Min and I had the privilege of attending the celebration of 100 years of The Christian Community in Germany. The theme was looking ahead at the next 100 years. Many people from all over the world attended. 2,356 people applied and judging by the crowds they all turned up. There was a big group from Ukraine, mainly women, and children. There were also many young people. The 15-year-olds were the best represented age group. And there were more than 180 priests, among them Liza, who we know well. We also saw Sam Mirkin’s whole family.

The event, which stretched over 4 days, was held in Dortmund in a big Waldorf school and in neighboring anthroposophical institutions. In addition, there were several tents with the biggest having a capacity of 1,900 people. Meals were included and the feeding of the 2,356 resulted in long lines. Luckily the weather was good and we met many new friends while waiting for our meals.

The event started off in the big tent with two lectures. Every day there was an Act of Consecration at 8 different altars. The biggest Hall (600 people) was used for the 4 ordinations, one each day. We could only attend one of them, but it was very impressive. Between Min and I we attended an Act of Consecration in French, German, Dutch, English, Spanish and Japanese.

There was plenty of music. Before every Act of Consecration, we practiced the songs for the service. For the ordinationtions a 7-person orchestra accompanied the singing and during the ACM in Spanish, we sang 6 times during the service, mostly Spanish songs.

After tea break, there were workshops and lectures followed by lunch. My working group looked at the impulses of the first 4 Erzoberlenkers and how they shaped the development of the church and what the future asks of us. In the afternoons there was time for improvised meetings or presentations. I attended a presentation by Rev. Andreas Loos about the work of the church in Cali, Colombia. One afternoon the Ukrainians presented some Ukrainian songs, but this had a sad undertone because that very day the Russians were bombing Kyiv. In the evening there were cultural events, including a number of concerts and a Michaelmas celebration followed by an end of day service. We met many people, including old friends and we made a lot of new friends. It was a very special and inspiring event!

Min and Kerst