sentences:  He worked as a shoemaker after the war and converted to christianity in 1954 under the influence of his family then attended a Lutheran seminary from 1964 until 1969 in Erfurt.In 1970 he was ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church at Rippicha in the district of Zeitz.He was critical of the East German Communist regime imposed by the Soviet Union after the war and symbolic acts of protest, including the installation of a cross of neon lamps at his church, brought him to the attention of the authorities.