Reformation Sunday
Sunday, October 28th, 2007Today was Reformation Sunday (the Sunday before the anniversary of the day in which Luther nailed his 95 thesis to the door), and is our custom we had a special service. This year it is particularly special in Italy, as it is also the 400th anniversary of an Italian translation of the Bible, which has been used throughout the history of the evangelical church in Italy and of which one of the revisions is still the main translation used. About 50 people from a church at Vicenza came to visit us for the day. Since we have been getting record attendances lately (more than 60 adults, plus the many children) and often our usual hall is not large enough just for us, let alone almost twice the number (which is why getting our own hall is becoming a pressing problem), we moved to a local theatre for the service. After lunch together, there was a two hour historical tour of the city, with an emphasis on the places of the Counter Reformation. As the city of the Council of Trent which blocked the Reformation in Italy and many other countries of the world, Reformation Sunday has a special meaning here.