Magdeburg (dpa/sa) - Traditionally contemplative, pop modern or quiet and silent: believers want to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ with prayers, music, singing, nativity plays and the Lord's Supper in the Protestant churches of Saxony-Anhalt. On Christmas Eve, the parishes invite you to more than 4,000 services and vespers, the Evangelical Church in Central Germany (EKM) expects around half a million visitors, as it announced.
It doesn't always have to be traditional. According to the information, communities also offer Christmas Vespers as a pop musical - in the dark, with light art and outdoors.
The focus is always on a good cause, because at Christmas a particularly large amount is donated to those in need. In addition, the Peace Light of Bethlehem can be picked up in some churches. As an aftermath of the corona pandemic, there are digital service formats in some places, also for radio and television.
Shortly before midnight, state bishop Friedrich Kramer wants to preach at the celebration of Christmas Eve in Magdeburg Cathedral, on Christmas Day he will be present at the festival service. In the Pauluskirche in Halle, late on Christmas Eve, visitors can listen to the Christmas Oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach. According to the EKM, there are other events in Merseburg, Stendal and Lutherstadt Wittenberg, among others. In Arneburg in the Altmark, the deaf community wants to celebrate a service with sign language on Boxing Day.
According to the information, more than 20,000 people are expected to attend around 200 services on Christmas Eve in the churches of the Evangelical Church in Anhalt. Here, too - as in the EKM congregations - money for the evangelical aid campaign "Bread for the World" is to be collected in all services.
