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By unveiling the engaging Reformation truck in the Plaine de Plainpalais park in Geneva, events marking the 500-year anniversary of the Reformation have been launched. Being regarded as a peace city, Geneva has been chosen as the first of 67 stops for the storymobile, full of testimonies and interactive experiences related to the Reformation.
"The Reformation inspired hearts and minds, and changed the world. And that is what we are celebrating", said Gottfried Locher, president of the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches, during the opening ceremony of Reformation events in Plainpalais. With the notion that all people are equal before God, the Reformation has spurred the triumphant global march of democracy - and Switzerland and all Europe has benefitted vastly from this movement, he said. However, "the meaning of Reformation remains unchanged: to translate the word of God into the language of the people.”
The choice of Geneva as the first stop for Reformation roadmap is a great honour to the city, stated Francois Longchamp, president of the State Council for the Canton of Geneva. “Geneva owes its values to a Protestant culture based on hospitality, attention, simplicity, rigour and a strong work ethic. It owes not only its economic strength to the Reformation, but also its spiritual influence and, to a great extent, its humanism to the movement as well”, said Longchamp, noting that Geneva as an international and humanist city can be clearly traced back to the Reformation.
The program from 3-4 November in Geneva is organized by the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches, Protestant Church of Geneva, and the World Council of Churches in collaboration with International Museum of Reformation. Events will include a panel discussion entitled "Geneva - a city of Peace" at the Ecumenical Centre, public workshops in Plaine de Plainpalais on children’s Rights, the plight of refugees, health and food security and ecumenical heritage.
The most visible part of the program is the Reformation truck with several screens and multimedia offerings, displaying the stories about the Reformation in various media formats. The impressive size of the truck, being more than 16 meters long and 9 meters wide in its set-up state, is very noticeable in the public park, usually occupied by families with children, sports enthusiasts and skaters.
After inauguration in Geneva, the Reformation truck will spend the next six months traveling throughout Europe, passing through 67 cities in 19 countries. The exhibition truck will stop for 36 hours in each city, highlighting the local history of the Reformation and witnessing that Reformation is the global citizen. The ultimate destination of this journey is Wittenberg in Germany, where Martin Luther lived, worked and started a movement that has changed the cultures and societies in Europe and the whole world.
European Reformation Roadmap launch
Download the programme (pdf, 1 MB)
International website (in English and German)
Swiss website (in French and German)
