The Mennonite Church in Berlin was founded in 1871. It has a history which is strongly connected to the history of Germany. Especially during WW II, the church community was highly affected. After the Second World War, as from 1952 MCC helped a lot of refugees, from the so-called Menno-Heim, which is based in Berlin-Lichterfelde. With assistance of also the Dutch Mennonite Charity ” Bijzondere Noden” a lot of refugees from at that time the separated part of East-Berlin could be helped. Because of the special position of Berlin, there has always been a strong connection to the Mennonites worldwide and still is. The Menno-Heim was also a place where many youth-groups from Europe gathered. Nowadays, we still could feel the spirit of hospitality. Al lot of church member originally come from the former USSR, so there is
a mixture of Russian and German, to be heard. We were impressed by the stories, from people who have had ancestors in Kazakstan, Ukraine, Siberia and always have had the spirit and strength to start at a new place and a new country. On Sunday we shared about the story of Menno Simons who was part of the ‘ movement’ of the Anabaptist. He showed that in every time we need different answers to connect to society. And it takes some courage to find these new paths. We enjoyed lunch together at our ‘ travelling table”. We are thankful to visit the Mennonite Church Berlin and we sure hope to come back again.
mennostravellingtable.com 