SELKiade (01.-04. Mai 2008)

SELKiade. A combination of the acronym for the Selbständige Evangelische Lutherische Kirche - our sister church body here in Germany - and the word "Olympiade" ("Olympics"). And, SELKiade is their youth gathering. The SELK tries to put on SELKiade every four years, though it had been six since the last iteration. The theme this year was "Exodus" and all the worship gatherings and the games themselves revolved around this theme - God saving his people from the hands of the Egyptians and teaching them what it meant to be His people. The games were a creative mix of the standard outdoor games and ice breakers - water balloons, wheelbarrow races, tug-of-war, blindfolds, etc. We took a group from the school here - the Lutherische Theologische Hochschule (LThH). 46 teams - over 600 kids (more than the population of the host-village of Heskem) - Youth Groups from all over Germany, one from Belgium and several "old timers" teams - like ours from the Hochschule - competed over two full days (there weren't any games on the first or last days).

One of the funniest moments happened before we even got to the gathering. We took the train from Frankfurt to Marburg, where we had to wait for a shuttle. The South Africans rarely go anywhere without the rugby ball - so while we waited, we played a bit of catch in the parking lot in front of the Marburg Hauptbahnhof. Of course, it wasn't long before the ball got stuck up in a tree. We put on a good show for the cabbies as we alternately lodged shoes, my water bottle, and the ball - a second time - about 20-25 feet up. But, right as the shuttle driver found us, we had freed the last item from its branches.

Just a couple observations: I was impressed at how well organized it was. They obviously didn't have a huge budget, but did very well with what they had. There were a few cultural differences that I had to adjust to - like 16 year-olds drinking beer (legally) at a church event (which they handled very well for the most part). And the dude (not from our group) who stripped naked while changing in a co-ed (adults) room.

The weather was beautiful. I had a great time bonding with my friends from Oberursel. Had a great time meeting other pastors and young people from the SELK.

I should really write more, but it's been a week and it's late... I hope the photos are representative of all the fun we had! You'll just have to ask me more about it sometime.






















Peace to you.