The treasures of the church district are above all the employees who work full-time and on a voluntary basis. In order to introduce them, we have conducted interviews with them. Here Mr. Zentner introduces himself. He is a pastor and takes care of the young congregation, confirmands and the hospital chaplaincy.

Describe your ministry and your tasks in the service of the church. Why did you decide to do this?

I work as a so-called job divider. Both parts are dear to me, both have something to do with my biography. In the church community of Quedlinburg I am busy with the confirmands and the young congregation. It is a joy for me to see that young people today still have questions about real life - beyond commercialism and frills. And they find answers in conversation about God and the world. I am happy when they feel that their world is present in the church and that their questions are seen and taken seriously. For me, as a young Christian in the GDR, this was a real elixir of life and motivation to become a pastor myself: to also offer others a space in which they themselves and their faith can grow up.

The greater part of my job is my ministry as a pastor in a hospital and a home for the elderly. I have been interested in pastoral care since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Besides studying theology, I wanted to learn how Christian faith can show itself in a very practical way and I became an honorary employee of the Halle telephone counselling service, which was just being built up. I am glad that some people call pastoral care the mother tongue of the church, because it corresponds to my experiences: Here we can be close to people, accompany their crises and joys, discover together the power of faith that helps to master life.

Please give us an insight into a typical working day. What do you actually do?

Loosely based on Herbert Grönemeyer, everything stays different - every day. Of course I have my daily schedule with meetings, arranged pastoral care appointments, service preparation and funeral talk, with planning for the next youth camp, shopping for the dinner in the circle of the young congregation and the devotional preparation for the confirmation Saturday. But often everything changes with one phone call: a ward calls for the hospital chaplain, there is a knock on the door and an FSJ student asks for a talk. A bereaved family wants to be visited again. The bicycle has a flat tire - how do I get to my appointment on time? A wonderfully colourful everyday life - even if it sometimes gets a bit too colourful for me ;-)

Does your Christianity express itself in your private everyday life?

If the phone doesn't ring right away, I like to start my service in the hospital with the watchwords in the original languages, Hebrew and Greek. This works to some extent, keeps my head fresh and brings God's Word close to my heart. Thus equipped, I set out. In the stairwell of the hospital I like to warble pious songs. It sounds good there and comforts me especially after difficult counseling situations. And there's a great app in my phone: Christian mediation exercises. They really do exist! For many hundreds of years! (The app is called "evermore", by the way) - and stands bravely next to Buddhist meditations, yoga or pseudo-religious self-optimization exercises. I like it!

Do you have a favorite place and anecdote in the church district?

Yes, I did part of my training as a pastor in the Drübeck monastery and I'm so glad that this place still exists for me (and others). This is where I recharge (spiritually, of course - but also helped by the excellent cuisine). A second place is a rock in the Bode Valley, which I was allowed to climb together with comrades of the mountain rescue service for training purposes (at that time I was still on the road as an emergency chaplain). This rock is called "Kirche" - on its highest part there is a summit cross, which I clung to full of fear of heights at that time. For me, this is an admittedly dramatic but also expressive image for my faith, which encourages me to live life with all its challenges. I'd like to pass that on....

Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your ministry?

First and foremost, for my ministry at the hospital, I would like to say that God allowed me to experience situations in the first few months of my exciting new ministry that still help me through my daily professional life. I met a man who had a near-death experience and has not been a believer since, but has lost his fear of death. A woman who could no longer do anything on her own, but still rejoiced in every day of her life. Patients who, by virtue of their faith, had hope against all odds. They were all also training partners for my own faith, which makes me very grateful. And being able to work as a minister in a community hospital is both a joy and a challenge. Most of my "clients" have nothing to do with church at all anymore....