From 1–4 October, Yvonne Langebach represented the Lutheran Church in Ireland at the 5th Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE) Meeting of Synod Members in Tallinn, Estonia.

Tallinn, a beautiful city on the Baltic Sea, has a rich and complex history. Despite centuries of occupation and political change, the city and its people have shown a strong determination to preserve and live out their Christian faith.

The theme of this year’s meeting was “Passing on Faith to the Next Generation.” The Estonian hosts introduced the participants to two inspiring projects which put this theme into practice.

One of the visits was to a Lutheran church in a suburb of Tallinn. In addition to serving as a parish church, it also runs an orphanage and a day-care centre. The group also visited a private Lutheran school providing education from kindergarten through to the end of secondary school, with Christian values at the heart of its teaching.

Both projects began in the early 1990s, following Estonia’s restoration of independence. Over the years, they have developed into wide-reaching projects that have a profound and lasting impact on the lives of children, young people and families.

Through lively workshops and discussion groups, participants shared experiences from their own churches and reflected on the role of families, churches, educational institutions and wider society in passing on faith to the next generation.

The meeting offered a rich and varied programme, but for Yvonne, one of its greatest highlights was the opportunity to meet and connect with fellow Christians from across Europe – from Greece to Ireland and from Croatia to Finland. Through conversations and shared experiences, participants discovered both the diversity of Protestant traditions across Europe and the common bonds that unite them as Christians.

The meeting offered a rich and varied programme, combining learning, discussion, worship and fellowship. It was a valuable opportunity to reflect together on how the Christian faith can be shared with and nurtured in the next generation — and to be encouraged by the many creative ways in which churches across Europe are already living out this calling.