German National Pastors Conference

On July 6-9, the national pastors conference for our German church was held at the Theological Seminary in Kniebis. Tom was able to attend most of the conference, although responsibilities back in Rudersberg forced an early depature. The main speaker for the conference is a relatively new member of the Church of God - Professor Dr. Michael Dieterich, who is also the leader of Biblical Therapeutical Counseling in Freudentstadt.

Dieterich is a specialist in personality profiles and therapeutical intervention. The topics he facilitated with the pastors were (1) burnout, (2) marital counseling, (3) and counseling and sexuality. These seminars were complemented by workshops with Erich Schneider (barriers to church growth), Christian Krumbacher (water baptism) and Karl Schneider (church organization).

Of special interest in the discussions was the ramifications of a recent change in German law. For over 100 years, churches were not allowed to marry any couple that had not previously gotten legally married. (Typically, a couple would legally marry on Friday and hold the religious ceremony on Saturday.). The new law now allows churches to hold a religious wedding ceremony even if the couple has not gotten legally married. (And no, the church or pastor cannot marry a couple in the legal sense (juristically) - in contrast to the American practice.)

So, does the church marry a couple that is not willing to make their commitment legally binding? And what about widows/widowers who would lose their spouses pension or widow's pension if they were to legally remarry?