{"id":255,"date":"2023-06-26T14:59:06","date_gmt":"2023-06-26T19:59:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/?page_id=255"},"modified":"2026-07-01T15:12:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T20:12:12","slug":"churches-in-exile","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/churches-in-exile\/","title":{"rendered":"Churches in Exile"},"content":{"rendered":"

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DP Camp Cultural Life<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tOriginator: Natalie Wilson<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Original caption: \u201cLonging for their lost homeland, and endeavoring to preserve their cultural gifts, the Estonian people have held great festivals of music and art.\u201d1<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>

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The \"Churches in Exile\" included Latvian, Lithuanian, Estonian, Hungarian, Polish, Ukrainian, Czech, and Slovak Lutherans living in Displaced Persons camps throughout Europe.2<\/span><\/a><\/span> The present exhibit focuses on the Baltic Lutheran \"Churches in Exile,\" from Estonian, Latvia, and Lithuania, whose stories are prominent in the materials made available for this research.<\/p>\n

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Special thanks go to John Plume for his generous donation of research materials, including a copy of his co-written book, Insula, <\/em>that documents the experience of Latvian DPs. Due to the abundance of materials about the Latvian experience made available by Mr. Plume, a high proportion of the details about the Churches in Exile focus on Latvian stories. Further phases of research will add information and perspectives from other Baltic and Eastern European Lutherans. 3<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/div>\""Pastor<\/span><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
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Memories of Berchtesgaden<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t

In one of the DP camps near Berchtesgaden in the American Zone, Insula, there existed a large community of Latvians whose memories of exile and displacement are documented in the book, Insula, Island of Hope<\/em> by John and Ventis Plume (2003).4 <\/span><\/a><\/span>The displaced persons camp Insula was filled with life, cultural activity, education, and community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>

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<\/div>\"Translation:<\/span><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
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Cultural Life<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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National Celebrations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t

As a way to preserve ethnic and national identity, many Baltic DPs observed patriotic holidays, such as celebrations of independence from the Soviet Union in 1918. These were often somber due DP's exiled state and the current Soviet occupation of their countries. However, even with this painful nostalgia, the celebrations provided a change in the regular monotony of camp life.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>

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Creative Writing<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t

Creative writing also provided a meaningful outlet for the many frustrations brought by their conditions. For instance, \u201cThe Alien Bread\u201d by Lithuanian poet Kazys Brad\u016bnas describes a traveler encountering a comforting river and flower. Yet he realizes the flower will not grow at home and the river has a German name. Comparatively, Estonian poet Kaliju Lepik describes his return home to find his mother replaced by the bloody face of a stranger in \u201cThe Face in the Window\u201d.5<\/a><\/span> \"K\u0101ds Kura Nav\" (Somebody Who is Not) by M\u0101rti\u0146\u0161 Z\u012bverts similarly tells of a woman finding a disfigured refugee to be her husband whom she thought died in the war and whom she leaves her new lover to care for.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>

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Theater<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t

In comparison to other cultural expressions, theater reached the widest audience with entire camps attending theater performances. Early on, the Estonians at a camp at Geislingen created a prominent theater company. The Latvian theater company was easily formed in the Meerbeck DP Camp due to the large number of professional Latvian actors and even the entire Latvian Ballet.<\/span><\/p>\n

Check out the Latvian Song and Dance Festival held in St. Paul, MN\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>

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Sources<\/h3>\n
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  1. Lutheran World Federation, Lutheran World Federation Service to Refugees 1947-1949 Photographic Section<\/i>, ed. Howard V Hong (St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN, 1949).<\/li>\n
  2. Kenneth C. Senft, \u201cThe Lutheran World Federation and the Displaced Person,\u201d (Lutheran Theological Seminary, 1952), found in Kierkegaard Library Rare Books Room.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Ventis Plume, John Plume, and Insula, Island of Hope: A Latvian Memoir<\/i>, Revised and enlarged edition. (Morgan Hill, CA: Bookstand Publishing, 2013).<\/li>\n
  4. Ventis Plume, John Plume, and Insula, Island of Hope: A Latvian Memoir<\/i>, Revised and enlarged edition. (Morgan Hill, CA: Bookstand Publishing, 2013).<\/li>\n
  5. Mark Wyman, <\/span>DP: Europe\u2019s Displaced Persons, 1945-1951<\/span><\/i> (Associated University Presses, Inc., 1989).<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
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    Images<\/span><\/h3>\n
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    1. (Heading) Choir of Latvian Dps, Lutheran World Federation Service to Refugees 1947-1949 Photographic Section, used with permission of the Lutheran World Federation and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.<\/span><\/li>\n
    2. Group of Latvian DP\u2019s in traditional dress, Lutheran World Federation Photographic Section, used with permission of the Lutheran World Federation and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.<\/span><\/li>\n
    3. Map of the Baltic States and the Soviet Union, including the Eastern Bloc border change. Contributors to Wikimedia Projects.\u201cFile:Eastern Bloc Border Change 1938-1948.\u201d Wikimedia Commons, December 6, 2020. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:EasternBloc_BorderChange38-48-tr.svg.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
    4. Young boy under a sign for Insula Displaced Persons' Assembly Center,\u00a0<\/span>from: <\/span>Ventis Plume, John Plume, and Vaira V\u012bke-Freiberga, Insula, Island of Hope: A Latvian Memoir<\/i>, Revised and enlarged edition. (Morgan Hill, CA: Bookstand Publishing, 2013).<\/span><\/li>\n
    5. Map of Insula, from: <\/span>Ventis Plume, John Plume, and Vaira V\u012bke-Freiberga, Insula, Island of Hope: A Latvian Memoir<\/i>, Revised and enlarged edition. (Morgan Hill, CA: Bookstand Publishing, 2013).<\/span><\/li>\n
    6. Pastor with three women, Lutheran World Federation Photographic Section, used with permission of the Lutheran World Federation and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.<\/span><\/li>\n
    7. Playbill for a performance at the Estonian DP Theater at the Geislingen DP Camp in Germany, courtesy of the Immigration History Research Center Archives Mall Jurma (J\u00fcrma) papers IHRC3788.<\/span><\/li>\n
    8. Translation: \"Estonian Summer Days, Geislingen\/ STG. 3-4 AUG. 1945\" Flier for Estonian Cultural event in the Geislingen DP Camp in Germany, courtesy of the\u00a0 Immigration History Research Center Archives Mall Jurma (J\u00fcrma) papers IHRC3788.<\/span><\/li>\n
    9. Flier for a Latvian Art Exhibition in a DP camp, courtesy of the Immigration History Research Center Archives Mall Jurma (J\u00fcrma) papers IHRC3788.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":5123,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-255","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5123"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=255"}],"version-history":[{"count":117,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/255\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5064,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/255\/revisions\/5064"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/lwf-refugee-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}