Next post(s): Air quality in Cieszyn, Polish healthcare, visa paperwork, and my school’s prom! Then, before my winter break, I’d like to (finally!) create a “post with answers to all the questions everyone has sent me.” If you have a question you’d like me to answer, send an e-mail to my gmail account, contact me on Facebook, or post your question in the “comments” box below this post by February 5. Thanks!
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I attend a Lutheran church (the one in the photograph above) called “The Jesus Church” (yes, “The Jesus Church”). The religiously tolerant Emperor Joseph gave permission for the building of the Lutheran “Jesus Church” in Cieszyn in 1709. The restrictions? They had to build it “a cannon’s shot” away from the town walls. Work began in 1710 and finished in 1722. It’s a Baroque masterpiece. The bell tower is 75-meters high (246 feet – imagine a building with 20-25 floors). 6,000 people can fit in the pews here. It’s the largest Lutheran church in Poland and fairly well known because on October 12, 2008, Polish president Lech Kaczyński visited the “Jesus Church.” He was the 1st Polish president to ever – ever! – visit a Protestant place of worship in Poland. The bell tower is always lit and a great “beacon” when I’m walking at night. See the Jesus Church in the upper-right hand corner of the photograph below? It's the tallest building in Cieszyn.
There are approximately 76,000 Evangelical Church of Augsburg Confession members in Poland. Only 170 pastors, 190 congregations. The ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) – 5 million members, over 10,000 congregations. The ELCA Metropolitan Chicago Synod alone – one of 65 ELCA synods – covers four Illinois counties and has 206 congregations. Yes, we’re in the minority in Catholic Poland. It’s also a concentrated minority, with a high percentage of all Polish Lutherans living in the region where I live. World War II hindered the stability of the Lutheran church here because approximately 1 out of 3 Lutheran church leaders were murdered in Nazi concentration camps. But the church is now continuing to grow and develop.
All students at public schools in Poland are enrolled in Catholic religion classes, and therefore the Lutheran schools I teach at provide a unique opportunity for parents to send their students to schools where their children will learn about Lutheranism. (I should note here that Lutheran and Catholic students – although the majority of them are Lutheran – attend my schools, and they are assigned to religion classes accordingly.)
Here are my observations about Lutheranism in Poland and The Jesus Church. I am not an expert on Polish Lutheranism, but here’s what I’ve experienced through my “ELCA faith lens.”
“The Catholic Church in Poland celebrated Christmas today.” And the Lutherans did too! It’s news statements like “The Catholic Church in Poland celebrated Christmas today” that “hit-you-over-the-head-so-you-don’t-forget-everyone-here-is-Catholic”. The older students I teach in the evenings (ages 30-70) frequently tell me that Cieszyn is wonderful because it’s tolerant of its Lutherans and lets them worship freely. Sometimes I want to laugh when I hear this; sometimes I want to drop my jaw in disbelief and astonishment. What is the definition of “tolerance”? “To tolerate” is “to bear” or “to endure” – and yes, Catholics here “endure” Lutherans. But "tolerate" is a word with a negative connotation, isn’t it? Isn’t there a better, friendlier relationship word we could strive to achieve? But “tolerance” is the appropriate word for the relationship I’ve observed here between Lutherans and Catholics, where Lutherans and Catholics rarely date and almost never marry.
Of course Lutherans and Catholics have differing doctrines and traditions (that I don’t plan to re-hash here). But a friend recently sent me a link to an exhibit called “We Are More Alike Than Different,” and, in my opinion, it’s true for Lutherans and Catholics too (especially after the 1999 “Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification” – “saved by faith, not works” – understanding between the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation)! Couldn’t they at least say, “The Christian Church in Poland celebrated Christmas today?”
Women leadership. It’s interesting that the Lutherans and Catholics here struggle to “tolerate” each other because sometimes the Lutheran church services I attend better resemble Catholic services in America than Lutheran ones. One “hit-you-over-the-head” difference between Polish Lutheran churches and American Lutheran churches (I should clarify here and say ELCA Lutheran Churches) is the role of women in the church. The Polish Lutheran Church does not ordain women.
At a conference this fall in Warsaw, here’s what Jerzy Sojka, a spokesperson for the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Poland, said about the church’s discussion about the ordination of women: “Our situation is not conditioned by theological considerations alone but also by economic, social and cultural questions, as well as by ecumenical relations. Although a debate on this issue is taking place, it also needs quiet reflection. We are, unfortunately, only a small community here, and we have to take the conservative Polish context into account.”
Knowing that it’s not my place to say, not my culture, not my decision, I pray that the freshman girl I teach on Friday mornings will have the opportunity to serve as a Lutheran pastor like she plans.
. . .
On to “less serious church service observations”...
The Jesus Church bells. They are very loud and were distracting in my lessons at the beginning of the year (the school is across the street from the church). The bells ring everyday at 6 a.m., 12 p.m., and 7 p.m., whenever a congregation member dies, and to announce the beginning and conclusion of every service on Sundays. They aren’t musical "play a melody" bells, but gongs. In September, they woke me up at 6 a.m. every morning. Now, they are part of my “sound landscape” and sometimes I ask myself, “did the bells ring today?”
Hot air rises. But you have to turn on the heat first. The church sanctuary is located across the street from the church office, nursery, Sunday school, etc. Why pay to heat the sanctuary for only 5 hours on Sunday morning? I know they heat the church a little, but it’s a sanctuary that seats 6,000 people and would cost a fortune to heat properly. Dressing for 10 a.m. church is like dressing to go skiing. I wear nice pants and a nice blouse, but also long underwear (top and pants), wool ski socks, my winter boots from L.L. Bean, a wool coat, a fleece scarf, a hat, and leather gloves. I was worried when it got cold in October because I didn’t know how I would survive the 1.5-2 hour service without my coat! Luckily, in the winter, everyone wears coats, hats, scarves, ugly snow boots, and gloves for the whole service. After the service, you’re freezing despite all the winter gear because your body didn’t generate heat from sitting and we don’t sit next to people and benefit from their body heat either (everyone gets a pew to him/herself or for his/her family because the church is gigantic). Colleen and I almost always have a hot lunch when we arrive home. Can’t wait for the spring and summer!
The balcony. At home, I sit in front at church. Here, I sit in the center balcony (the lower of the church's two balconies). Why? 1) Sitting in the front when you have no clue what’s happening 90% of the service is not a brilliant plan. 2) The best singers sit in the balcony and it’s easier to understand their pronunciation and determine if you’re singing the correct hymn. 3) Lots of people like the balcony and therefore it’s a little “crowded”; if necessary, I can strategically sit myself behind someone and glance at the page number in their hymnal if the pastor decides to abandon the numbers posted on the board and I get lost. I'm happy (and very proud) to report that people now sometimes look over my shoulder and turn to the page I'm on in my hymnal. Everyone gets lost sometimes and that's reassuring. Here's a photograph of the sanctuary from where I sit in the balcony.
Giggle fits. Church is sometimes – okay, frequently – stressful and confusing. And when I’m stressed, I laugh to release the tension. Also, when I don’t have an explanation for an odd occurrence (typically because I didn’t understand what the pastor said), it’s difficult to keep a straight face when I’m only hearing my own internal commentary – that I sometimes find hilarious (again, great coping mechanism). Church here is very solemn and that never helps my predicament. One of the first services we attended, we watched as the congregation solemnly rose, walked slowly behind the altar, and sat back down. We had no clue why they were marching around the altar, and I struggled to keep a straight face when we joined the procession. We learned that you deposit your offering next to the altar, but we didn’t know!
Sometimes we sing songs to melodies that I recognize. For example, this month, we sang a hymn with 7 verses to the tune Woody Guthrie set his “This Land is Your Land, This Land is My Land,” song to (he didn't compose the tune), and it felt funny! I kept remembering singing patriotic songs in elementary school music class.
Colleen also sometimes provides service commentary that tickles my funny bone. It’s a gift to attend church with someone, but sometimes it causes trouble. Sometimes we’ll laugh when trying to pronounce a 16-letter Polish word in a hymn. Once, when the pastor was baptizing two infants in January, Colleen said to me “You could take the baby camping in that outfit.” It’s true! The babies were dressed in “baptism sleeping bags” because it’s so terribly cold in the church. For this baptism, I never saw evidence of a baby in either “sleeping bag” – not an arm, a face, nor a leg. I shook with silent laughter for 5 minutes after Colleen’s comment. Sometimes I worry because I never want to act disrespectful. Other times, I acknowledge that it’s comic relief and that I’m trying my best. It’s a shame that I don’t have the language skills to tell other congregation members why I laughing (luckily for me, it’s almost always silent, restrained laughter). It’s also fair to note that I’ve had dozens of laughing fits at my home congregation in America too (especially awful when you’re sitting in the choir loft)!
Music. We have a beautiful organ (shown in the photograph below), but I miss singing with a piano. The choir sings approximately once a month, but typically only at one service (either the 8 a.m. or 10 a.m. service). No other instrumentalists play during the service, unless they’re accompanying the choir. The hymns are typically solemn and slow. I miss the music at my home congregation in America.
No bulletin. Because there’s no bulletin, all church announcements are read by the pastor at 10 a.m. It is a lengthy process. Our balcony mates sometime arrive 10-15 minutes late because they know that announcements are never brief. I typically understand dates, times, locations, and a few select words. I don’t know how everyone remembers everything he says! Of course, not knowing Polish is the primary source of difficulty for me during a church service, but a bulletin would help! They post the hymn numbers on boards around the church, but the lessons, prayers, etc. are typically hidden somewhere in the hymn book or are known by heart by the congregation and not printed at all. It’s not exactly a “visitor friendly” service. (Again, I know that language is a key barrier, but a couple teachers at school have also admitted to getting very lost at their church services – at churches they have attended for years!) The church also switched hymnals a couple years ago, and we all know that causes nothing but trouble for long-time members of the congregation. :)
Seizure Christmas lights. It’s easy to get distracted when you don’t understand 90% of what the pastor is saying. It’s especially easy to get distracted when they put a 10+ foot Christmas tree on the altar for the month of January and deck it out with what I call “seizure Christmas lights” that are kept on (yes, on!) for the whole (yes, whole!) service. The lights are all white, but every strand is “special.” Some strands flash slow; some flash fast. Some “do the wave.” Some turn half the lights on, then turn them off and turn the other half on. Some sing Christmas carols (kidding). It’s dreadful! They are horribly distracting and in stark contrast to the solemn tone of services here. Luckily the tree will be removed next week in line with Polish traditions!
“One man show.” The Jesus Church’s three pastors (all men) rotate the responsibility of preaching and leading the service every month. One pastor preaches all Sundays in September, the next pastor all Sundays in October, the third pastor all Sundays in November, etc. There are no acolytes, assisting ministers, lectors, associate pastors, communion assistants, or ushers here. Only the one pastor is responsible for the service. He sings, gives announcements, preaches, reads, baptizes, blesses, serves communion, says the prayers – everything. The pastor also directs 75% of his prayers/songs/readings to the altar, with his back to the congregation. Here's a photograph of the pulpit where the pastor preaches from.
Infrequent communion. Communion is rarely celebrated at The Jesus Church. I spent Christmas in London, and I know they celebrated Holy Communion then. Since September, I’ve only attended two other services where they’ve celebrated Holy Communion. However, they do offer a separate communion service every Sunday. It’s for approximately 15 minutes and it’s sandwiched between the 8 a.m. service and the 10 a.m. service. It’s always an amazingly intimate service because typically fewer than a dozen people attend, and it’s one of the only times in the service when I feel the language barrier drop away. We kneel at the altar, the pastor blesses us, serves us communion (you never touch the wafer or the wine, he communes you), and blesses you again (touching every person on the head). I’m trying desperately to locate in print the full communion service because it’s not in the hymnal, and no one at school knows where I could get a copy. No luck yet, but not giving up!
Silence and no congregation member interaction. The service begins in silence (except for the ringing of the bells) and concludes in silence (again, except for the ringing of the bells). You silently enter your pew, say a prayer, and sit down. When the service concludes, you leave the church in silence. Congregation members don’t talk before the service, and only a few stand outside to talk afterwards (and not in this weather). There’s no sharing of the peace during the service. I miss it. I think I also feel very isolated from the other members at church too because of the size of the sanctuary – it’s a beautiful space, but everyone sits in his or her own solitary pew, far from other people.
No children. Infants attend church for their baptism and then disappear to the nursery and/or Sunday school until they return to prepare for their confirmation in 8th grade (and then they’re forced to sit with their peers in the first two pews that are reserved especially for them). It’s odd never having children in the sanctuary (the Sunday school building is across the street), and I miss the children’s message.
Oh, the service is in Polish! Sometimes church is a struggle for me. It’s exhausting. The pastor’s words are sadly empty for me for almost 2 hours. I read my Bible in the morning at home and then try to pray and reflect at church. I’m rarely exposed to this level of Polish – the sermon and prayers are perhaps best equated to poetry and therefore extremely difficult for even fairly fluent speakers of English to translate for me. Church language includes a high level of vocabulary I couldn’t imagine acquiring in one year. At church, I sing hymns and say prayers based on my knowledge of the Polish sound system and the song or prayer’s significance and message slips through my fingers like smoke. Later I translate what I can at home and week by week, I slowly understand more and more of the service. I try; I try!
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