Clyde and Dee Kilough with Paul Kieffer and  Mario Lambertz at "Köllen Druck und Verlag".

Clyde takes a closer look at a Heidelberg press  at "Köllen Druck und Verlag".

Jesmina Allaoua shows Clyde Kilough German  booklets at the UCG-Germany office.

Clyde and Dee Kilough had three dinners with  members, like this one on Friday evening.

Clyde Kilough speaks to 75 brethren at church  services in Dormagen, Germany.

Clyde and Dee Kilough visit the former Allied  "Checkpoint Charlie" in Berlin.

Nearly 34 years after a two-day visit while a student at Ambassador College, Clyde Kilough returned to Germany on January 26, 2006 in his responsibility as President of the United Church of God, an International Association. Accompanied by his wife Dee, Clyde arrived at the Frankfurt airport and proceeded to Niederkassel, Germany, site of the Vereinte Kirche Gottes ["UCG-Germany"] office. After checking in at their hotel, the Kiloughs visited the Cologne cathedral, viewing the church's interior and the treasury, which houses various artifacts and art objects related to the local history of the Roman Catholic church.

On Friday the Kiloughs had a tour of "Köllen Druck und Verlag" in nearby Bonn, the printing plant where "Gute Nachrichten" – the German edition of the "Good News" magazine – has been printed since September 2000. "Gute Nachrichten" is published six times a year and is in its tenth year of publication, not having missed or been late on a single issue yet. 4 issues a year have 16 pages, and the March-April and September-October issues are 24 pages, allowing a semi-annual letter to subscribers to be distributed in a cost-effective manner.

"Köllen Druck und Verlag" is a mid-sized printer and publisher on the cutting edge of color management technology. Its in-house digital imaging system interfaces with Fuji plate-making equipment, providing reliable colors for screening images on computer monitor prior to printing. The system was designed by Koellen's pre-press department head Mario Lambertz. "Köllen Druck" is a family-owned company that refuses to print pornography and nearly went out of business during the Nazi era for printing material that took a negative view of the regime. "Köllen Druck" currently prints in 40 languages, including brochures and booklets for Germany's national shortwave broadcaster "Deutsche Welle".

After the tour, the Kiloughs returned to Niederkassel via a Rhine river ferry for lunch and a tour of the small Vereinte Kirche Gottes office in Niederkassel-Mondorf. Jesmina Allaoua, who among her many duties is responsible for mail processing and editorial assignments, showed the Kiloughs how literature requests are processed and internet advertizing is monitored. Jesmina explained how articles for "Gute Nachrichten" are edited to make them culturally suitable for German-language readers in Europe. The UCG-Germany editorial staff also generates its own articles when there are timely local topics or when there is not enough suitable material in the English edition.

In addition to providing a pleasant work environment, the office also has adequate storage for approximately 40,000 copies of the 15 booklets currently in print and the complete 12 lesson Bible Study course. After their visit to the office, the Kiloughs enjoyed dinner Friday evening at a nearby Italian restaurant with twelve members from southern Germany who stayed overnight in the Bonn area on their way to Saturday's combined service in Dormagen.

On Sabbath, January 28, the Kiloughs were special guests at a church services in Dormagen, located between Cologne and Düsseldorf on the Rhine river. 75 people from Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland traveled to Dormagen to hear his sermon on vision, commitment and sacrifice. Brethren in attendance appreciated his sermon and the brief remarks he made in German at the beginning and conclusion of his sermon (Clyde had four years of German instruction during his school days).

Prior to the regular afternoon service, Clyde answered questions in a special one-hour question and answer session. The questions had been submitted in advance and translated into English. Among the questions asked were the following:

• The church's traditional prophetic understanding includes a growing conflict between Europe and the USA. The rift was especially evident prior to the Iraq war. There were differences of opinion on Iraq even among members of the church from these two regions. What is the church doing to counteract the developing rift between the USA and Europe?
• In view of the aging ministry in the church, why wasn't it possible to offer Matt Fenchel a job in United that would have made possible his continued employment as a full-time minister of the church?
• The Bible emphasizes the unity of the Church of God as a fruit of the holy spirit. It is a fact, though, that since the decline of the "Worldwide Church of God" several larger and smaller groups exist, all having basically the same doctrines and each preaching the gospel by itself. Isn't cooperation with other groups possible? An example of possible cooperation could be joint activities with the "Living Church of God" which offers literature in the German language in Germany via the Internet. Shouldn't this potential be tapped for preaching the gospel?

In the evening the Kiloughs and the members in attendance enjoyed a catered buffet meal, provided by a nearby Greek restaurant. To enable all members to stay for dinner, the cost of the meal was subsidized by UCOG.

On Sunday the Kiloughs traveled to Berlin for an evening meal with 7 brethren from the greater Berlin area. The dinner was in Berlin-Spandau at the "Schilton Hotel", the former lodging venue for British non-commissioned officers in the British sector of post-war Berlin. The meal provided an opportunity for a lively discussion, with some of the same questions raised that had been asked the day before in Dormagen. On Monday and Tuesday the Kiloughs toured various historical and cultural places of interest in Berlin with their tour guide Jesmina Allaoua. Among their stops were the former Allied "Checkpoint Charlie", the rotunda of the Reichstag and the Pergamon museum, where a replica of the Babylonian "Ishtar" gate is on permanent display.

Clyde Kilough's second visit to Germany ended on February 1, when he and his wife flew from the Berlin-Tegel airport to Bergamo, Italy to view the United Church of God office in that country and meet with UCG-Italy National Council chairman Carmelo Anastasi.

• Paul Kieffer, February 1, 2006