"Being there for each other and for others"

Stephanie Franz (Board of the Sisters Community) and Irene Girsang (from left) © Photo: Susanne Seiler / UEM

The Sisters' Day was in presence in Wuppertal and online; © Photo: Irene Girsang / UEM

Being there for each other and for others: A community of women who do their service for worldwide ecumenism. That is the sisterhood in the UEM. Many have worked or still work in one of the member churches of the UEM. The annual meetings provide opportunities to pray together, share experiences and discuss current issues. More information: https://www.vemission.org/mitmachen/schwesterngemeinschaft

"Trauma and Resilience" - on this topic sisters from Tanzania, Indonesia and Germany met on the second weekend in October for the Sisters' Day of the UEM, online and in presence, in Wuppertal. In addition to an introduction to trauma theory and coping strategies by Sister Kornelia Kachunga, one of the topics of the joint Bible study was to work out what answers the Bible has found regarding trauma experiences.

On Sunday, Dersani Ompusunggu was introduced online into the sisterhood of the UEM. She is a Bible woman from the Toba Batak Church and lives in Jakarta, Indonesia.

A collection was also taken during the Sunday service of the sisterhood: 652 euros will go to the "Rhenish Elderly Empowerment Programme, REEP" ("Rheinisches Programm zur Stärkung älterer Menschen"). Since 2017, the UEM has supported the commitment of the church and diaconal work of the Rhenish Church in South Africa (RCSA), which is one of the youngest member churches of the UEM.