Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do ... - Christ the King

Issue # 1 | March – May 2013 

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I 

do not give to you as the world gives. Do not 

let your hearts be troubled and do not be 

afraid.” John 14:27 (NIV) 

Reflections from our Interim 

The Rev. Ian Gallagher 

Interim Rector at Christ the King 

Dear Friends, 

In the last issue of the Chronicle I 

introduced myself and gave a 

picture of what an interim rector is 

for. This time I am making good on 

my promise to write about my 

spiritual journey; with any hope, 

what I have to share about my walk 

with God might give some insight 

about yours. 

Roman Catholic roots 

Many of us at Christ the King are 

not “cradle” Anglicans or 

Episcopalians, and I am no 

exception. I was raised Roman 

Catholic (according to the wishes of 

my father’s mother, so that she 

would consent to my father 

marrying my mother, who’d come 

from a cursorily Methodist 

household). But ours was a very 

left-wing, progressive Catholic 

family. We went to church on 

Sundays, my brothers and I were 

involved in serving at the altar and 

the children’s choir, whereas our 

spirituality was far away from the 

veneration of saints, the praying of 

the rosary, and other aspects of a 

“customary” Catholicism. 

As we didn’t go to Catholic school, 

we attended catechism once a 

week from Kindergarten. My 

confirmation age 14 wasn’t really 

seen by me at the time as 

becoming a Christian adult, rather 

as graduation from nine years of 

supposed indoctrination. I became 

instead a “lapsed” Catholic, a 

perfunctory Christian, disillusioned 

by institutional church. 

Mystical transformation 

Fast forward six years, and by then 

I was an undergraduate at 

conservatory, and in my first postpubescent 

personal crisis, I found 

myself drawn again to public 

worship. It was the summer of 

1991, and I was in Boston, 

Massachusetts. It was suggested 

that I go to the Church of the 

Advent, an Episcopal parish church 

of the Anglo-Catholic tradition. 

Given my loopy, left-wing, guitarstrumming 

upbringing in church, it 

was a different world entirely. 

But what struck me wasn’t the 

music, aesthetics or even the 

liturgical culture: At the moment 

during the Eucharistic prayer when 

the Holy Spirit was invoked to come 

and transform the bread and wine, 

the Spirit invaded and transformed 

me. It was a mystical experience; it 

was palpable, it was visceral, but 

not necessarily visible, that is, to 

my neighbour in the pew. 

That was a defining moment in my 

faith, and set me on the Way of the 

Saviour. Returning to Oberlin and 

to my studies, I worshipped with 

the Catholic student chaplaincy on 

Saturday evenings, the local 

Episcopal church on Sundays, and 

then as a graduate student I sang 

and worshipped at Duke Chapel, 

which is perhaps “High Church 

Methodist”, and in addition to 

Catholics and Anglicans, I also felt 

key spiritual growth worshipping 

with Lutherans and American 

Baptists.


Home at last 

Soon after I arrived in Potsdam in 

1997, I discovered a rudimentary 

website for an Anglican church on 

the outskirts of Berlin. It required a 

bus and two trains to get there, but 

from the very first time, I felt that 

this was home. 

Why am I an Anglican Christian? It 

is a spirituality that is generous and 

broad enough to speak to gut, as 

well as to heart and head. A place 

where spirituality needn’t be 

grasped merely intellectually or 

academically, but could be felt 

viscerally, bodily—and lived out 

passionately and empathetically. 

Through history and in practice, 

Christianity in the Anglican tradition 

calls us to accept difference, and 

not to reject it or even to tolerate it. 

God calls me to struggle with those 

who love the Lord yet come to 

different conclusions about faith, 

ethics and mission. I am called to 

struggle with them, and here note 

that “struggling with” means striving 

alongside, not fighting against. 

Laying aside being lay 

When I stopped ignoring God’s call 

for me to be an ordained minister, it 

wasn’t that I was being set apart. A 

few folks at CtK have referred to 

me in writing as Ian+, prompting to 

ask quizzically, “Who is this 

IanPlus?” Super-sized in the eyes 

of the Lord? No! 

My having been ordained simply 

meant I was no longer deemed fit 

to be a layperson. The vast 

majority of the Chronicle readership 

is, however, and for that the church 

trained me to see gifts in you—gifts 

of empathy and encouragement, 

proclaiming and professing, of 

serving and searching. I am here to 

support your ministry, not the other 

way around. 

Nine young adults are preparing for 

the sacrament of Confirmation, for 

the gift of the Holy Spirit to inflame 

them for their ministry as Christian 

adults. Let us hold them in our 

prayers in the coming weeks, that 

they may not become disillusioned 

and “lapsed” as I was, but that they 

be for us an example of growing 

into God’s service and calling. 

Perhaps one of them—or one of 

you—will be deemed unsuitable for 

the laity. But until then, there is a 

cross to take up, and a saving Lord 

to follow. 

Every blessing 

—Ian. 

Inside this issue 

WHERE WE ARE NOW 

Treasurer’s report 

Lifelong formation 

Search process 

UTO 

My Home Parish: Nigeria 

LOOKING BACK 

Some pictures 

Interfaith worship 

Dec. – Feb. Attendance 

UP & COMING 

AGM 

Lent study groups 

St. John Passion 

Regular events 

Chronicle change of hands 

Birthdays & Funnies


WHERE WE ARE NOW 

Where are we? Somewhere 

between where we were and where 

we are going. It is not an easy 

space but one full of promise and 

opportunity. Let’s listen to God’s 

voice, really listen, to see where he 

might be leading us. Lent is the 

perfect time for this. A time of 

reflection. Emptying ourselves. 

Searching for and hopefully coming 

just a little bit closer to the deep 

peace offered by Christ. 

--------------------------------------- 

Treasurer’s report 

Submitted by Alice Man 

We were blessed in many ways last 

year, but financially it was a very 

challenging year. There were times 

when I thought we could not 

continue without dramatic cuts to 

our expenditure. The balance sheet 

shows that we took in € 214,000 

and spent € 223,000, resulting in a 

loss of about € 9,000. We did 

budget for underfunding of € 8,000 

for 2012, hoping that unforeseen 

generosity would save us. 

Unfortunately we had to fund the 

€ 9,000 ourselves and this came 

from our savings, which are pretty 

meagre. 

The year would have ended much 

worse if our appeal to parishioners 

for assistance in the second half of 

the year had fallen upon deaf ears. 

When it became known that we 

were in need, several parishioners 

increased their regular donations or 

made one-off donations of 

substantial size. 

Our expenditure has been kept 

under careful control and regular 

payments were within the 

framework of the budget. However, 

we had to ask the Board of Foreign 

Parishes to be patient with the 

repayments of the € 31,000 of 

which we should have returned 

€ 5,000 last year, and were not 

able to do so. We also had to 

reduce the planned Outreach 

spending to € 3,895 €. 

The major part of our financial 

expenditure is personnel and we 

fortunately have been able to keep 

our dedicated and efficient staff 

and pay them promptly every 

month. Staff costs last year 

amounted to € 122,019 for the 

year. This is slightly down from last 

year as the Hausmeister position 

became vacant and because we do 

not have to pay into the American 

Church Pension scheme for the 

Interim Rector. 

The other major source of income 

is renting out our facilities to 

groups, such as K.I.D.S.- 

Kindergarten, Music Together and 

12-Step Groups. This amounts to 

about € 2,500 per month. K.I.D.S. 

has increased their payments to us 

and we are keeping records quite 

closely of their utilities share. 

The budget for 2013 has been 

compiled very carefully, and 

checked by the Finance 

Committee, consisting of Jane 

Doebler, Tim Mhagama and Todd 

Buell. The budget is drawn up with 

the assistance of the Vestry, where 

every member is a liaison to one of 

our activities. They submit the 

requests for expenditure and these 

are then incorporated into the 

budget. We have had to make 

some cuts, but have taken a leap of 

faith this year by giving our staff, 

Simon, Renate, Hans and Mira a 

small, inflation-related raise. After 

deductions this will be hardly 

noticeable in their net income, but 

we believe they should receive 

some token appreciation for their 

dedicated work. 

A major expenditure in 2013 will be 

getting a new rector appointed. We 

will probably have to interview 3 

candidates with their spouses, and 

depending on where they come 

from, we will have to pay their 

travel and accommodation costs for 

the interview weekend. Once a 

rector has been called, we have to 

pay his or her moving expenses, so 

an amount of € 15,000 has been 

included for these two expenditure 

items. 

The budget for 2013 is not a 

balanced budget, but relies once 

again on siphoning off some of our 

savings. Hopefully in 2013 we will 

only need about € 4,000 of our 

savings. A great deal of this is due


to an excellent Stewardship 

campaign. Virtually all of our 

members contribute regularly and 

many have increased their 

contributions, or pledged for the 

first time this year. 

The new mayor of Frankfurt, Peter 

Feldmann, was reported recently to 

have said, “[t]he champagne days 

are over….” He also said that the 

city of Frankfurt cannot keep on 

digging into its savings. That 

somehow rings a bell, except that 

CTK’s champagne has for a long 

time been coffee, tea and apple 

juice from Aldi. The city has come 

up with a plan of higher charges, 

e.g. for parking, tickets for 

museums and entrance fees to 

swimming pools. We can’t start 

charging € 3 an hour for parking in 

the Sebastian-Rinz-Straße, and I 

believe that wringing the last cent 

out of our members’ pockets is not 

the right way to go about increasing 

our income. But a concerted effort 

to publicize our church should be 

fruitful, and everybody in the 

congregation could and should take 

part in spreading the news about 

this wonderful community. 

--------------------------------------- 

Lifelong Formation 

Submitted by Aimee Schmidt 

Sue Vornhagen and I were blessed 

to spend the weekend of 8–9 Dec. 

2012 at St. James in Florence, 

where Ruth Ann Collins from the 

Episcopal Church Center in New 

York worked with us on 

implementing Lifelong Formation at 

the parish level. The training is a 

part of the Convocation of Europe’s 

“Academy for Parish Leadership”, a 

program to deliver quality 

education on leadership issues for 

lay members of our congregations. 

[Editor’s note: It was Sue’s second 

training with the Academy and she 

has now earned a Master Training 

Certificate, which means she can 

train others wishing to become 

Master Trainers.] 

We started by talking about the 

beginning of our formation as 

Christians. As Episcopalians, this 

usually begins with our baptism, as 

the sacrament, the church, and our 

families welcome us into the body 

of Christ. 

But what happens after baptism? 

After confirmation? We are the 

ministry of all the baptized! We 

have a responsibility to each other 

to help us grow in our baptismal 

covenant and to help one another 

live out that covenant in our 

everyday lives. 

This sounds like serious business. 

And it is. But probably the most 

inspiring message of the weekend 

is that this growth, this formation, is 

most successful when approached 

with creativity and imagination. 

Formation doesn’t have to be 

boring: it SHOULDN’T be boring! 

How often do we look at that 

baptismal covenant, or the Lord’s 

Prayer. These are powerful spiritual 

tools that when renewed with 

prayer and active reflection can 

energize our spirits and charge us 

up for the work that He has sent us 

to do, both corporately and 

individually. 

Formation is a collective effort 

Formation happens through 

ministry, and ministry is about 

relationships. It’s how our 

relationship with God is manifested 

in our relationships with one 

another. What does it mean to be a 

Christian? Ministry is about 

answering this question in 

relationships with each other. “I 

cannot understand myself until I 

understand my reaction to you.” 

This statement comes from the 

African concept of ubuntu and 

seems quite obvious at first. Yet it 

is shocking how quickly we lose 

sight of this fact in our 

individualistic western culture. And 

in our journey of lifelong formation,


we aren’t just being transformed 

ourselves. Rather, we are 

becoming transformed within the 

body of Christ in communion with 

one another. We affect each other 

(and that is as it should be!) 

Formation is a combination of 

didactics and experience. We have 

the didactic responsibility as adults 

to bring our (collective!) children (or 

new believers!) up in the Body of 

Christ. The experiences that we 

have – whether it be passive (such 

as the music that we listen to) or 

active (such as participating in a 

ministry such as altar guild) 

combine with didactic input to 

cause transformation on the 

deepest levels of our lives. This 

transformation first manifests itself 

in a wish to do something and is 

followed by the action taken up on 

that wish. 

Wow, sounds complicated! 

Ultimately, the effect is simply this: 

we need to support each other in 

our spiritual formation as members 

of the body of Christ. When we 

grow, we share that excitement 

which turns to actions that help 

others to grow. And so the cycle 

continues. 

Formation is for all ages 

Providing experiences is relatively 

easy. But the words “didactic 

responsibility” sound ominous to all 

those who don’t have a teaching 

degree (or maybe even especially 

to those who have one!). When we 

think of teaching in the church, our 

thoughts immediately turn to 

Sunday School and Youth Group. 

This is just the beginning. What are 

we doing to promote the formation 

and transformation of ALL of the 

following groups at CtK? 

• Our children are the 

wonderers. We need to 

balance guidance with the 

freedom to discover. 

• Our teens are the 

challengers. We need to 

balance giving them a sense 

of identity with letting them 

ask, “Why?” 

• Our young adults are the 

seekers. If we don’t give 

them something to seek 

after, they’ll go “somewhere 

else.” 

• Those in middle age are 

journeying. Their search has 

set them on a path. How are 

we helping them along the 

way? 

• Our elders are in the wisdom 

years. How do we reach out 

to them with all of the 

experiences that they carry 

with them? 

Each group has something to 

contribute. Each group has 

something to receive. Those who 

are in need of ministry are a gift to 

us so that we can exercise our 

baptismal covenant in relationship 

with them. 

The Charter For Lifelong 

Formation, adopted at the General 

Convention in 2009 (see 

http://formationcharter.com/ 

?page_id=23) talks about how God, 

through our church community, 

invites us, inspires us, and 

transforms us. How are we doing 

at CtK? Are we allowing the Holy 

Spirit to invite, to inspire, and to 

transform all five of these groups? 

Is there more we should do? Are 

there things we should do 

differently? 

Formation reaches outwards 

Financial and time constraints 

aside, what does our ideal local 

CtK community look like? How are 

we in ministry to one another? How 

are we in ministry as the body of 

Christ to the wider Frankfurt area? 

So I leave this empowering 

weekend in Florence with five goals 

for us. These five goals are the 

marks of mission set out by the 

Episcopal Church (see 

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/pag 

e/five-marks-mission). Are we a 

mission-oriented church? And by 

mission, I don’t mean someone 

standing at the Hauptbahnhof 

handing out tracts. I mean, are we, 

as members of the body of Christ, 

• Proclaiming the Good 

News of the Kingdom?


• Teaching, baptizing and 

nurturing new believers? 

• Responding to human 

need by loving service? 

• Seeking to transform unjust 

structures of society? 

• Striving to safeguard the 

integrity of creation and 

sustain and renew the life 

of the earth? 

It’s a big job, but someone’s got to 

do it! And that someone is the Holy 

Spirit, through us. Let us go out to 

do the work that He has given us to 

do. 

Thanks be to God! 

--------------------------------------- 

Search process 

Submitted by Sue Vornhagen 

Dear fellow Parishioners, here is a 

short update about our ongoing 

search for our new Rector. 

15 February was the closing date 

for applications. It seems we are 

quite a popular place to be as 

according to Bishop Pierre we had 

nearly 30 applications. When the 

Bishop has processed these 

applications he will send us the 

names and information on around 

10 people whom he considers 

suitable for the post and who he 

feels would fit in with CtK. 

A small committee of Vestry 

members, including myself, Abiola 

Sarnecki, Paul Neaum, Bret Durret, 

will then get together and do 

telephone interviews with these 

candidates. Hopefully we will have 

three or four candidates who will 

then be invited to come to Frankfurt 

for a weekend, meet with the 

Vestry and go through personal 

interviews. 

At the end of these visits we may 

have found our new Rector. If we 

feel we are not satisfied, we can 

ask the Bishop for more candidates 

until we are sure we have found the 

right person. 

These are very exciting times, 

please keep the Vestry in your 

prayers as we continue in this 

journey. 

--------------------------------------- 

UNITED THANK OFFERING 

2013 Campaign 

Submitted by Curry Walker 

Parish Coordinator UTO 

It is that time of year again for our 

annual fundraising campaign for 

the UTO Fund. 

What is the United Thank 

Offering (UTO) ? 

We find in the 2012 UTO Grants 

Brochure — the “United Thank 

Offering (UTO) is a ministry of the 

Episcopal Church for the mission of 

the whole church [the Anglican 

Communion worldwide]. The United 

Thank Offering is entrusted to 

promote thank offerings, to receive 

the offerings and to distribute the 

UTO monies to support mission 

and ministry throughout the 

Episcopal Church and in Provinces 

of the Anglican Communion in the 

developing world.” 

What did we collect at CtK last 

year? 

Over € 450 in small coins! 

When do we begin our 2013 

program? 

If you were in church on 10 

February Carol Hunter gave a


delightful visual presentation to the 

children on UTO, She used the 

image of the "drop in the bucket" to 

show how our small coins when 

added to those of others worldwide, 

add up to a bucket full of money! At 

the end of the presentation, each 

child received their Blue Box and a 

Euro cent to begin. I hope you were 

there, but if not, don’t despair. You 

may pick up your own little Blue 

Box in the Undercroft any Sunday. 

Look for the display in the UTO 

Window. 

Where does the money go? 

Dioceses of the Episcopal Church 

worldwide, submit grant requests to 

the UTO board, who then select 

recipients. Annually, over 100 

grant requests are submitted from 

individual dioceses or through a 

paired companion diocese of a 

developing world country. 

For example, here are some of the 

Companion Diocesan grants in 

2012: 

• Diocese of Nebraska/SUDAN: 

$11,000 to purchase 10 

bicycles and 5 motorcycles for 

the clergy to access remote 

areas. 

• Diocese of Northern 

Indiana/HONDURAS: $30,000 

for a building to house a 

sewing enterprise and medical 

services. 

• Diocese of Virginia / 

TANZANIA: $7,000 to install 

solar power equipment in the 

church to benefit the ministries 

of the community. 

These are some of the Individual 

Diocesan grants in 2012: 

• Diocese of HAITI: $100,000 to 

construct a new ceiling in a 

church damaged from in 

earthquake Jan 2009 

• Anglican Province of Brazil: 

$10,000 to purchase teaching 

materials to support the 

Project Diaconia. 

• Council of Anglican Provinces 

of Africa (CAPA): $69,256 to 

build an extension to house 

the program offices. 

As you can see from the list, the 

small coins we feed our Little Blue 

Boxes as we say a prayer of 

thanksgiving for the many 

abundant blessings we have, go a 

long way to help those who are in 

need. Every drop counts! 

Give generously to this annual 

campaign. 

When do we bring our boxes 

back to CtK? 

On Ascension Sunday, 12 May, 

wear something red and bring your 

boxes. We will collect them at the 

Offertory. If you are away, just 

bring them to church any Sunday 

after 12 May and put in the Offering 

Plate. 

Please note: We would ask that 

only EURO and US coins be 

donated. 

---------------------------------------


My Home Parish: St. John’s 

Catholic Church, Nigeria 

Submitted by Francis Richard 

My home parish is near the city of 

Jos, in the northern part of Nigeria. 

During the time of Lent, I'm 

reminded of great memories. 

Christians all over the world are 

observing the season of Lent, 

which began last week. It is a 40- 

day period marked by fasting, 

prayers, penance, repentance, selfdenial 

and works of charity in 

remembrance of the death and 

resurrection of Jesus Christ. On 

Ash Wednesday and Good Friday 

in Nigeria we don't eat meat. 

During Lent, the eating of meat and 

associated products are 

traditionally prohibited, as a mark of 

self-discipline, and a form of 

“spiritual tithing”. Key themes of 

Lent include a time to reflect on the 

social implications of Jesus who 

offered himself to be tortured, 

mocked, humiliated and killed on 

the cross next to a thief and a 

murderer — all for the benefit of 

other people's upliftment from 

oppression — and his triumph over 

them all. 

The annual season of Christians 

preparing for Easter is a time for 

taking stock of wrongs done in the 

past year, and mapping out 

corrective initiatives which could be 

practiced individually or collectively. 

In Nigeria, vigorous traditions of 

worship by the country's Christian 

community continue to have a 

great potential for fighting the ills of 

corruption, making sacrifices for the 

wellbeing of the country's education 

and health sectors, achieving 

agricultural and industrial growth, 

as well as ending kidnappings for 

quick wealth through ransoms. 

One special memory I have is of 

the stations of the cross. On the 

Thursday before Good Friday, you 

have to do a "night vision". We stay 

up all night and pray and reflect on 

Christ’s suffering for our sake. 

Everyone in our community has to 

precipitate in this ritual. While 

regarding the pictures of the 14 

stations of the cross, we follow a 

leader who initiates the prayers and 

the parishioners recite texts in 

response. 

For example, here is the text we 

recite at the first station, which 

depicts Jesus being condemned to 

death: 

Jesus, you stand all alone before 

Pilate. Nobody speaks up for you. 

Nobody helps defend you. You 

devoted your entire life to helping 

others, listening to the smallest 

ones, caring for those who were 

ignored by others. They don't seem 

to remember that as they prepare 

to put you to death. 

As a child, sometimes I feel alone. 

Sometimes I feel that others don't 

stand up for me and defend me 

when I am afraid. Sometimes I 

don't feel like I am treated fairly, 

especially if I am scolded or 

corrected. 

As an adult, sometimes I feel 

abandoned and afraid as well. 

Sometimes I too, feel like I am 

treated unfairly or blamed for things 

unfairly. I have a hard time when 

people criticize me at home or at 

work. 

Help me be grateful for what you 

did for me. Help me to accept 

criticism and unfairness as you did, 

and not complain. Help me pray for 

those who have hurt me. 

My Jesus, often have I signed the 

death warrant by my sins; save me 

by Thy death from that eternal 

death which I have so often 

deserved. 

Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be to 

the Father. 

[Editor’s Note: Francis fled Nigeria 

last year shortly after his church 

was attacked by the Islamist terror 

group Boko Haram, which has 

systematically been coordinating 

attacks on Catholic and other 

Christian churches in Nigeria. 

According to the Nigerian 

government, since January 2011 

these terrorist attacks have killed 

over 1,500 Nigerian Christians.]


LOOKING BACK 

In December we officially 

welcomed our new Interim Rector 

to Christ the King. Since the 

holidays, things have been quiet, 

but with the build-up to Lent there 

were a few highlights. See and 

read about them here… 

--------------------------------------- 

Which one is the Duchess? Memories of Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper with 

an Alice in Wonderland theme. Proceeds have gone to help cover travel costs for 

the Senior Youth to attend the Convocation YAE event in Waterloo, May 2013. 

Ian takes a jab at his welcome 

cake 

More Shrove Tuesday fun: Is it the 

Cheshire Cat? Or a Döbler in 

disguise? 

Birth of John Henry Man (grandson of 

Alice man), born on 14 December 

2012 to Verena Kowald and Jamie 

Man.


Interfaith worship at the 

Dominikanerkloster 

Submitted by David P. Steel 

Photography by Wolfgang Krieg 

Getting up at 7:30 on a Saturday 

morning means I must have been 

highly motivated. And I was. The 

idea was disarmingly simple: an all 

day workshop to learn songs of 

praise from 5 different religions, 

culminating in a public interfaith 

service in the evening. And this 

was happening in Frankfurt?! I had 

to be there. 

Almost a decade ago, I remember 

coming up with an idea for a 

website with a Hungarian illustrator. 

His daughter had just drawn a 

beautiful church with many towers, 

each with a different symbol on its 

spire: a cross, the Star of David, a 

star and crescent, the ohm sign, a 

yin and yang. It was “The World 

Church” we exclaimed and starting 

developing bold plans to make an 

interactive version of the drawing, 

so you could click on its different 

doors to learn about the different 

religions. Many faiths all housed in 

one building, a single truth 

somehow encompassing them all. 

Needless to say, the project never 

got off the ground. We would have 

needed too much time and money, 

neither of which we were as 

talented at finding as lofty 

inspirations. 

But the vision behind it really struck 

a chord with me. As a youth, I was 

often embarrassed by provocative 

questions posed by atheists: “So 

you think then when a Muslim dies, 

he will go to hell?” Of course I did, 

no matter how pious a life had led! 

That was then. That was what I had 

been raised to believe. In the 

meantime, my spirituality has 

matured along with my experience 

of the real world. Jesus, I have 

learned, may have picked up quite 

a few ideas from good old Buddha. 

And the Muslims believe that 

Mohammed stems from Abraham, 

the very same family line as Jesus 

himself. 

How different are we? Imagine if 

we could see our differences as 

enriching instead of divisive. It’s a 

utopia I agree, but on Saturday, 2 

February 2013, we got a little taste 

of that utopia. And it was actually a 

lot of fun! 

Religions experienced through 

singing 

The title of the workshop was 

“Religionen — singend — 

begegnet”. I found out about it 

through a posting by Monica 

Mueller-Roemer, who is a member 

of Frankfurt’s Council of Religions, 

one of the coordinators of the 

event. It took place in the 

Heiliggeistkirche of the 

Dominikanerkloster. 

The first half of the church had 

been cleared of its pews and was 

dedicated to a photo exhibition of 

world religions called “Religionen 

begegnet”, all taken by Wolfgang 

Krieg, who had accumulated them 

over the past years in his many 

travels around the world. Many 

thanks also to Mr Krieg for the 

pictures of our workshop on these 

pages! 

About 50 participants showed up. 

Most of them were German 

Christians, although there were 

also quite a few non-believers and 

a few clergy members, as well. 

The first workshop session was to 

learn Christian songs. Easy 

enough, right? Well, we did have 

sheet music to follow, but since I’m 

not very practiced at singing 

harmony, I found this one-hour 

crash course rather ambitious. The 

first song was in Latin (“Da pacem, 

Domine”) and the second was a 

text by Martin Luther set to music 

by Mendelssohn (“Verleih uns 

Frieden gnädiglich”). I knew 

“Gnade” was a good word, but my 

associations with “gnädig” were 

less uplifting, so I was kind of 

stumbling over half-understanding 

this text and trying to hit the 

harmonies. The session leader, 

Bettina Strübel, was fortunately not 

fazed in the slightest by her motley 

choir, and valiantly pulled us all 

together.


The next session was led by a softspoken 

Chinese lady, the Buddhist 

Master Yung Chao. She spoke 

practically no German or English 

but her delicate nods and 

endearing smiles got the message 

across fabulously. Most of all, she 

would just sing a little section of a 

prayer to us and we would repeat 

it. We did have the words to follow, 

written in the Latin alphabet, but no 

notes to read. It was like being a 

child again. You listen, you repeat. 

Little by little, the phrase becomes 

longer and more complex. You 

have to stop thinking. Go with it. 

Almost like speaking in tongues. 

The voice flows out of you. 

Through you. One of the phrases 

we were learning even reminded 

me of a melody from an old cowboy 

song. This was true multi-cultural 

transcendence! 

How do you sing harmony without 

music? For one of the chants we 

were learning, Master Chao 

instructed half of us to sing 

monotone. The other half were 

encouraged to improvise, with a 

Chinese feel, but to make sure it 

“sounds good”. It actually did. 

The third session was led by a 

Sikh family. We learned that the 

Sikh religion was something like a 

cross-over between Hinduism and 

Islam. Also, geographically, the 

Sikhs come from an area of India 

that borders with Pakistan. The 

lyrics of the song we learned, in 

fact, were about how religions may 

have different external rituals, but 

what really matters is what’s inside 

us, and that we strive to know the 

truth. 

For the Sikh song, we sat on the 

ground around the musicians and 

were asked to take off our shoes. 

By now we were prepared to just 

dive into whatever came, which 

was definitely the best approach. 

There were lots and lots of hard-topronounce 

words that we just had 

to let tumble over our lips. It was a 

very intimate and meditative 

atmosphere. We got into the swing 

of the music. Followed the ebb and 

flow of the melody. Let the 

unfathomable rhythm pick us up 

and carry us along. 

Then we had a lunch break, with a 

choice of vegetarian or kosher 

food. There were also some 

frankfurters for the carnivores. After 

this bodily refreshment, we went 

back to treating our souls to new 

tastes and inspirations. 

The fourth session was Sufi, a 

branch of Islam. The 

singer/performer Maryam Akhondy 

was our leader, a feisty lady who 

had big plans for us! Sufis believe 

in the physical expression of 

praise, with a whole range of 

gestures and postures symbolizing 

different spiritual truths. For 

instance, the dancers known as 

“whirling dervishes” come from 

Sufism. I think Maryam quickly 

understood that she would have to 

suffice with our reserved head 

bobbing for choreography. The 

music was challenging enough to 

sing, we would never manage to 

dance to it as well. A shame 

though, just a matter of time 

constraint. 

We were surprised to read the 

translation of the words we were 

singing: “If you want to get into 

paradise, come with me to the wine 

cellar…”. Weren’t Muslims 

teetotalers? Apparently, 

generalizations will always fail us. 

The song was based on a poem by 

the 14 th century Persian poet 

Hafes. Maryam said it wasn’t so


much about drinking wine, as 

embracing life in its fullest. Allah 

manifests himself in human 

ecstasy, Sufis believe, and that’s 

what drinking and dancing and 

sensuality, etc. are expressing. 

The last session was Jewish. 

Once again, a professional 

singer/performer was our leader: 

Daniel Kempin. His rich voice and 

soulful guitar had us all 

immediately under his spell. And 

then the words of the first song 

were in Yiddish, which, if you know 

German, were murkily 

understandable. 

“Schpilt zhe mir a lidl wegn 

scholem…as ale felker grojss un 

klejn soln take sich farschtejn. 

Schpil, schpil, klezmer schpil…” 

Okay, I’ll help you. “Play me a song 

of peace…so all folks both large 

and small can understand. Play 

play, klezmer play…” 

The minor melodies and 

melancholic rhythms seemed more 

than vaguely familiar, as well. Many 

of us grew up listening to Jewish 

songs, whether from “Fiddler on the 

Roof” or from dancing to “Hava 

Nagila” at school. 

Da pacem 

The culmination of this tour de 

force of world religions was an 

interfaith worship service entitled 

“Da pacem” (Give peace) in which 

we, the participants, served as the 

choir. 

The service was at 6 p.m. and 

lasted one hour. People began to 

trickle in already around 5, to see 

the exhibition, just as we were in 

the middle of figuring out all the 

stage moves we had to remember. 

Then the service began, including 

not only our songs, but also 

prayers read and sang by 

individuals from even more faith 

directions: Greek Orthodox, Baha’i 

and also a breathtaking Qur’an 

recitation. 

CtK Attendance Dec. 2012 – Feb. 2013 

Date Total Sunday 

School 

Was it more of a performance than 

a real worship service, one might 

ask. The level of participation was, 

of course, superficial, but 

nonetheless deeply moving and 

even more powerful perhaps in its 

sheer simplicity. 

When we make even the slightest 

effort to see others, to listen to 

each other with mutual respect, it 

melts down monolithic barriers in a 

matter of seconds. There is so 

much dignity that shines through 

human beings when they open 

themselves up to the divine. 

Peace is possible. If we only dare. 

--------------------------------------- 

Jnr 

Youth 

Grp 

Sen 

Youth 

Grp 

02 December 157 16 6 12 2 

09 December 102 12 6 6 / 

16 December (Lessons & 

Carols) 

160 20 / / 4 

23 December 95 / / / 4 

24 December (Pageant 4 

p.m.) 

88 / / / / 

24 December 

(10:30 p.m.) 

122 / / / / 

25 December (Christmas 

Day) 

38 / / / / 

30 December 67 / / / / 

2013 

06 January 105 6 / / 1 

13 January 118 21 / 10 1 

20 January 105 14 / 8 2 

27 January 119 7 / 10 2 

03 February 113 14 2 5 / 

10 February 130 12 5 7 2 

17 February 136 10 4 9 1 

24 February 119 15 5 / / 

Creche


UP & COMING 

The AGM, Lenten home groups a 

concert, Holy Week and beyond. 

Spring is on its way! 

--------------------------------------- 

AGM – A Celebration! 

Submitted by Paul Neaum 

As I sat down to write my reports 

for the AGM, put off, of course, to 

the last minute, I started to realize 

exactly how much happens at CtK 

in a year. There are all the things 

which I know about and attend, but 

there are also masses of events 

and meetings and worship which I 

never get to, and sometimes never 

realize is happening. 

The AGM (Annual General 

Meeting) is a time when we really 

get a chance to get some kind of 

overall picture of the variety and 

riches of the community which we 

belong to. And it is the point at 

which we get to have a real say 

about how things will develop in the 

next year and to vote for the 

Vestry: those members of the 

congregation who will be deciding 

on a monthly basis how CtK will be 

run, financially and administratively 

and representing us on a national 

and European level. 

I always find it a significant 

experience to look back with 

others, to remember what has been 

achieved, to laugh about mistakes 

and upsets, to mourn losses and to 

gather strength for the future. 

The AGM will be held in the 

Undercroft on Sunday, 10 March, 

after the worship service. The 

Vestry will be providing soup, bread 

and cheese, and it won’t be going 

on for ever, so please make a point 

of being there and sharing the 

celebration of 2012 at CtK! 

--------------------------------------- 

Lenten Study Groups 2013 

Lent is upon us and our different 

home study groups have already 

begun. You can join a study group 

at anytime and there is no 

obligation to attend all meetings, 

but we hope you’ll want to attend 

as many as possible! 

At the groups we are contemplating 

the art of British painter Stanley 

Spencer, who did a series of 

paintings on the 40 days Christ 

spent in the wilderness, which 

remind us of the 40 days of Lent. 

(Some of the paintings in the series 

are found on various pages of this 

Chronicle.) 

If you want to attend a group, 

please briefly let the leader know 

you are coming beforehand. These 

are the groups, their leaders and e- 

mail addresses: 

Tuesdays 19:30 – 21:00 

Paul Neaum, Frankfurt (near Hbf) 

paul.neaum@gmx.de 

Wednesdays 10:30 – 12:00 

Ian Gallagher, Rectory Flat 

ian@christ-the-king.net 

Wednesdays 19.30 – 21.00, 

led by Monica Mueller-Roemer 

at Marcelle Wheeler's house in 

Eschborn, Hauptstr.100. 

monica.mueller-roemer@gmx.de 

Thursdays 19:30 – 21:00 Jane and 

Martin Döbler, Bad Vilbel 

jane.doebler@gmx.de


St John Passion 

Trinity International Concert Choir 

(TICC) is performing two concerts 

of the Johannespassion by Johann 

Sebastian Bach (Passio secundum 

Joannem, BWV 245). Both Sue 

and Annette from the CtK choir are 

singing and it is sure to be an 

uplifting and inspiring concert! 

Soloists include Heike Heilmann, 

Sharon Carty, Peter Marsh, 

Francisco Brito, Nathaniel Webster, 

Simon Bailey. 

These are the concert dates and 

locations: 

Saturday, 16 March 2013, 7:30 

p.m. at the Heiliggeistkirche in the 

Dominikanerkloster, 

Dominikanergasse 5, Frankfurt 

Sunday 17 March 2013, 5:00 p.m. 

at the Basilika Maria, St. Petrus & 

Paulus, im Kloster, Kirchgasse, 

Niddatal-Ilbenstadt 

Ticket prices range between € 20 

and € 28. For further details please 

consult the choir’s website: 

http://www.ticc-frankfurt.org 

NOTE ABOUT THE ILBENSTADT 

CONCERT: This church and its 

acoustics are well-known and loved 

for concerts. Nevertheless, after 

sitting for a period of time, the old 

building can seem very cold to the 

audience member, even when the 

heat is on. It is therefore highly 

recommended that the listener 

dress very warmly and with layers, 

so that the entire performance is an 

enjoyable and comfortable 

experience. 

--------------------------------------- 

Holy Week services 

Palm Sunday, 24 March, 11:00 

Mon – Fri: Morning Prayer, 9:00 

Mon – Wed: Compline, 20:00 

Maundy Thurs, 28 March, 19:30 

Good Friday, 29 March, 11:30 

Easter Vigil, 30 March, 21:00 

Easter Sunday, 31 March, 11:00 

--------------------------------------- 

Recurring events 

The following events happen 

regularly and have set dates for the 

next three months. 

Vestry 

Customarily every third Monday of 

the month at 7:15 pm in the 

Chapel. Vestry meetings, by the 

way, are open to any CtK member 

to attend. Although you will not be 

able to vote on any measures, your 

presence and constructive 

suggestions are welcome. The 

dates for the next three meetings 

are: 

18 March 

15 April 

13 May (change from 20 May) 

Worship@Home 

Diverse locations, usually at a 

Parishioner’s home, refer to the 

Parish Weekly News or contact the 

Parish Office for location details 

and exact meeting times. These 

are the dates (all Thursdays) for 

the next three months: 

21 March 

25 April 

16 May 

LGBT Ministry 

This group usually meets every 

second Thursday of the month from 

7:30 p.m. to about 9:00 p.m. 

alternating between Wiesdaben 

(St. Augustine’s) and Frankfurt (CtK 

Chapel). Eucharist is usually 

celebrated by one of our Rectors 

and then we share snacks and 

discuss issues affecting the full 

inclusion of lesbians, gays, bisexuals 

and transgendered people 

in our Parishes. All are welcome! 

These are the next three dates and 

locations: 

14 March (Wiesbaden) 

11 April (Frankfurt) 

2 May (Wiesbaden) 

Please confirm attendance and 

dates by writing to LGBT@christthe-king.net 

---------------------------------------


The Chronicle changes 

hands 

Submitted by David P. Steel 

In the summer of 2010, when 

Jennifer+ was going into maternity 

leave, Carola+ ambushed me when 

I happened to passing by the 

church office. Within seconds I was 

“anointed” Head of 

Communications at CtK. As a 

member of the Communications 

Committee already, I saw the need. 

As a professional in the field of 

advertising and corporate 

communication, I also recognized 

my certain predestination to the 

role. As a responsible Parishioner, I 

rose to the call. 

At the same time, two other 

members of the Communications 

Committee had just left and the 

task of publishing the Chronicle on 

a regular basis was plopped in my 

lap. Since October 2010, I have 

overseen the publication of 18 

issues of the Chronicle and was 

greatly privileged to have Markus 

Back, a professional graphic 

designer, spontaneously offer to 

help revamp the layout. So, from 

day one, the profile of the Chronicle 

was elevated to a whole new level, 

which has garnered quite a lot of 

compliments both from within our 

Parish as well as throughout the 

Convocation. 

I am sad to say, however, this 

issue of the Chronicle will be my 

last. It has not been an easy 

decision, but after nearly four 

years, it is time to pass the baton 

and turn my skills and energies to 

other callings. Bret Durret has 

kindly agreed to take over as Head 

of Communications and I am sure 

he will be thrilled to receive support 

for the publication of the Chronicle, 

from anyone else who feels called. 

The best part about doing the 

Chronicle is that you really get an 

in-depth view of the many exciting 

activities going on at Christ the 

King. I look forward to being more 

involved in some of those activities 

in the future and, as needed, 

continuing to contribute to the 

Chronicle by reporting on them. 

Currently, the Chronicle is 

published on a quarterly basis. If 

that is to be upheld, the next 

release would be the June– 

August 2013 issue, which should 

be published by the beginning of 

June. 

Thanks for being faithful readers! 

---------------------------------------


Birthdays March-May 

Adults 

2 March Thomas Teppich 

3 March Gerald Schmidt 

7 March Nelisiwe Swana 

12 March Wesely Suresh 

14 March Carl Christian Mueller- 

Roemer 

16 March Geoffrey Browne 

21 March Cathy Matz-Townsend 

22 March Cathryn Sarah 

Kielmann 

24 March Lenka Ehirim 

24 March Oliver Thompson 

25 March Curry Walker 

26 March Barbara Gibbs 

28 March Barbara Born 

29 March Rebecca Döbler 

30 March Gerald Schmidt 

1 April Frauke Omoruyi 

8 April Marina Benson 

9 April Cameron Turner 

15 April Monica Mueller- 

Roemer 

15 April Alan McArthur 

18 April Andrea Doig 

21 April Jeffery Perkins 

21 April Marlin Kanzow 

22 April Suzanne Turré 

23 April Melinda Hargrave- 

Kanzow 

23 April Anneke Mees 

26 April Paul Neaum 

27 April Kay Wheeler 

28 April Philip Sladdin 

29 April Joseph Plur 

1 May Peter Mueller-Roemer 

3 May Helmut Vornhagen 

3 May John Gibson 

5 May Heidrun Alfke 

6 May Christopher Sladdin 

7 May Ward Greenberg 

7 May Mark Hauck 

8 May Victoria Holldorff 

10 May Naashika Addo 

10 May Alicen Herrmann 

10 May Thorsten Koch 

11 May Liz Hicks 

11 May Frank Weidemann 

12 May Melissa Raczek 

12 May Susannah Ashmore- 

Kopp 

13 May Hans-Dieter Gewitsch 

14 May Udo Tavares 

17 May Caroline Whelan 

17 May Laura Süß 

21 May Elizabeth Kanzow 

24 May Alice Bergmann 

25 May Carole Mason 

26 May Rekha Suresh 

27 May David Steel 

27 May Varghese Placheril 

27 May Robert Döbler 

28 May Teresa Maass 

29 May Jean Peschanel 

30 May Steven Mason 

31 May Deepa Placheril 

Children 

1 March Josephine S. 

1 March Max S. 

3 March Emily M. 

5 March Aida B. 

13 March Aaron S. 

14 March Hassan A. 

23 March Danyel D. 

24 March Sara-Noemi B. 

26 March William K. 

27 March Emelda O. 

4 April James Nelson M. 

7 April Denis H. 

11 April Brian Melvin W. 

11 April Julian Isaac W. 

20 April James C. 

21 April Stephen C. 

27 April Chiamake M. 

8 May Liam G. 

8 May Lucas S. 

12 May Kaatje G. 

12 May Victoria Mae P. 

14 May Jake Jacob T. 

15 May Alexander M. 

18 May Naomi G. 

19 May Jillian G. 

19 May Benjamin R. 

23 May Sandor K. 

23 May Diya P. 

26 May Niya P. 

30 May Tiara V.


God made a singer 

Submitted by Todd Buell 

[Editor’s note: Todd was inspired 

by the Super Bowl commercial 

“God made a farmer” and saw 

many parallels in the heart-felt text 

to his musician friends] 

And on the eighth day, God looked 

down at his planned paradise and 

said, I need someone willing to 

bring order to noise and evoke 

feelings of happiness, warmth, 

loneliness, fear and sorrow - the 

deep span of human emotions. So 

God said, I need a singer. God 

said, I...need someone willing to 

relocate to a big city, work all hours 

in restaurants, cafes and 

bookshops, to face the ire of 

impatient customers so as to pay 

the rent so that at one audition, one 

director — who might be a 

lecherous old man — could hear 

the piece and like it. 

sense of accomplishment in his 

heart when his child or her student 

looks up and says, yes, I want to 

be a singer too. 

God’s Day Off 

Submitted by Kay Wheeler 

Biblical literalism 

Submitted by Jana+ (St. Augustine’s) 

God said, I need someone who will 

practice twelve hours a day to 

compete with 800 other singers for 

one spot in one opera only to catch 

the flu the day before the 

performance and console herself 

by saying, "maybe next year." 

God said I need someone to put 

personal belief aside, someone 

willing to sing with the Methodists 

even if she is Jewish or do a solo 

with the Catholics even if he is an 

atheist, just to practice, be seen 

and heard. 

God said, I need someone who will 

smile and feel a deep warmth and


Imprint 

Church Staff 

Interim Rector 

The Rev. Ian Gallagher 

Assisting Priest 

The Rev. Jennifer Adams-Maßmann 

Parish Administrator Renate Fraiss 

Bookkeeper Hans Lang 

Dir. of Music & Young Singers Simon 

Harden 

Nursery Care Mira Dayot 

Treasurer / Finance Alice Man 

Vestry 

Senior Warden Ansgar Richter 

Jr. Wardens Sue Vornhagen 

(Administration, Personnel), 

Alan MacArthur (Buildings &Grounds) 

Millicent Addo Liaison for Worship 

Richard Coburn Clerk 

Andrea Doig Liaison for Music 

Bret Durrett 

Tim Mhagama 

Monica Mueller-Roemer 

Liaison for Ecumenical Activities 

Paul Neaum Liaison for Outreach 

Abiola Sarnecki 

Liaison for Christian Education, Creche 

Wesley Suresh 

Liaison for Communications 

Charles Tall Liaison for Stewardship 

Address 

Sebastian-Rinz-Strasse 22 

60323 Frankfurt am Main, 

Germany 

Telephone +49 (69) 55 01 84 

Fax +49 (69) 55 01 86 

Email office@christ-the-king.net 

Bank Transfer Details 

Evangelische Kreditgenossenschaft 

E.G. 

BLZ 50060500 

Konto 0004102061 

Sunday Services 

11:00 Holy Eucharist 

10:45 Sunday School – Chapel 

11:00 Jr. Youth Group 

10:30 Sr. Youth Group 

Office Hours: 

Monday – Thursday: 8 am – 1 pm 

Other times by appointment 

The Rector’s day off is Friday 

Chronicle Editor & Layout: 

David P. Steel

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do ... - Christ the King

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?