A Mormon missionary in Cold War East Germany (244)

Cold War Conversations

In the early 1980s East Germany had just 5000 members of the Church of Latter-day Saints, many of which had been members since before World War 2.

In 1982 East German leader Erich Honecker historically allowed the church to build a temple in Freiberg and in 1988 Mormon missionaries were allowed into East Germany. Ken Brady describes his experiences as a Mormon missionary in East Germany as the country gradually disappeared and was absorbed into West Germany.

Ken also gives us a valuable view of life away from Berlin in cities such as Cottbus, Gorlitz, Schwerin, Frankfurt an der Oder and Eisenhüttenstadt. It’s a fascinating story told with humour and candour as Ken grapples with local dialects, the local food and tricks with East German currency.

0:00 Introduction and Ken Brady's early interest in East Germany

7:16 The Church's operations in East Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall

12:24 First impressions of East Germany

21:17 Fear of the Stasi after the fall of the Berlin Wall

28:18 Encounters with locals suspecting them to be CIA agents

34:19 Sightseeing and exploring local culture on days off

42:19 Guidance on political party selection and introduction of West German products

46:17 Teaching religion to those with no prior experience

56:22 Currency Unification and its impact on East Germany

1:09:00 Ken Brady's service in West Berlin

1:18:18 The stark contrast of Soviet architecture

1:21:00 Thanking the Patrons and final remarks

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I am delighted to welcome Ken to our Cold War conversation…

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Radio GDR

If you are interested in East Germany we can highly recommend our friends over at Radio GDR.

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