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Jena, Church Life and Village Study
After more than a month in Jena, Goshen SSTers feel at home as
they move around this city of contrasts.
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The Jena skyline dominated by the 25-story tower built during
Socialism and now retrofitted by a computer venture. Nearby is the old
city wall and gate and many restored half-timbered houses. |
Schillerkirche, where Friedrich Schiller was married, has a metal
flag on top with a date of 1307. |
Right downtown is the Goethe Galerie, a modern shopping center
with many fine shops and restaurants. |
There's always room in the city for a "Grüne Lunge,"
here a beautiful park. |
Church Life
Many SSTers find satisfaction in regular church attendance.
Several sing in a choir and Merlin plays the drums at Lutherhaus from
time to time! Brett's host family took him along to Berlin to the big
Kirchentag, an event that drew over 200,000 visitors, mainly from
the Lutheran and Reformed churches but also from other Protestant groups.
There was even a Mennonite information stand there, Brett reports. For
the first time this year German Catholics were included, making it truly
ecumenical. No photo of this, but Brett reports: "The main reason I
went to Kirchentag was because I knew I was going to miss the
Atlanta Menno Conference this year. What I miss most about that is the
people - it's such a fulfilling time worshipping with friends and fellow
believers. My experience at Kirchentag was fabulous because that
is exactly what I experienced - worship with friends and fellow
believers - the people at Kirchentag."
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Some of the classical two cylinder Trabis have outlived Socialist
days and can still be seen, and heard, on the streets of Jena almost
every day. |
A comfortable bedroom helps make the stay pleasant in
Jena! |
And the food in Jena is wunderbar, even when prepared by
Goshen SSTers! Here Emily and Danielle with the Erdbeertorten they
made for a group meal at the Reimers! |
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Host Families
The Gastgeberfamilien play a most significant role in
the SST experience: conversation partners, interpreters of culture,
friends, tour guides . . . and the list goes
on.
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Dan King leaving Lutherhaus after the Sunday morning service. Dan
Stutzman's host father is the pastor of this church. |
John's host mother is the pastor of the Lutheran church in
ZwÃtzen. For their Ascension Day service this congregation met on
Heiligen Berg overlooking Jena. John Weldy, Phil Kendall and Dan King
sing in the choir. |
After the Ascension Day service the congregants met in the
pastor's Garten where there were salads, Bratwurst and
drinks enough for all. |
Dan King took this picture of his host parents, the HÃmmerlings,
while on a Sunday afternoon outing with them. |
Rosemary Reimer and Martin Stimper, host brother to Emily and
Danielle, enjoying a grill party in the Stimpers'
Garten. |
Again Danielle and Emily, here engaged in a real medieval
experience at children's day at Neuenburger Schloss during an outing with
the Stimper family! |
Village Study
An important part of the SST experience was the so-called
village study. This is a two-day assignment designed to help students
experience life outside of Jena, make friends with strangers, adapt to
new circumstances, put their German to use, do elementary field research,
use informants as the means of gaining knowledge about a community, and
make decisions about daily survival needs.
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John and Dan on the train heading for Gotha, their assigned
village study destination. |
Sabine, a Gotha resident, takes pleasure in giving information
on her city to three Goshen students. |
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