1|The breathtaking island of Ruegen is one of Germany's most popular holiday destinations, attracting over one million vacationers each year. 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. Renovation work here is getting under way very slowly. Unemployment is high, affecting 19 per cent of the population, while nearly 21 per cent 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, organised 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 centre," 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 behaviour 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 realising 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 organise 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 neighbourhood centre, but rather in a church with its own team of collaborators.

Claudia Schubert is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hanover, Germany, currently doing a special pastoral internship in the Lutheran World Federation Office for Communication Services.