Deceleration in Munich: Walking with pastor Michael Kafka!

Deceleration in Munich: Walking with pastor Michael Kafka!

Michael Kafka, who has been active as a road chaplain in the Au and Untergiesing since autumn, offers regular after-work walk. These take place on Fridays at 4 p.m. at the Oilberg Chapel. According to tz.de aim to slow down the lives of the participants and give them the opportunity to give them their soul "Fire". Often the participants are on the road in small groups, without a fixed route, and enjoy open conversations.

The reporter Marius Meyer took part in one of these walks and noticed that he hardly used his cell phone, which caused him to concentrate entirely on the experience and exchange. Michael Kafka is not only active during the walks, but also regularly present in the district. One of the news he is planning is the introduction of a mobile bank, the locations of which is to be announced in advance as soon as the approval is given by the district administration department. He can be found on Instagram at @spirititualitaet.isar.

deceleration in downtown

Back to urban development: The Munich pedestrian zone between Stachus and Marienplatz has an initiative for reducing the pace in this strongly frequented environment with the “Deceleration gauge” project. This project is supported by the city pastoral and the Berlin architect artist group "Stiftung Leisure" and aims to create moments of calm for all passers-by. Thousands of people, up to 14,700 passers -by per hour in Kaufingerstrasse, use the lively zone, which is shaped by various disruptive factors, such as sales stands and construction sites.

The "deceleration gauge" offers seating such as pillows and deckchairs to give people space for discussions and exchange. Contact persons are available on site who are open to discussions on various topics, including spiritual questions. This measure is intended to contribute to the integration of the church into the everyday life of people and show new perspectives on the church institution. In addition, "time-out parking clocks" and "parcels rest" with earplugs and bible texts are distributed to promote deceleration.

The role of the city in change

Urban development and transformation is significantly shaped by factors such as immigration, secularization and pluralization. These social hotspots are not only places of hope, but also of the conflict. In order to take this change into account, it is important to integrate the church into these urban processes and to promote exchange in unusual species.

Through initiatives such as the walks with Michael Kafka and the "deceleration gauge" is an attempt to create a space for spirituality, encounter and dialogue in the urban landscape.