Germany’s Longtime Tent Evangelist Lothar Velten Dies At 82 (Worthy News In-Depth)

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

BERLIN (Worthy News) – Lothar Velten, one of Germany’s best-known evangelists and a leading figure in the nation’s tent mission movement, has died after some six decades of preaching the Gospel in Germany and Austria, his ministry confirmed. He was 82.

Velten passed away during the night leading into August 31, the Deutsche Zeltmission (German Tent Mission), or DZM, said. A cause of death was not immediately disclosed.

Trained as an electrician before studying theology, Velten devoted most of his adult life to evangelism, eventually traveling to communities under the slogan “Voll das Leben,” or “Life to the Full,” inviting churchgoers and those outside the Church to discover life with Jesus Christ.

He studied theology at a mission school in Unterweissach in southwestern Germany before spending 12 years as a preacher for a mission organization in Austria.

Beginning around 1979 until 1998, Velten directed evangelistic work for Germany’s Christian youth association Entschieden für Christus (Decided for Christ), known as EC.

TENT EVANGELISM

In 1998, he joined DZM, a tent evangelism organization based in Siegen in western Germany, as a preacher and remained associated with the ministry for the rest of his life.

Tent evangelism has deep roots in Germany. DZM was founded in 1902, but its evangelistic work was forced to stop under pressure from the Nazi authorities before World War II and came to a complete halt during the armed conflict.

The mission was re-established in postwar Germany in 1946, with its first two postwar evangelistic tents operating in Frankfurt and Siegen in 1949. It brought the Christian message directly into communities, often erecting large tents in towns and villages for days or weeks of meetings.

Velten later helped modernize that tradition. DZM said he adapted campaigns to each community’s social and cultural environment, involving mayors, fire brigades, sports clubs, brass bands, and other local organizations to reach people who might otherwise never attend a Christian gathering.

“Velten gave the local dignitaries a stage, in order then to tell of the Greatest,” the ministry recalled.

MODERNIZING OUTREACH

In his first year with DZM, Velten introduced a bistro area inside the evangelistic tent, an innovation the organization said later became standard in German tent evangelism.

Those who knew Velten remembered him as warm, humble and passionate about sharing the Gospel.

Klaus Göttler, general secretary of the German EC Association, described Velten as a mentor and “wonderful friend” who had influenced him since they first met in the 1980s.

Velten had a deep love for Jesus Christ and young people, Göttler recalled. “It was his greatest concern to bring the two together.”

His Christian convictions also extended beyond the evangelistic tent. Velten and his wife, Irene, opened their home in the 1990s to Messeret, a young Ethiopian refugee who was struggling after arriving in Germany.

REFUGEE FINDS HOME

Messeret, believed to have been about 12 or 13 when she arrived in Germany with her brother, initially stayed in a children’s home in the city of Kassel, where Irene Velten worked.

The Veltens later welcomed the girl into their home near Kassel in central Germany, where she lived with the family for five years, learned German and attended a local school.

The couple, who had a daughter of their own named Carmen, viewed helping Messeret as an expression of Christian love for one’s neighbor. Years later, Messeret remained in contact with the family and visited the Veltens with her own daughter.

Velten continued preaching after reaching retirement age and remained involved with DZM for years, serving as chairman and as a member of its board. He remained active in Christian work well into his later years, helping organize an EC reunion as recently as September 2025.

In 2015, DZM faced a severe financial crisis as demand for its traditional large-tent evangelistic campaigns had declined. The organization responded by cutting positions and developing a new form of outreach, CAMISSIO CAMP2GO, which brings Christian-themed holiday programs for children to local communities.

NEW OUTREACH

Velten supported the restructuring and launch of the new program, despite reservations about such a major change in direction. He later concluded the difficult decision was the right one and described the development as a blessing.

Following his death, Velten’s family and neighbors gathered for a Christian farewell and blessing. Göttler, who attended, said the gathering was a powerful final testimony to Velten’s faith.

DZM described him as an “ambassador of God” whose ministry centered on helping ordinary people encounter Christ.

Colleagues and other Christians remember Lothar Velten as a man devoted to the message he had preached for decades: finding “Life to the Full” through Christ.