AFWIS Joins Operation World in Prayer for the Federal Republic of Germany - Europe

Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)

Home > May 31: Germany

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May 31: Germany

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Germany

Federal Republic of Germany

Europe

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Geography

Area: 357,042 sq km
Strategically placed in the centre of Europe and of the expanding EU.
Population: 82,056,775    Annual Growth: -0.09%
Capital: Berlin
Urbanites: 73.8%
HDI Rank: 22 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)

Peoples

Peoples: 82 (23% unreached) All peoples
Unreached Peoples Prayer Card

Official language: German. There are over 95 million German-speakers worldwide    Languages: 69 All languages

Religion

Largest Religion: Christian

Religion		Pop %	Ann Gr
Christians	52,721,478	64.25	-0.9
Evangelicals	1,740,880	2.1	0.9

Prayercast

Challenges for Prayer

The Free Churches have a higher proportion of evangelicals, but they constitute only 1% of Germany’s population. Many denominations are stagnant or in decline, but others are growing, including charismatic fellowships. Many of these churches are effectively marginalized in the wider society and have minimal genuine impact outside of their traditional constituencies. Pray for vision that will enable these more conservative groups to break forth into dynamic new expressions of faith that both rejuvenate the faithful and draw in those open to Jesus.
German evangelicals are holding their own as the broader decline in the mainline churches is offset by the growth of some evangelical groups. Over 1,000 churches have been planted in the last 15 years, but this is clearly not enough. Notable trends include:
a) The EKD continues to decline, with an overall loss of numbers, although evangelicals are beginning to return. Despite this, the Pietist movement continues to be an influential force within the EKD (especially in Württemberg in the south and in rural areas), numbering hundreds of thousands.
b) The Evangelical Alliance is a vital network for over 1.2 million evangelicals in all denominations and hundreds of missions. It exists as a focal point for prayer, theological reflection, cooperative projects, social action, evangelism and mission.
c) The influx of ethnic Germans from Central Asia and Eastern Europe over the last 30 years has led to a large increase of Mennonite and Baptist congregations catering for their spiritual health. There are over 4,000 such congregations with more than 350,000 associated with them. Though increasingly missions-minded, they are often culturally isolated from the mainstream of evangelicals.
d) The increasing number of immigrant churches is also a point of encouragement. While many German churches decline, congregations are springing up among African, Asian and Latino populations. Pray that their dynamism and spiritual fervour might have an impact beyond their own languages and ethnic groups.
     For an additional 12 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.

More Information

The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of Germany.