March 2000
Rudi and Kirsten Blümcke, 660001 Krasnojarsk, ul. Menschinskogo
16a kw.109, Russia;
tel+fax: 007 3912 440160; e-mail: rubl@online.ru
Krasnojarsk, 15 March 2000
Dear friends!
It is time that I begin to write the next letter. Already in December last year I tried to persuade Kirsten to take over this function - not that I would not desire to do it; no, I need time to arrange my thoughts a little. If I simply take you into my experiences, and experiencing, then I fear a certain chaos. A lot keeps me busy at present and I think that particularly reading some books contributed to it. Above all the Black Book of Communism on the one hand has agitated me, and on the other hand has really broadened and at some points corrected my understanding in a historical and world-political view. [Original German version: Stephane Courtois et al., "Das Schwarzbuch des Kommunismus. Sonderausgabe. Unterdrückung, Verbrechen und Terror," Piper, Munich, 1999. English translation: Stephane Courtois et al., "The Black Book of Communism: Crimes, Terror, Repression," Harvard University Press, 1999.] I know this book is somewhat disputed, meanwhile for unauthorized resisting of a left intelligence, which does not dare also after scrapping the Iron Curtain to look back and analyze exactly. It was easy to for a long time chic to be leftist - at that time I also had a Che Guevara poster in the room and actually knew only that he had died somewhere in South America for a good cause. The eternally left intelligence now insists rigidly on the fact that the rule of National Socialism is and remains the mess of the century. Now whole libraries have been written about the Nazis, the cruelties and obscenities of the Soviets (that did not begin only under Stalin), than now come only partially to daylight, by the even if only temporary opening of KGB files. The Black Book is a first attempt at a thorough, scientific processing of these materials. I can only hope that this book is translated as fast as possible into Russian. What use is it to the victims of this regime, if Frenchmen, Englishmen and Germans read about it?
For a long time not all people in the Eastern Block were communists and many who were are not any longer, but the contempt of people and the worthlessness of the human life in communism entrenched themselves deeply in the souls of people, so that in the Congregation we often have to work with their consequences. Abyss-deep distrust, inconsiderate egoism, ignoring the worth of people, and inability for open dialog, I observe rather frequently. I pray for God's intervention in this maltreated country. I dream of the moment, where people in the former states of the so-called Eastern Block react to a coalition with a communist party in exactly the same way as the Western European states have now reacted to Austria. But enlightenment is a foreign word in Russia - a majority of the population still lives in the conviction that they did not live badly among the communists. This is due is related on the one hand to the fact that a person who previously was lying on the ground paralyzed with fear, did not feel also his chains, because he did not move, on the other hand is naturally at the ruling powers, who today are often much too busy stuffing their pockets instead of engaging themselves for Russia. Also who has ever done that? Where are the models? I read also a book about a Frenchman, who traveled around this country in the 19th century - thus before the October Revolution. (Astolphe de Custine: "Russian Shadows" prophetic letters from the year 1839). He makes at that time observations already very parallel to mine today, even if he expresses them in sometimes almost intolerable cynicism. In Russia it seldom goes about the fact, it is almost always a matter of power, authority and reputation. If in Germany injustice essentially must be justified (everything for the party...), in Russia constantly Potemkin-esque villages are built, particularly for the foreigners - and that is hardly despicable in the Russian understanding.
In order to get power and not lose face, suitable statements will simply be made, and then that is so - the why-question is missing. The different evaluation of the events in the Kosovo or still in Chechnya are good examples of it. In addition the remarks of the Russian Patriarch interested me for the present situation in Kosovo (published in G2W 2000/28 Volume Number 2). Clear distinctions - the West liberal, disbelieving and Godless, the East blessed tradition-conscious, God-pleasing, and everything that doesn't look like that here, in the eyes of the church naturally comes from America. No one can tell me that such statements are really about the facts; it is a matter of power and authority. It is not easy to take itself seriously. No enlightenment has found its place; power in Russia has simply never come into question. I would even say that there was never a real revolution in Russia. The October Revolution was never a worker and a farmer movement - on the contrary, each worker or farmer who opened his mouth and deviated only a little from Lenin, got his mouth closed. So much blood flowed in this country and so many brains washed that I am often surprised, that some people have happiness and joy of life and could go through life insensibly. Stephane Courtois writes "what remains today of this in their historically important amazing work (Gorki 1924 in a Homage at Lenin) ? Not an illusory building up of socialism, but a tremendous tragedy, that rests on the lives of hundreds of millions of people and will shape the transition in the third millennium." Sometimes I am close to being ashamed of my probably protected, unsuspecting, satisfied life. On the other hand I can live with it here, even if I am not accustomed to being devoured by people, by work, by impressions and of exhaustion.
What is new in our Congregation? Each Sunday a few new faces sit in the pews and mostly I do not know where they come from - no matter, our prayers are heard, and the Congregation grows, despite continuous departure of German Russians. At present we generally have around 90 people in the Sunday service. For the statisticians: The average service attendance in 1999 was around 20% higher than in the year before. Thus naturally the tasks in the Congregation also grow, and I had to cut back drastically on travels to the village Congregations, because they simply were taking too much energy. In December Kirsten wrote in detail about the children and youth work. At present we are working feverishly on the preparation of youth camps in August. Moreover I am pleased that in May we can hold our first congregational seminar together with Dieter Grimmsman and Klaus Schulz from Germany. Our topic will be the Body of Christ - what does it mean to live in Christian marriage, what is Christian child education, as we go around in the Congregation with conflicts... anxiously. We will organize three open evenings beforehand, to which we will also invite the other congregations of the city. Our relation to the Charismatics and Petecostals, and particularly to the Catholics is still very good. In January we celebrated our common prayer traditionally with them. In the same month I also invited individual representatives of the church congregations that are occupied with diaconical work in the city. There was first a very lively exchange about each congregation's activities, from hospital visitation, prison ministry, and aid to the poor, to work with street children, to work with drug-dependent. All were very much surprised at the multicolored picture which we painted together there. Now after this meeting and the exchange of addresses and telephone numbers, first timid attempts begin to help mutually or ask for assistance, however now that we already have become acquainted with ourselves a little, and have determined that we have same goals and motives to help people, and this was an important step. In May the next meeting will take place and we will want to make that a regular arrangement. A further innovation - Tatjana prepared and together with some women from the Congregation celebrated the world prayer day of the women. A successful evening, of which many have talked for a long time. I hope that will also become a good tradition.
At Christmas last year we published a first newspaper for the congregations in our Propstei [district]. Oleg, a young physicist, co-designed the student newspaper at the university and helps with organization. It is to appear now each second month and I planned to publish in each issue a sermon in German and in Russian, in order to give to the village congregations the possibility of an alternative to the sermons from the last century. Meanwhile our office is already much too small for all the many activities there. Stanislava, our Intern from the Czech Republic, now seems to have found her place with us; she visits a large number of old persons and lonely ones from the Congregation, in addition, the patients of the diaconical work and thereby performs a very valuable service. At present moreover we have Stefanie Endruweit with us, a theology student from Heidelberg. She will be with us for 6 weeks, and then the next week Alexander Goß comes, for a similar period, from Novosaratowka, our theological seminary at St. Petersburg. We do what we can to support the development of young theologians above all here in the country. Thus in the summer one of the first Vicars from Novosaratowka will come to us for a whole year. Yes, and then the anticipated joy grows for Fendlers, who will come to Krasojarsk in August, if all goes smoothly with the birth of their child and the negotiations between the churches. We were particularly pleased that it is going well again with Stefanie; after earlier problems in her pregnancy, she could take care of her second theological exam, and now with Michael began an intensive study of Russian. Also here in Krasnojarsk the two will spend the first half year with nothing other than studying the language. Starting from February next year, I have large hope that we will be able tackle an abundance of the work in Congregation, Propstei, and Eparchie [organizational levels of the church] together.
Concerning the Diakonia and our projects, in which we deliver warm meals and distribute food and medicines, we had to form a commission, that decides concretely on each individual case, and we see how difficult that is. What does one do with an old woman, who obviously spends her entire pension on western luxury goods for her children and grandchildren - for her a matter of course - and then asks us for financial assistance, in order to buy urgently needed medicine for her heart disease? What do we make of the young men, who constantly oscillate from the Catholics to the Baptists and then to the Lutherans, in order to get humanitarian assistance and food everywhere - this occupation became for them a type of work? Overall we determine again and again, terms such as mercy or charity are foreign words here in Russia. Also for many people from the Congregation it is not quite understood, why we help others outside of the Congregation who do not belong. Much was regulated here about privileges, because one pays attention to them. The criterion that one really needs assistance is difficult for some to grasp, and there always is an argument that one is in debt oneself...
Now the increasing numbers of members and activities among us lead to a strong desire for our own Church building. At the outset I had to stress again and again that I see my responsibility to build the Congregation, and then the Congregation can build the Church. I think it is appropriate and worth the expense that we have begun to search for a suitable building in the city. A two-story house with full basement was offered to us at the edge of the city center for purchase. It meets to our needs rather exactly with approx. 450 square meters. We would have a place for a sanctuary for worship services, room for child and youth work, choir and Bible circles, and also our Diakonia station under the same roof. Additionally it would provide enough space for office, and I think it also a small library and a chapel. The house is built very solidly and in a very good condition, only it is offered us for a horrendous price. The company that owns it wants 140,000 US Dollars. So we have begun to raise money for it abroad, and in addition, among our own members. I am deeply moved by the fact that our Congregation collected 1000 DM within three weeks (I did nothing!!). Anyone who knows the salaries in Russia, knows what for a sum is for a Congregation that consists to a majority of pensioners, single mothers, and students. In the church council we now talk often about the building question, and pray again and again that God shows and gives us our house. Naturally we also look for alternatives, in case we would not raise the large amount, but so far someone has only offered us a cinema ruin in a very remote quarter of the city.
Finally I want to tell a little about a visit to Irkutsk, which gave Kirsten and me the possibility of traveling once without the children in this beautiful country. The cause of our visit was the wedding of Thomas and Jenja. Thomas we became acquainted with, when he visited us here in Krasnojarsk the first time. He comes from Germany and here in Siberia buys wood, and with Baptists in Irkutsk has built a large pathfinder work, particularly with street children, with regular child care. Jenja is one of the woman employees with the pathfinders and by occupation is a nurse. It was naturally a very beautiful celebration - with many children in the wedding service. Among the invited guests was also Mrs. Fischer-Dietzel (formerly Fischer-Ruge), who supports the work with children. Additionally I had the opportunity to get to know better the Catholic bishop Mazur with a lunch together. He is also responsible, since half a year ago, for our area in Krasnojarsk, and so had we a number of common interests.
Then we particularly enjoyed a two-day trip to lake Baikal. On the tracks of Klaus Bednartz we went over the lake with the auto to the island Alchon. It is a somewhat strange feeling to drive on an ice surface which looks like a windowpane, in the knowledge that under us are approximately 1.5 kilometers water. Now and then we came also to cracks and breaks in the ice, which we then had to either to have then drive around a long ways or skip over courageously with a long start. The landscape is there is easily breathtaking, not to describe in a letter - the films of Bednartz are made very affectionately and allow something of the beauty of the Baikal to be imagined. Better, one drives. We stayed overnight with Nikita (who also comes forward with Bednartz) on the island; he has built some simple timber buildings for tourists and regales one there excellently. It was particularly beautiful for me, to visit and sit down with fishermen on the surface of the ice into its small tents, in which they struck a hole in the ice and set their nets in the water. There one sits beside the round stove and talks about life, while they carefully pull their nets out and release from the meshes the Omul (special type of salmon in the Baikal) and some other types of fish, which I have never seen (most of the types of fish in the Baikal exist only here). I could imagine well that we were not there for the last time, and perhaps would enjoy a few days there with the children.
In the summer we will come again to Germany, however very early this year. In the second week of May I have a Pastors' conference in Budapest and thereafter will directly fly on to Germany. Our stay is already very planned, with vacation and Congregation activities, and then must we be back again punctually to conduct our youth camps, and then must also get Jonathan back to school. In any case we look forward very much to many meetings, but nevertheless hope that we will also get a little rest in Germany. I will probably go back and forth by motorcycle now and then, so I can shift gears. We wish you all God's blessing and ask always for your prayers for this large country with many callings for a small Christian Congregation. Your Blümckes