Erfurt (dpa/th) – According to the diocese, around 600 children met on the first day of the children’s pilgrimage on the Domberg in Erfurt. In the hot temperatures, the children were mainly found in the cool church and in the shade, said Carmen Bröckl from the Erfurt pastoral care office on Wednesday. “The middle of the meadow is quite empty.” Another 350 boys and girls are expected on Thursday for this year’s children’s pilgrimage.

A service with Bishop Ulrich Neymeyr was on the program for the morning. The motto “Go, start!” is all about the sustainable treatment of the earth. With creative tasks and exercises, the young people should deal with things like avoiding waste and their personal ecological footprint.

The popularity has been constant in recent years with almost 1000 children from the Catholic Eichsfeld, but also from Erfurt and from southern and eastern Thuringia, said Bröckl.