The President of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Germany, Pastor Werner Dullinger (Ostfildern near Stuttgart), is stunned by the racially motivated terrorist attack with eleven deaths in Hanau. "There is no rational explanation for such a hideous act. As a church we react with shock, horror and lack of understanding to this brutal and inhumane event in Hanau. Our prayers and compassion go to the victims and their families.”
Dullinger continues: "We mourn with the relatives and ask for recovery for the people injured in body and soul by this deed." In particular, he hopes that the survivors will receive the support and help they need to deal and process this trauma.
The SDA Church leadership perceives with great concern that hatred and hostility in many different forms have meanwhile taken a public place in our society. Populist, provocative and inhuman communication methods gave the impression that they had become socially acceptable again in public space, in politics and religion and formed the ideal basis for violence.
That is why the church leaders see it as a Christian duty to raise one's voice clearly and uncompromisingly. Adventists condemn all forms of xenophobia and racism. The terrorist attack in Hanau was an attack on all of us, on democracy and the rule of law, but also on the honour and dignity of everyone. Hate messages and conspiracy theories should therefore not be heard in our society. Translating this image of man into the present is a task that Adventists share with everyone who works for humanity and peace.
“In our lives as Christians, there must be no place for anti-semitism, xenophobia or misanthropy. The great ethnic and cultural diversity is part of our image as a worldwide church. Everyone regardless of characteristics, is in the Christian image of man, an image of God, whose life and integrity must be respected and protected,” said Dullinger.
The worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church emerged from the revival movement in the 19th century. It currently has over 21 million adult members and more than 25 million worshipers in 215 countries around the world. About 35,000 members are organized in 555 municipalities in the Federal Republic of Germany. Their only belief is the Bible.