A KALEIDOSCOPIC EXPERIENCE
A sharing from our delegation to St. Petersburg, Russia June 1998

Elinor Barnes

elsinki, what-a wonderful place for us to recuperate from jet lag, get to know each other better, get used to foreign currency and shop. Jonna, Pastor Howell's friend and his-family gave us a warm welcome at the airport.

He also took us all on a boat tour of the Helsinki waterfront. It was a surprise to see a large Lutheran Cathedral in Helsinki. We didn't get to worship there because it was under renovation. However, it was impressive from the outside.

I had met a pastor from Tallinn, Estonia when I was in Austria earlier in the year. He said it was only an hour and a half by hydrofoil from Helsinki. Shirley, Les, Eva and I spent Monday there. He showed us his church, and then he took us on a tour of the old walled medieval city in the center of Tallinn.

There are so many contrasting sights in St. Petersburg, on one hand the luxurious palaces and then the other end of the spectrum, the city water, in this city of 6 million people, isn't pure enough to drink without boiling it first. Each morning at the Monastery we were provided with a fresh pitcher of boiled water in our rooms. I was glad we stayed at the Monastery rather than a western type hotel - it gave us more of a Russian flavor.

The worship service at St. Peter and Paul was special. The pastor spoke in German, and a young woman translated into Russian. Hymns had been chosen that we would readily know too. "Blessed Be the Tie That Binds " was one of them. We experienced a oneness in Christ, in Word and Sacrament.

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