Dr Jutta Noetzel (Pastor of the Evangelical Reformed Cathedral Parish in Halle)

Children are the very embodiment of the fullness of life, representing both life itself and a promise of blessing. The close link between blessing and the gift of children might suggest that ‘a childless person cannot be a person loved by God’ (Rosenberger). Childlessness is an unfulfilled promise; it robs those affected of their prospects for the future and of the hope of living on through their children after death. For women, it is a disaster from an economic and social point of view and often leads to discrimination. This is put into perspective in one passage in the later texts of the Hebrew Bible: Having many children is not in itself fulfilment; they must also turn out well. The situation is entirely different in the New Testament. Jesus was childless. So was Paul. How did this change come about?

As part of the exhibition ‘childless’

Free admission