News

A Lost Generation

Mainline churches in East Germany rediscover a sense of mission.

Twenty years after the demonstrations that brought down the Berlin Wall, many say East Germany is spiritually moribund. The former Soviet state is today a majority-atheist society with little memory of Christianity, let alone the Reformation.

But some formerly liberal church leaders have a newfound interest in evangelism.

“We have rediscovered that mission belongs to the very nature of the church,” said Michael Herbst, co-director of the Institute for the Study of Evangelism and Community Development at the University of Greifswald, in a recent speech.

The Nazi and Soviet regimes that ruled East Germany tried to de-Christianize the cradle of the Reformation. After months of bloodless demonstrations, East Germany opened its borders on November 9, 1989.

Uwe Siemon-Netto, director of the Center for Lutheran Theology and Public Life, says the German Protestant church recognized the fall of the Berlin Wall as a miracle. “Then,” he said, “it flipped back and returned to its goofy liberal ways.”

To many East Germans, the social gospel preached from many Protestant pulpits sounded very much like a successor to Nazi and Soviet propaganda, Siemon-Netto said. It failed to draw people.

Today, Herbst estimates that more than 70 percent of East Germans—compared with 30 percent of West Germans—know virtually nothing about Christianity.

Ulrich Parzany succeeded Billy Graham as the main speaker at ProChrist evangelistic meetings, held about every three years since reunification. Parzany says he was standing in front of a Berlin church as some young adults passed by. Referring to the giant crucifix over the entrance, one of them asked, “Who is that guy hanging up there?”

A similar encounter with students convinced Wolfgang Huber, chairman of the Council of the Evangelical Church in Germany. Huber is the most prominent of a handful of high-level clergy in the mainline German church who have begun to embrace evangelism.

“The mainline churches have started a reform process,” said Wolfgang Polzer, senior news editor of IDEA, an evangelical news agency in Wetzlar, Germany.

Under such leadership, a number of new evangelistic initiatives have been developed, several along the lines of the Alpha Course. Such short-term “missionary nurture courses,” as Herbst calls them, offer “easy access with a low threshold.”

The rediscovery of missions may not lead to dramatic change. While there are a few thriving churches in East Germany, Siemon-Netto said, “All the surveys show that the church is making precious few inroads.” Top-level evangelism initiatives often lag at the street level.

But observers see reasons for hope. Parzany says the younger generation, rather than being actively anti-Christian as many of the Soviets were, is a blank slate.

Jim Garrington, a Salvation Army officer in Dresden, says that on a small scale, evangelism has led to slower, unsensational conversions after which the spiritually curious watch for consistency in evangelists’ lives.

“We’ve seen very few … snap conversions. People will hang around for months, and then you start to see a change in their attitude and behavior,” said Garrington. “You ask them about it, and they’ll say, ‘I asked Jesus into my heart months ago.'”

Copyright © 2009 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Related Elsewhere:

Christianity Today also posted “Germany’s Christian Democrats” about the recent election in Germany.

Previous articles on Germany include:

Church in State | In post-Communist Germany, Christian political involvement is surging. (March 10, 2008)

East German Church Lost ‘Distinctive Voice’ After Reunification | “Forty years after the building of the Berlin Wall, cleric claims some churches are worse off.” (August 1, 2001)

Also in this issue

The CT archives are a rich treasure of biblical wisdom and insight from our past. Some things we would say differently today, and some stances we've changed. But overall, we're amazed at how relevant so much of this content is. We trust that you'll find it a helpful resource.

Our Latest

News

Argentina Moves to Officially Celebrate Its Evangelicals

Leaders are grateful for the government recognition but hope for further progress.

All Saints Die

Our yearly reminder for Christians neither to run from nor to leap toward death, but to learn the art of dying well.

 

 

 

 

The Antidote to Election Anxiety

My community is the kind you see in articles hyping the threat of political violence. Reality is more mundane—and hopeful.

News

Steven Curtis Chapman Joins Country Music Royalty

The Christian music star is the first in the industry to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Exorcism Movies’ Terrifying Truth

These films are far from theological treatises. But at their best, they depict the reality of evil—and the power of Jesus’ name.

Where Ya From?

Courage Through Crisis with Brady Boyd

Hear Pastor Brady Boyd share his experience building bridges that bring the gospel to the tipping points of our culture.

Digital Sloth in the Online Arena

How our internet use is prone to the ancient vice of akrasia.

The Russell Moore Show

How Great Is the Political Divide?

George Packer speaks on the desire for a better republic.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube