NOT ON TOPIC: This source is a broadcast listing of Reformation Day services across Germany. Lutheran bodies appear only in passing (one SELK service and a Lutheran bishop preaching in Vienna), and the story is mainly about Evangelical broadcasts in general.

Evangelical Christians will mark Reformation Day on Saturday, October 31, 2026, when the day commemorates the beginning of the Reformation. Viewers and listeners who want to attend a service at home can choose from several television and radio broadcasts, which address themes ranging from social justice and the courage to act to the question of what matters in faith.

On Das Erste (ARD), from 10 to 11 a.m., the Evangelical television service comes this year from the Christuskirche in Mannheim under the motto “Du machst den Unterschied” (“You Make the Difference”). Its central question is how people can overcome their fears and be encouraged to act. Participants take up ideas of Martin Luther and ask what they mean in a time shaped by crises. Pastor Friedel Goetz preaches, Pastor Gabriele Hartlieb designs the liturgy, and Kirchenmusikdirektor Johannes Michel directs the music, which is performed by the Bachchor Mannheim, the Kurpfälzer Bläserensemble and organist Maria Mokhova.

From 10 to 11 a.m., MDR KULTUR broadcasts an Evangelical service from the St. Nikolaikirche in Quedlinburg under the motto “Konzentriert euch!” (“Concentrate!”). Pastor Franziska Junge and Pastor Tobias Gruber give the sermon. The service asks what people base their lives and their faith on, and church members also have their say. Kreiskantor Olaf Engel and Domkantor Alexander Kuhlo shape the music with the Gospelchor des Kirchenkreises Halberstadt, the ensemble Hearts wide open, soloists and a band.

From 10 to 11 a.m., NDR Info and WDR 5 carry a service of the Selbstständige Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche (SELK) from the Kleine Kreuzkirche in Hermannsburg, titled “Gerechtigkeit, die aufrichtet” (“Justice that Raises Up”). Pastor Markus Nietzke and Elena Bokelmann address questions of justice, guilt and forgiveness. The central focus is the Reformation insight that God’s love does not have to be earned. The service asks what this means for how people treat one another and for those who have suffered injustice, a concern that echoes the call to speak up for the vulnerable (Proverbs 31:8-9). The celebration combines classical hymns with unusual sounds, including the song “Bread and Roses” (“Brot und Rosen”), which stands for the longing for a life of dignity.

At 10:05 a.m., Deutschlandfunk broadcasts an Evangelical radio service from Vienna. The Lutheran bishop Cornelia Richter gives the sermon and celebrates the service together with Michael Wolf, former pastor of the Christuskirche. The music is provided by a choir and instrumental ensemble of the Institut für Orgel, Orgelforschung und Kirchenmusik of the mdw – Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien. Musical director Manuel Schuen, professor of choral conducting at the institute, conducts works for double choir with students, including “Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich” by Michael Praetorius, “Jauchzet dem Herren” by Heinrich Schütz, “Ein Kind ist uns geboren” by Melchior Franck and “Singet dem Herrn” by Johann Pachelbel.

From 7 to 8 p.m., Bayern 1 broadcasts an Evangelical Reformation Day service from the Stadtkirche in Roth. The focus is on evening mood and moments of the night, and on how Christians experience the Reformation as renewal and how faith in Jesus Christ sustains them. In his sermon, Pastor Eberhard Hadem reflects on faith in the night. The service is not a historical look back at Martin Luther but concerns personal experiences of faith. Leonie Anhalt and Michael Bader recite selected biblical and other texts. The congregation sings evening hymns, Gitti Rüsing performs further songs, a Posaunenchor plays along, and Dekanatskantor Tobias Kraft leads the music and plays the organ.

Source: Read the original report (translated from German)