The former pastor Harald Storz buried Bibles that were no longer needed in Göttingen (Lower Saxony). The books were buried after the service without a cross or tombstone near St. Albani’s Church. There have hardly been any comparable actions in Germany so far, said Storz. The funeral is based on a Jewish tradition.
During his active time as pastor for the St. Jacobi Church in Göttingen, old Bibles were often given to him, Storz said. “People found the books during household resolutions of deceased family members and didn’t want to throw them away,” Storz said. But he also didn’t know what to do with the works – and ultimately threw them in the trash with a bad feeling.
Mass-produced Bibles
In the past centuries, Bibles – unlike today, where they are mass-produced – have been passed on through generations. There is therefore no tradition in the Christian faith for dealing with specimens that are no longer needed.
This is different in the Jewish faith. Torah scrolls that are no longer usable have been buried there for a long time. “But they also have another value: They are handwritten and humanized as a kind of presence of God.”
When, among other things, he heard about a pastor near Leipzig who, following Jewish tradition, buried Bibles, he adopted the idea for Göttingen. Several citizens came to the small funeral service and brought Bibles that they could no longer read because the writing was too small.
Report of St. Albani Church
