Light on our congregational community - by Thomas J.

Spiritual Journey

When I was a boy I did not like to come to church. My parents would put me into a itchy cloth pants, and a stiff new shirt. In our church in a little village in the Eifel in Germany, there was no wee service. So I had to endure 90 minutes of regular service in the Lutheran church. I found it boring, the perch was hard, and I hated the singing.

As a good German, I love soccer. Every Sunday morning, I play at 108^th St between Columbus and Amsterdam Ave since many years. My wife doesn’t like that very much, it is a Sunday and I disappear for two hours but she is a wonderful, loving and understanding sweetheart. Three years ago, some of the other players talked about the Trinity Lutheran Church and the great wee service. I have two young daughters, too. So I asked my wife if she would like to come as well. She told me I am crazy, she will never come all the way from Greenwich Village to 100^th St on an early Sunday morning.

That changed in March 2007. We visited friends in Leon, Mexico. They have a old hacienda in a small town called Iberra with a beautiful old church next to it. My oldest daughter Juno who was three at that time. Right away, she discovered the bloody Jesus on the cross. If you have been in Mexico, you know how violent and detailed the Spanish priest pictured the crucifixion, presumably to intimidate the natives. My daughter was shocked and fascinated at the same time. It triggered an endless questioning of why Jesus had to be on the cross, why he had to die, and where he is now, and anyway, how is he in the first place?

The questions did not stop when we returned. Very soon, my wife changed her mind and agreed to try out the wee service. Well, we came once and then every week again and again. Pastor Heidi has a very special way with kids, Juno was fascinated by her puppet talk, and finally she got answers to all to her questions. If you have ever the chance to be around the church on a Sunday at 9.15am, take a look at how Heidi is doing her magic. I have to admit I come up still for the soccer, but Trinity became a part of my life very quickly. Our second daughter Maris got baptized at Trinity last Christmas. She walked one of her first steps in the church just recently.

Today, I am the Director of the Capital Campaign. I thankful for the opportunity to help and to learn more about Trinity, the shelter, all the other activities, and the wonderful members of the congregation. I like to help them all, but in the first place, I try to save that little paradise for kids. I remember how I felt every Sunday morning going to church. And I see how my daughter Juno is jumping up of joy every week. Believe me: It is more worth than every Dollar you can imagine.