The 110th Conference of the German Evangelical Alliance opened yesterday in the spa town of Bad Blankenburg in Thuringia, Germany, with a call to the estimated 3,000 delegates to testify their faith as the basis of their daily decision-making in the public sphere more.

The Conference, which runs until Sunday, is one of the most highly attended church events in the eastern German states and prides itself on its high attendance figure among the young, with around 70 per cent of the delegates being under the age of thirty.

The motto for this year’s conference is, according to General Secretary Hartmut Seeb of Stuttgart, “God is for us” and “Courage for a Successful Life”.

Mr Seeb said a lack of esteem and self-confidence as well as disrespect for the Commandments of God belonged to the greatest hindrances to a moral regeneration in Germany.

A number of speakers at the Conference are due to give their thoughts on this issue and possible ways out of the crisis, including the Representative of the German Evangelical Alliance Peter Strauch Witten and leader of the Christian Democrats fraction in the Saxon state parliament, Fritz Haehle of Dresden.

Seminars will also be run, focusing on issues such as dealing with personal tragedy, money and sexuality, as well as more global aspects, such as the problems currently afflicting Eastern Europe, Africa and Israel.

An exhibition will also showcase the academic, evangelical and mission work of the more than 300 organisations affiliated with the German Evangelical Alliance.