“And so we came to Rome. And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage” (Ac 28:14-15). *** I lost my father when I was fifteen. After the graveside service, countless friends, family, and colleagues of my Dad’s waited in line on that cold and gray December morning to offer my mother and me some words of condolence. Two people that day stand out in my memory: my best friend from school and his mother. They didn’t say a word, but just the fact that they were there provided me with much comfort. *** I was recently back at the courthouse here in Hamburg. An Iranian family from one of our churches had asked me to accompany them to their hearing. We read Psalm 46, prayed in the hallway, and were eventually summoned into the courtroom. The judge recognized me and said from behind his desk: “This hearing has nothing to do with the Christian faith. We’re only going to discuss legal matters.” “That’s OK,” I responded. “My parishioners want me to be here for them.” *** God created us as physical creatures. That is one of the reasons He manifested Himself in the flesh, desiring to experience everything that we do, yet without sin—to take all our sins upon Himself—onto and into his physical body. But He also created us in such a way that we need *His* physical presence as well. That is why He regularly gives Himself to us in His true body and blood in the Sacrament of the Altar. Some of our Iranian parishioners attend even our German language services—even though they might understand little of the liturgy and sermon—because they yearn for Christ’s presence in the Lord’s Supper, for the forgiveness of their sins and the strengthening of their faith. As we are able and as geography permits, wouldn’t it be wonderful to try and meet with one another face-to-face as often as possible? As amazing as it is that we have so many ways of communicating long distance, *being there* is even better. I think St. Paul would agree. [On the left: the door to the hearing room].
The Tiews in Germany 