A. Wider Community

The Chaplaincy serves the English speaking community in a very large area bounded by Aachen in the West, Siegen in the East, Düsseldorf in the North (where there is another Anglican chaplaincy) and Koblenz in the South. The centres of worship are in the South of the cities Cologne and Bonn. Both cities are on the river Rhine, about 30 minutes (20 miles) apart by car (on one of two motorways), tram or train.

Cologne, the fourth largest city in Germany with a population of approximately one million, is well known as a centre for insurance and banking and more recently as a media centre. International trade fairs are held here. The airport is one of the major employers. Ford Motor Company, Toyota and “West Deutscher Rundfunk” (the largest German State Television Company) are also present.

Bonn, the former federal capital, has a population of around 300,000, and is the home of several UN agencies and the “Deutsche Welle” (the German equivalent of the BBC World Service). It is also a Post- and Telecommunications centre as well as a technological and scientific base. Both cities have large, established universities, many museums and rich musical cultures.

Both cities are linked to the nation-wide motorway systems, while a comprehensive network of trains, trams and buses operate in both cities and link the two.

From Cologne there are rail links to all major European cities. The Cologne-Bonn airport, situated between Bonn and Cologne, serves both cities and is easily accessible by public transport and by car. However, it is essential the chaplain enjoy driving and is prepared to drive (average 20,000 km per year).

B. Our constituency

The majority of those attending the services in Bonn and Cologne are native speakers of English: many come from the UK, but there are also members from all parts of the world. Some are only temporarily in Germany, others are long term residents, either because they have married German nationals or because their work is located here. Both congregations range from families with young children to senior citizens. Although the majority of our congregation is Anglican, a number of other denominations are represented who, being English speakers, also regard the churches of St. Boniface and All Saints as a focal point for worship.

C. Church life

Both cities have had an Anglican community for over 150 years. A Chaplain was first recorded as Chaplain to the British residents in Bonn in 1842, while a Consular Chaplain to Cologne was described in 1850. In the nineteenth century there were two Chaplains, but later the Bonn congregation was served from Cologne. The current form of the Chaplaincy dates from 1971, when the two Chaplaincies were amalgamated. Bonn was the Federal Capital of Germany until the government moved to Berlin in 1999. Until then diplomats and staff from many English-speaking embassies worshipped in St. Boniface, so that Bonn had a much larger multi-national congregation than at present. There are 106 people on the combined electoral rolls. All Saints, Cologne has a regular weekly attendance of between 25 and 45, and St. Boniface, Bonn of between 25 and 35. Sung Eucharist is held weekly on Sundays in each centre (in English) in Bonn at 9.30 am and in Cologne at 11.45 am. This gives the chaplain time to enjoy a cup of coffee with the Bonn congregation before driving to Cologne.

There is a Sunday school for the children in each church at the same time as the service during term time, currently fortnightly in Cologne.

Activities during the week include Bible Study and discussion groups in Bonn, and during Lent extra study groups at each end of the chaplaincy. Annual activities include a summer fete, a Christmas bazaar, a Christingle service, services of Nine Lessons and Carols, a Chaplaincy weekend, a retreat, and when possible, a pilgrimage. All Saints is used as a venue for concerts by choirs and music groups from the UK, a valuable contribution to our outreach.

The Anglican Church in Bonn and Cologne is entirely self-supporting. Part of the financial management structure is dealt with by the “Friends of the Anglican Chaplaincy in Bonn and Cologne e.V.” which is the legal employer of the Chaplain under German law. The members of the Chaplaincy Council are members of this association.

In Bonn the congregation worships in a chapel belonging to an Old People’s Home by the Rhine. Worship in Cologne is in All Saints church, which was built in 1951 for the British garrison and which now belongs to the German government. The Chaplaincy is not responsible for the upkeep of either building.

Neither church has a choir. Cologne has a regular paid organist, in Bonn the organists are drawn from the congregation.

D. General Chaplaincy information

Apart from the Chaplain there are currently 2 Readers and 4 Churchwardens,
2 each in Bonn and Cologne.

There is one chaplaincy council chaired by the Chaplain and elected annually. This forms two local congregational councils, which discuss local matters separately.

Lay volunteers provide communion assistants, sides-persons, Sunday School teachers, intercessors, rota organisers for weekly duties, newsletter editor and concert and publicity coordinator.

Vestments are worn for services.

The nearest Anglican Chaplaincy is in Düsseldorf. The clergy and deanery synod representatives of the Anglican and Episcopal Chaplaincies in Germany meet regularly. There are good ecumenical relationships particularly with the Old Catholic Church, with which the Church of England is in full communion. The Old Catholic Bishop lives in Bonn and is an assistant Bishop of the Diocese in Europe. Looser links are maintained with the local Protestant and Roman Catholic Churches. The chaplaincy is represented in Bonn and Cologne on the ACK (local Ecumenical Council of Churches) and participates in the World Day of Prayer.