Coronavirus Covid-19: Germany, bells on at Easter in all the Catholic and Evangelical churches

The Catholic and Evangelical communities all over Germany will be ringing “ecumenical bells” to inspire trust at the time of the coronavirus pandemic. Today, in a joint message, the German Catholic Bishops’ Conference (Dbk) and the Evangelical Church of Germany (EkD) invited all Christians to rally around their churches and their bells. The evening of Palm Sunday (5th April), which marks the start of Holy Week, all the bells of Germany will ring at 07.30 pm, while on Easter Sunday (12th April) the bells will be ringing for the Resurrection at 12 pm. “The bells ringing at Easter express the joy of the Easter message: death has no power over life. Especially at this tragic time with the coronavirus pandemic, we, as Christians, want to convey hope with the sound of the bells and the joy of Easter”, bishop Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, president of the Ekd Board, explained. Mgr. Georg Bätzing, president of Dbk, expressed gratitude for the “many proofs of testimony in the last few weeks”. “Such proofs are moments for thanking all those who offer their lives and their service and who faithfully support the sick and the old”, Bätzing said.
Valentina Bombelli