Christ in the Center

Ufa
 A good tradition of hosting theological seminars has been established in the Lutheran church in Ufa. At the end of last year there was such a seminar with participants from Bashirk State Pedagogical University, and recently a week-long seminar on the theme “Christ in the center” was held in the diaconal center of the Ufa kirche. It ran from February 20 to 24 with participants from congregations in Ufa, Sterlitamak, Orenburg, Sol-Iletsk, and the village of Prishib. Seminary President Anton Tikhomirov spoke about justification, the theology of the Word in Lutheran theology, and the theology of the Cross. Igor Zhuravlev spoke about prayer and an overview of the Gospels of Mark and John. Bradn Buerkle spoke about the synoptic Gospels, diaconal service and Christian ethics. There was a lot of dialog and discussion in these themes, including exercises and watching the films “Winter Light” and “Silence” together.
It seems that during such events the idea of the Reformation that Martin Luther led 500 years ago are brought to life - Christianity as a system of faith becomes no longer the prerogative of the clergy but belongs truly to the people. Through studying together the Word of God becomes clear and understandable to ordinary people and they begin to build all aspects of their life around it.
Sergei Rusakov

A New Bell Rings Out in Ufa

Just before the beginning of Lent, on February 13, a bell was installed in the belltower of the Lutheran church of Ufa. As congregational pastor, Heinrich Minich, reported, the bell was custom ordered at the Shuvalov Brothers' Yaroslavl Bell Factory.

Lutheran bells have somewhat different characteristics than Orthodox bells. The weight of this bell is 150 kgs and was installed by congregational members with the help of special equipment. The bell will be on an automatic ringer and manual ringing will be unnecessary. The following words are etched on the outside of the bell: “the Lord is with us until the end of the age.”
The bell was purchased with the help of the “Ural” charitable foundation headed by the former president of Bashkortostan, Murtaza Gubaidullovich Rakhimov.
Sergey Rusakov

'The Sprout' Has Sprung

Ufa
The Lutheran congregation in Ufa has won a competitive grant from the administration of the President of the Russian Federation for the “Sprout” social service project which prepares 5-6 year old children from underprivileged families for school.
On January 21 there was a meeting between teachers, parents and representatives of the Ministry of Labor and Welfare for the Sovetsky neighborhood of Ufa, and on the 28th of January lessons with children began. The teachers themselves purchases everything needed for the lessons. At the end of the first day the children were filled with joy; they went back to their respective homes with their nice looking school bags, excitedly telling their parents about their impressions.
The teachers Zimfira Valeeva (the director of the project), Ilya Vengele, Nina Tagirova have significant experience working with children and love their life's work; now they will prepare kids for school in different areas – general studies, the basics of English and computer skills, and physical education exercises.
Elvira Hartman

The Social Mission of Christianity

Ufa

Anyone who has ever visited a temple of any confession knows is familiar with the scene of beggars on the steps, the poor who ask for a penny and offer to pray for you in return. There is nothing unusual about this; we are used to seeing these “people of God” who are willing to pray for us, since it seems that we have little time for that ourselves.

500 years ago, however, Martin Luther thought that something needed to be done about poverty, that it wouldn't do to have a neighbor enslaved by hunger and need. Lutherans eventually began a movement – the diaconal movement – to serve orphans, the poor and homeless. All over the world Lutheran congregations distribute clothing and groceries to the needy, volunteer to take care of the elderly and the sick.

Not that long ago a diaconal enter was established at the Lutheran congregation in Ufa. On April 6-8 there was a seminar about the development of diaconal ministry there. Rainer Stahl, long-time secretary of Martin-Luther-Bund as well as visitation bishop Norbert Hintz and his wife Elizabeth took part. Local participants included the pastor of the Ufa congregation, Genrich Minich, the Area Dean of Bashkortostan Sergei Goltzvert, church council president Elvira Gartman and members of the Ufa congregation.

The guests spoke in detail about the principles of diaconal ministry and its history as a social phenomenon. Elizabeth Hintz spoke about the wife of Martin Luther, Ekaterina von Bora, who was a great supporter of Luther in his work as well as being a wonderful mother and housewife.

At the end of the seminar there was an organ concern during which those in attendance had the chance to appreciate this type of spiritual music.

Sergei Rusakov

Tea with Milk, Paul with Luther, Bashkortostan with Sisters and Brothers

Ufa

It is hard for me to say which part of my ministry I enjoy more - returning to congregations where I have already been (which gives me the chance to see how God has been working there since my last visit) or coming to a place for the first time. The latter not only gives me the chance to meet new brothers and sisters in faith but, almost without exception, teaches me something new about the country where I am serving. This is particularlly true, I've found, when visiting regions of the country with significant regional ethnic and/or religious differences. This was the case when I visited Ufa, the capital of Bashkortostan, a majority-Muslim region in the eastern part of European Russia.
In just a few days there one could feel some differences - in the way people looked, in the architecture and pace of life, in the tea they drank (everyone had it with milk)... in short, Ufa showed me that this huge country can continue to surprise me.

The Lutheran congregation in Ufa, however, fit in to a pattern I have seen in many places around the country - a strong lay woman, inspired by her faith and driven by a God-given strong will, accomplishes the miraculous.  In this case her name is Elvira; she (not single handedly, of course, but certainly as the leader of the charge) was able to get the local government to return the congregation's historical building. 

Not only that, she is able to find sponsors - in this case many of them local - to restore the "kirche," and today it is a small but beautiful church snuggled in Ufa's historical center. But the story doesn't stop there. Elvira was able to find a way to dismantle the warehouses that had been built in Soviet times on former church property and have built in their place a new congregational center. As sometimes is the case here, while all of these practical concerns have been on the front burner, congregational life as such has been given less of a priority. A clear witness to this fact - Sunday worship in which large parts of the liturgy are translated from German into Russian; hardly a satisfactory worship experience for anyone new, and certainly unnecessary when there there are no exclusively German speaking people in the congregation. 

I learned all of this during the past month, after long discussions with congregational leaders finally lead to my first seminar in the region. The idea began to take shape in conversation with an extension student from Ufa at the Theological Seminary and started to take on concrete form after speaking with the congregation's at the pastors' gathering in Crimea in September 2016. We agreed then that the February Men's Day holiday weekend would be the best time, and we were not mistaken - free days without many obligations led to us being able to attract a good-sized group of participants.
Pastor Igor Zhuravlev joined me for this seminar to help me teach on " Paul and Luther," insofar as I have wanted for quite some time to give him the opportunity to teach and to put to use the Master's degree in theology that he earned at the Christian university in St. Petersburg. Originally I had thought that it would be the two of us teaching, but in the end Anton Tikhomirov joined us to take part in two days of teaching. While these changes led to greater cost for transport, this seminar's overall expenses were kept low thanks to local contributions (which covered room, board, and local transport).

Our time in Ufa was broken up into a number of segments – teaching for members from the Bashkortastan and Orenburg deaneries, a public theological conference on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, a youth group meeting (the first time I've led youth group for many years; I chose the theme “Be yourself, be free”) and worship.

The seminar was well attended, with 18-23 participants engaged at various moments. The conference (with speakers arranged by the local congregation in particular through ecumenical and scholarly contacts) had seven speakers and around 30 participants. 

The wonderful facilities and hospitality in Ufa created a very positive environment for such seminars. There seemed to be a hunger there to expand and deepen congregational life and, while the topic was challenging for those who are not used to dealing with theology, I found that the participants were good, engaged listeners. I pray that as they look forward to their next steps I can help play a positive role in their journey of discipleship. 

Bradn Buerkle

Spiritual Music on a New Instrument

Ufa,Russia
   On Pentecost Sunday, May 15th, the Ufa Lutheran Church hosted a concert of spiritual music. It so happened that just a few days before the holy day a new organ arrived in the church from St. Petersburg; the organist for the charity concert was Maestro Vladislav Murtazin, a famous organist from Bashkortostan.
  The concert, which was held right after Sunday service, was attended by citizens of Ufa from all (or no) religious traditions. Before the performance of the famous organist, the children's assemble of ancient music “The Magic Flute” demonstrated their skills; later they placed together with Vladislav Murtazin. 

  The congregation's members express their thanks to their sponsors – the “Ural” charity fund and its president Murtaze Rakhimov and the city parliament member Iosif Marach for their help in securing the purchase of this musical instrument. 

  Sergei Rusakov

Making the Church Visible

Ufa, Russia
  For 5 years already congregation members in Ufa have been making step by step progress toward the re-construction of their church complex. There are three buildings of historical importance there, including the Lutheran church. On January 11th members of the congregation were invited to a public hearing where they could speak their minds and give their agreement to the latest plans for the development of the territory. 
  Today, despite the fact that the church is located in the city center, it is almost invisible; beyond the fence that surrounds the church campus are old, single-story buildings and make-shift garages -an “inheritance” from the Soviet past. In the winter it is sometimes difficult to get there because of snow drifts or ice. Now it has been come that soon the people of Ufa will be able to see that their city has a kirche and where it is located. If the plan that was approved at the public hearing really comes to fruition, this will not only meet the demands of the law, it will also make it possible to clean up the territory around the church and make it visible. 
Elvira Hartman 

The Lutheran Church in Ufa today.

The city's plans for the reconstruction of the neighborhood

Youth Seminar - Love and Responsibility

Ufa

What does the family look like in the contemporary world? How much does it differ from that understanding that we had 50 or 100 years ago? How much do societal factors affect families? These and other questions were addressed at a youth conference held February 6-7 at the Lutheran church in Ufa and with the participation of Lutheran, Catholic and Orthodox congregations of the city. 

Dedication of a Diaconal Center in Ufa

Ufa 

On November 22 Archbishop Dietrich Brauer dedicated the building of a new diaconal center in Ufa.. The building process began in 2014, after the long-term projects of restoration of the church building and the parsonage were completed. The two-story diaconal center was built quickly, and thanks to constant financial support the total cost came to 15.3 million rubles. The largest part of that money - 14.6 million - came from a local charity fund, "Ural." The rest came from Martin Luther Bund and Gustav Adolf Werke, while the congregation also contributed 100000 rubles. 

But receiving financing is only part of a successful project. No less important is using the finances well. The building project was coordinated by Elvira Gartman, the church council president. At the Sunday worship service in the Ufa kirche, just after the dedication of the building, Archbishop Brauer gave Mrs. Gartman a medal for service to the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

The end of the building work is just the beginning. Now Ufa Lutherans will have a difficult and interesting tasks - deciding how to use this building for works of mercy and to fill it with new life. At present the congregation does not have a clear plan regarding how to do this. There are a few different ideas and they will be explored and developed as time goes on. Of course cooperation and learning from others will a big part of that work.

That was the topic of discussion at the round table hed on November 23rd in the diaconal center. Taking part were representatives of various religions and Christian denominations, NGO's and the Bashkirtostan government. The meeting was led by Pastor of the Ufa congregation, Genrich Minikh. Church workers from the local Orthodox and Roman Catholic congregations shared their experience in diaconal ministries, and they experienced their willingness to cooperate on future projects. The Bishop's Vicar of ELCER, Norbert Hintz, gave a moving example of diaconal work in the Germany context. The Muslims of the republic also expressed their good wishes. 

ELC Archbishop Dietrich Brauer, in his opening words at the round table, emphasized that "diaconal work is our answer to God's grace." May this answer given by the Ufa congregation in response to gaining a diaconal center be a worthy one! 

Office of the Archbishop

Mission Week in the Congregations of Bashkortostan

Ufa, Russia
 The Bishop's Assistant in the ELCER, Nobert Hintz, made visits to the Lutheran congregations in Ufa, Sterlitamaka, and the village of Prishib from the 20th to the 25th of November.
  During these meetings there were Bible lessons, worship and also the visit to the Catholic church in the village of Alekseevka and the Lutherans in Davlekanovo. On the 25th there was a meeting to discuss the plans for finishing the building of the diaconal center. This meeting was attended by ELCR Archbishop Brauer, Nobert Hintz, Area Dean Sergey Goltswert, the representative of the “Ural” charitable foundation Andrey Ignatenko, the Bashkortostan  - Germany friendship committee and representatives of local, county and state government.
  During the meeting the crucial role of the “Ural” foundation in financing the project was discussed. They contributed more than 15.3 million rubles to the work of restoration of the church and the parsonage, as well as to the building of the guard station and the diaconal center. The rebirth of the Lutheran church – an architectural monument – began with the building being returned to the church in 2000. Since that time the Bashkir Republic, the Martin Luther Union, the Gustav Adolf Foundation and congregation members contributed to its restoration, which began in 2007. In 2015 the interior and grounds work should be finished.
  After this meeting finished congregational members from the 3 congregations had the chance to meet with Archbishop Brauer and discuss with him the current state of affairs in the ELCER as well as the possibilities for further developing diaconal ministry. Every day of the mission week was filled with joyful meeting, God's word and an atmosphere of mutual support.