With the lack of snow, this is a very grey and blah winter here in Germany. Thus, I don't have much in the way of fun trips to share at the moment, but I can ALWAYS ramble on about various things I find interesting in Germany as compared to the US, so I figured I might as well post a few entries along those lines while I wait for a chance to go on an outing.
So, let's start with some things about religion in German society that a typical American would be shocked by, or find intrusive or "too much"
Angela Merkel, Germany's chancellor, is a member of the CDU political party. CDU stands for Christian Democratic Union. Woah! From an American perspective, having a major political party being specifically NAMED for a religion seems like a huge violation of the separation of church and state which we hold so dear.
On the other hand, many Germans have told me they find putting "In God We Trust on our money is a startling cross of that line for them.
At school in Germany all kids take religious education classes. Parents choose whether it is Catholic, Protestant or just general ethics (a few areas offer other choices) until the year in which the student is 14 at the outset, at which point the students themselves choose. It is also not uncommon for Saint Nickolas day to be celebrated at school or even for schools to go to a church to sing carols on the last day of school before the Christmas vacation, etc. While this might feel like far too much religion in public schools tin the US, those in German often tell me that and compelling public school children to say a pledge of allegiance with a reference to "one country under God" strikes them as crossing a line and forcing religion (and patriotism in a way that feels far too much like Hitler's regime for comfort) onto the most vulnerable minds in the population. There is also quite a bit of confusion as to why or how US school districts sometimes base curriculum choices (especially in science or health, namely sex education) on religious principals.
In the first week or two that we lived here in Germany, Dave's new boss called him and asked him what religion we were. As an American, Dave's initial reaction was pretty much "none of your business, and why would you even ask." From the German standpoint, his boss really did need to know. In Germany, if you belong to either the Protestant or Catholic church, your 10% contribution to the church is taken out of your paycheck before taxes. We have spoken to several Germans, all of whom tell us that if they were baptized in Germany they ARE church members and have to give, unless they go through official channels to denounce their religion (which all say is more than they could do and it would break their parents' hearts). Many say they do not really mind giving because the church does so much for the community and also keeping the many old buildings in good repair is expensive but worthwhile as it preserves the history and culture of the country as well as bringing in tourist dollars.
For us Americans, this type of forced tithing, and the church inspired closing of most shops on Sundays (and rules against making too much noise on Sundays, etc) seems like religion is permeating society.
On the other side of things, many Germans see a very unhealthy "obsession" with religion in US society.
It is pretty common for students to spend a semester or year abroad in the tenth grade. In our area, I would say close to 40% of students do so, and most go to an English speaking country to sharpen that ever so marketable skill. I have spoken to many parents who try to persuade their teen to go to Australia, or New Zealand (or England, but being so close it lacks appeal for many of the kids) and steer them away from going to the US (funny, I never hear of anyone going to Canada; I am not really sure why).
Those who aren't successful at talking their teens into somewhere else often opt, as our neighbors have this year, to spend two to three times as much money to send their children to boarding schools which accept one year exchanges, rather than have their children stay with a host family.
When asked why, I get the same answer every time. In the last decade or so, more and more Germans have known someone whose child went to America and was placed with a host family who was deeply religious. Germans find attending church several times a week, insisting that a teen attend church at all, etc very unsettling and do NOT want their children in such an environment.
I don't really have a point here, other than to highlight some differences in how things are done and how they are perceived by the two cultures. Maybe I will work on having a point in my next post!
--Hadley
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