Mühlberg, Germany. On January 12, 2012, on the occasion of an ecumenical celebration, Mons. Gerhard Feige, Bishop of Magdeburg blessed the “Ecumenical House of Silence and Encounter” of Mühlberg/Elbe”.
With close collaboration between the Catholic and Evangelical churches, and financial support from various public and private institutions, the cloister of a Cistercian monastery was restored, which now will bring together people in search of prayer, silence, and peace.
A Claretian community exercises its ministry in the area having as its pastor Fr. Ansgar Schmidt, CMF who is one of the animators of this house.
For the Diocese of Magdeburg this is the third spiritual centre of this kind, which it regards as an oasis of Christian life, and whose importance is evident in a “descristianized” environment.
These thoughts were expressed in discussions with the bishop, the superintendent of Nickisch, and the Provincial Superior of the Claretians, Fr. Stefan Wolf.
Photo: Fr. Ansgar Schmidt CMF during a visit to the house.
