I'm living in the Bible belt of Germany, if there is such a thing. When I came here I was really surprised at the amount of Christianity I found here. For years I had been under the impression that Europe was largely post-Christian but my first few months here seemed to dispell those fears. I would read about how churches are dieing and people are turning away from their faith but here in Gießen and, from what I hear, in most of Hessen (my state here in Germany) Church attendance is holding steady if not slowly increasing. This past weekend I learned a bit more of the truth.

In Groningen in the north of the Netherlands there was a gathering of Dutch and Northern German Mennonite youth. It was, if much smaller and in a different language, very much like a youth gathering in the states. There were worship times with singing and speakers. We had breakout sessions to discuss the topic of the day and workshops to do other related things. It was by and large a good time....with one small exception. The second (of three) speakers, Piet Visser, is a professor of Anabaptist history at the Mennonite Seminary in Amsterdam. His speech and all of his arguments in the breakout sessions (I was in the same one as him) and everything he said in during the panel discussion focused around the idea that Jesus doesn't matter anymore. He would argue that it's not important to have faith in Jesus as long as you live a good moral life. Indeed, Islam and Buddism have just as much claim to salvation as Christianity does. I would have dismissed him as an outlier if it weren't that most of the youth supported his points. He would argue that, although the teachings of Jesus are very good and a good model to follow, making Jesus a requirment for salvation would serve to exclude people of other faiths and in turn people would become hostile towards Christianity and we would cease to be a community that is welcoming to all peoples. It was encouraging to see young people in and excited about the church but if this is the foundation of their faith I worry about the future. It's much easier to convert someone to Christianity than it is to convert them from being "Christian" to following Christ.

The conference was not entirily depressing. There was one speaker who argued strongly that Jesus should be the center of the church and of our lives. Tim Folley works closely with MMN in N. Ireland leading a church and helping to tear down the hatred between Catholics and Protestants. I was able to talk to him extensively throughout the conference, indeed, I talked to him more than everyone else combined. It was refreshing to hear of his unflinching faith after what Piet had said. Turns out he knows Dell Hershberger (a family I know quite well from Hesston) quite well along with several other people from the area. Mennonite connections are always fun and (seemingly) unending.

Now I'm back. Now starts real life again. My deutch class resumes tomorrow and work is staying busy. Tonight (in 5 minutes) there is a student gathering here. They have a bible study that meets on Monday nights during the semester and tonight is their opening night. Oh well...I can wear dirty clothes for a few days.

Rest and strength
David