5th LPNI - Germany - LPNI

PNI Study Tour to New Zealand- September 24 - October 1, 2015.

Thirty-one people participated in either part 1 or parts 1 and 2 of the LPNI Study Tour to Germany. Participants included parish nurses and others from Australia (2), Germany (6), Palestine (1), Papua New Guinea (1), and the United Kingdom (1) and the USA (24)

The study tour provided opportunities for all participants to share highlights of their specific parish nurse or health ministry, visit the diaconate workers in Germany, and discuss differences between the socio-political and structure of the  church as it relates to parish nursing. The parish nurses served congregations as small as 35 active members and as large as over 700 active members.  Some parish nurses are paid; others are unpaid.  Some are in solo practices; others have a team of nurses or caring volunteers.  All shared both trials and triumphs.  All expressed joy in serving the Lord .

In addition to sharing information about parish nursing and related diaconal work in the various congregations and Lutheran church bodies, other highlights included

• The faith of an Iranian lady that served us at the Mutterhaus in Speyer.  This lady is a Christian convert from Islam and radiated the love of Jesus in all she did.  We did not know her language and she did not know ours but the message was clear—she loved the Lord.  We presented her with a canvas bag that had the LPNI logo on it and she was overjoyed that we would give her a gift.  More important than the bag was the assurance we gave her of our prayers for her and her witness.
• A visit to Buchenwald Camp where we lamented the demonstration of man’s inhumanity to man—then and now.
• A pilgrimage through the Luther  sites in Eisenach Erfurt, and Wittenberg.
• An overview of the Wittenberg Project by Rev. David Mahsman.  We were surprised to learn that the area once known as East Germany has the largest percentage of non-believers in the world.
• A visit to Berlin provided a contrast between the Berlin of yesteryear and the Berlin of today.  One of the members of our group recalled being “rescued” by the Berlin airlift and still expresses gratitude to the Americans.  We saw the location of the former Berlin wall and “Checkpoint Charlie” and prayed that one day we can also say the former separation wall and checkpoints in Bethlehem.

The final evening of the study tour was filled with sharing memories, giving thanks to God, and returning home strengthened by knowing that Lutheran parish nurses are known to serve in 11 countries and inquiries have been made in several others. Some photos are included in the side panel.