Germany: Hamburg, Hannover,  Nürnberg, Stuttgart

Peace Tour IV-Germany, Hamburg
November 3, 2006 

Pastor Solomon Enofe, head of the United Church of God - Grace Arena, offered to host a minister from America on his visit to Hamburg. He is a friend of Josias Johnson from Benin, who has been contacting and serving African churches in Hamburg.

The Hamburg community hosted three events: first was with Mr. Ken Owens hosted by the Ganz family and second with Rev. Richard Sapp hosted by the Graef family. The families who attended those events gathered at 7:00 in the evening at the United Church of God. Including 12 people from the African community, there were more than 60 participants. With Reinhold Merta as the emcee, the event began with a prayer offered by Pastor Solomon. Rev. Sapp gave a powerful reading of True Father's speech. The Blessing ceremony was conducted in a peacefulatmosphere.
 
Musician from the African church enlivened the atmosphere. Pastor Solomon began dancing, and one by one people stood up and joined him. The circle of dancing became bigger and bigger, creating a sense of unity. God’s amazing grace was manifest in the "Grace Arena."

Mieko Toelke

Peace Tour IV-Germany, Hannover
November 3, 2006 
 
Hannover (Ludwig Harms House, Hermannsburg)
Rev. Betty Jeanne Tatalajski
 
Two pastors from the Hermannsburger Mission agreed to give a report about their work and meet the visiting pastor, Rev. Betty Tatalajski from Arizona. 

She arrived at the Hannover airport and was immediately taken to Hermannsburg. Even though she didn’t have time to change her traveling clothes, she remained poised and confident. 

When the two pastors from the mission arrived and were introduced to Rev. Betty, she embraced them with her motherly spirit and they were moved. Her motherly heart, attendance to True Parents, and commitment to the tour made a deep impression. They sat together at one of the tables as Lothar Schlichting translated the opening of the program. Fourteen people attended, including some who had traveled two hours from Bremerhafen.

Pastor Stegmaier gave a short introduction about the history of the Ludwig Harms House, and Pastor Meyer reported about his mission work in South Africa. When Rev. Betty came to the podium to read Father’s speech, she asked Pastor Meyer to translate for her as she spoke few introductory words. With a large smile, he went forward and stood next to her. She spoke of how Rev. Moon had given her this mission to spread his word of peace to the world. “You might not understand everything, but please listen with your heart.” Pastor Meyer translated this to the audience. At the end of her testimony she said, “Pastor Meyer is doing similar interreligious work in South Africa. I think he should nominated as an Ambassador of Peace.”

Rev. Betty read Father’s speech with poise and dignity. Everyone listened attentively, including the pastors. After the program, there was time for coffee and cake before departing.

Marcia Schlichting

Hannover (community center in Kirchrode)
Elder Kay E. Anderson
 
At the second main event, the main speaker was Elder Kay Anderson from Utah. Elder Anderson was so relaxed and had such a good spirit that it made everyone feel like one big family.

Rainer Fuchs gave the program. His brother from Austria was a guest. In former years, Rainer’s family had misgivings about the Unification movement, but after listening to the presentation of Father’s speech speech, his brother said, “Now I understand why you are working with Rev. Moon.”  He is now thinking about becoming an Ambassador for Peace.

After the event, Rainer and Elder Anderson had dinner at a local Chinese restaurant. Elder Anderson was so delighted by the welcome he received that he would like to return some time with his wife, Ethel.

Marcia Schlichting
Rainer Fuchs

Peace Tour IV-Germany, Nürnberg
November 3, 2006 

Nürnberg
Pastor Carolyn Parker

The testimony of Pastor Carolyn Parker was very moving. Her life has changed completely during the past two years since she became an Ambassador for Peace. Her determination to give everything on this tour was an inspiration.

In her introductory words, Ambassador for Peace Margarita Afanasjew emphasized how precious it was for her to participate in these events. The vision of Rev. Moon and his work for a better world gives her much hope. Especially she is inspired by the remarkable efforts of the young people. The two songs she sang were a wonderful support for creating a good atmosphere on this special afternoon.

The presentation of True Father’s speech conveyed God’s love and aspiration to build the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth through true families.

 
Nürnberg (Charismatic Faith Church)
Archbishop Moses de la Rosa

The speaker at the Charismatic Faith Church in Nürnberg was Archbishop Moses de la Rosa. The meeting began at 7:00 pm, and after songs and prayers, Pastor Brown gave opening remarks and the gospel choir presented a wonderful piece of music. Wolfgang Schimmel presented the principles and goals of UPF and introduced the guest from America.

Then Moses de la Rosa took the microphone and spoke for one hour, citing True Father’s speech “God’s True Family and the Peace Kingdom.” He gave an inspiring testimony about Father and linked Jesus with the mission of True Parents in a wonderful way. He prayed in the name of Jesus, blessed all participants with holy oil, and placed his hands in prayer on people’s heads, communicating a deep spirituality and sincerity.

Afterwards, Monika Palombi presented flowers to the archbishop and to Pastor Brown. The event ended by collecting donations for the pastor and taking a group photograph.

Peace Tour IV-Germany, Stuttgart
November 3, 2006 

STUTTGART
Stuttgart
Mr. Amar Nath Gupta

Mr. Amar Gupta was the speaker for the Stuttgart event. Before the event, he went to meet the priest of the Hindu temple, where he described the Unification movement and opened the door for further cooperation. He left his business cards and offered to help them in many ways. He never omitted an opportunity to testify about True Parents’ peace work.

The evening gathering in the home of the Hausmann family drew 29 people. Mr. Gupta was very efficient and talked about how he had met the Unification movement and was healed of cancer at Cheong Pyeong Lake in Korea. Describing True Parents as the Messiah,  he compared their work to that of Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and other great saints of history. He described Father Moon as a great man teaching people the essence of all religions, teaching people to live for the sake of others. “Heaven is coming down on earth,” he said, “and everyone can experience miracles as he did, once they work together with Reverend Moon and join his peace work.”

Later he gave an interview to an Ambassador for Peace who is a journalist at "Freies Radio Stuttgart."

Mr. Gupta is a very qualified and at the same time a humble person who made a good impact. People were very grateful for his coming.

Karl-Christian Hausmann
 

Stuttgart (at the community center)
Pastor Fermin Bocanegra

Rev. Fermin and Margaret Bocanegra arrived by plane from Tirana, Italy, via Milan. They started their journey at 3:00 am and arrived punctually at 11:35 in Stuttgart. They were beaming as if they come from the clouds, although they had had only three hours of sleep.

Enjoying a Swabian meal together at the World Peace Restaurant operated by the Bellabarba family gave everyone an opportunity to become acquainted in a relaxed atmosphere. They had a mini sightseeing tour en route to the meeting place, passing the legendary television tower on the way to the Stuttgart valley and its vineyard-covered slopes. There was little time, however, to enjoy the beautiful autumn scenery of the Swabian Alps bathed in the special light of the evening sun.

There was plenty of time in the evening for Rev. Fermin Bocanegra to give an inspiring testimony about the world peace tour. “We came to give a blessing, but we also have been blessed,” he said. “We came to give something, but we received much more.” He talked about his missionary work, especially how they are helping Peruvian and other Hispanic immigrants adjust to North Carolina, where he lives and works. After he described some of their aid projects (for example, free medical treatment after church service and interreligious soccer competitions to promote cooperation) everyone embraced and sang “Amazing Grace” to conclude the event, even though no one wanted to leave.

Hubert and Yoshiko Arnoldi

 
Stuttgart (at the community centre)
Pastor Margaret Bocanegra
   
Rev. Margaret Bocanegra is the mother of two grown sons and is responsible for the mission of the Hispanic Wesleyan Church in Kernersville, North Carolina. She is also an outreach minister and has initiated various groups for women, including a self-help group for women who have lost a baby during childbirth. She is also involved in work with children and youth.

She has had deep experiences with Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his wife that have had a profound impact on her life. Her deep longing to overcome the barriers between various religious movements from which the members of her community originate (immigrants from South America) has led her to study True Father’s proposals and words. While giving her testimony as well as delivering the speech, she expressed a deep and loving motherly heart.

Happy to be able to visit the land of her forefathers, she said good-bye to Germany in order to give True Father’s words to the people in France.

Margaret and Fermin Bocanegra gave everything and maybe even more. Moreover, they conveyed the peace message of Father Moon clearly and most of all in a very lively way.

Ludwig Scharnreithner

Stuttgart (Tuttlingen)

Rev. Tom Corley

Rev. Tom Corley, pastor of the Family Federation of Long Island, New York, arrived at the Stuttgart Airport from Sarajevo via Vienna. He then took a train to Tuttlingen, a little town about 140 km to the southwest. A German woman, her Russian husband and their three children welcomed him to their home.

The event started at 5:00 pm. After an introduction and explanation of the purpose of the UPF and its world peace tours,  Rev. Corley read the speech vividly with some personal comments. Everybody listened attentively, even the children, and the reading seemed to last only a short time. After the Burning Ceremony and the Holy Wine and Holy Water Ceremonies, the event concluded with a determination to contribute to peace both in daily life and worldwide.

After a group photo, there was a buffet meal and an opportunity for personal sharing. At 7:30 Rev. Corley took the train back to the Stuttgart Airport, where he spent the night in a hotel and left early by plane for his next destination, Lyon in France.

Ute Lemme

 
Stuttgart (in Tübingen)
Rev. Victor Sanchez

The Stec family welcomed Rev. Victor Sanchez to their home, with assistance from the Arnoldi family. Before giving the speech, he spoke about his dedication to God and how he became an Ambassador for Peace. The Holy Wine, Holy Water and the Blessing Ceremonies followed the speech. People felt a special spiritual atmosphere during the event. One person who has dedicated his life to projects for peace received an Ambassador for Peace certificate.

Over dinner there was an opportunity to ask  Rev. Sanchez more questions and learn about his dedication to God. The day ended with a special prayer led by Rev. Sanchez. He said he was happy to have had the opportunity to visit and promised to report his experiences in Germany to Father.