MONROE — The ecumenical Deutscher Weihnachtsgottesdienst, or German Christmas Communion Service, will be held for the 49th time at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 14 at St. John’s United Church of Christ, 1724 14th Street, Monroe. Conducted entirely in German, the service is rooted in the early traditions and heritage of St. John’s, which was founded in 1862 by Swiss and German immigrants. Services at St. John’s were conducted in German until the 1920s, with the Christmas Day communion service continuing until 1955.
The current German service, an outreach of St. John’s UCC with assistance from the Monroe Swiss Singers, was reinstated in 1972 by the Rev. Wolfgang Koehler (1923-2010), a German native who served the church from 1969-1981. His wife, Betty Koehler, directed the Monroe Swiss Singers from 1971-1976, and the choir has provided musical leadership for the service from the beginning. Deborah Krauss Smith, director of the Monroe Swiss Singers since 1985, also serves as organist for the service, with additional music by violinist Robert Eversman.
Following Rev. Koehler’s retirement, a few German-speaking ministers led the service, most notably Rev. Dr. Fred Trost, former longtime President of the Wisconsin Conference of the United Church of Christ, and Rev. Erwin Pegel (1930-2007), a native of Bad Salzuflen, Germany who last served at Zwingli UCC in Monticello. Even in his retirement, Rev. Pegel and his wife, Dora, led St. John’s German Service through 2004, until his health began to fail.
The future of the service then became uncertain when it became increasingly difficult to find ordained ministers who spoke German fluently enough to conduct an entire service in German, especially a sermon. In 2009, the Monroe Swiss Singers offered to lead the service based on a format of “Nine Lessons and Carols”, with Karen Lüӧnd Fowdy, longtime German teacher at Monroe High School, leading the service, and native speakers from the choir reading the nine scripture selections. This year, for the first time, Dr. Charles James, Professor Emeritus of German from UW-Madison, will take on the role of leading the service, with pastoral assistance from Rev. Christina Schoenwetter, Associate Pastor at St. John’s. Over the years, the format has been very well received, and most importantly, St. John’s has been able to continue offering the special Christmas service. The service has also been dually promoted as part of Turner Hall of Monroe’s annual Swiss Heritage Series.
Past attendees have come from not only the area, but from Rock and Dane Counties and northern Illinois as well. It is one of very few such Christmas services in Wisconsin. An English translation of the entire service is provided and a fellowship time follows the service. St. John’s UCC is handicapped-accessible, with an elevator entrance and covered driveway on the east side of the building.
