NACI is working on an e-learning program
The New Apostolic Church would like to offer its ministers better training opportunities—and on a global level, at that. It is for this reason that the New Apostolic Church International (NACI) is working on an e-learning program. Following are some initial insights.
The training and ongoing education of ministers is nothing new in the New Apostolic Church. Many District Apostle areas have invested in and offered corresponding materials for years, some to a greater degree and some to a lesser degree—after all, the opportunities and circumstances on the local level vary greatly.
This was one of the subjects of discussion among the District Apostles during their meeting in South Africa in May 2023. And so it was that Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider gave the starting signal for a project which aims to support all Regional Churches around the world that do not have the necessary resources. This way, all ministers will have access to the same opportunities for further training.
Online is more practical than on location
The only realistic candidate for this kind of program is e-learning, explains Project Manager Simon Heiniger. While in-person seminars are usually the recommended form of training because they lead to more exchange and promote a sense of community, online training is less complex and therefore more cost-effective. Above all, users can freely choose the time and place of their participation.
The learning platform of choice is known as “Illias”. It is an open source software that is used by numerous universities, for example. The system can be expanded as necessary, as demonstrated by the examples of the “Canadian Police Knowledge Network” or the University of Cologne, each of which have over 100,000 users.
Variety is the order of the day
Topics currently in the works include: preaching and sermon preparation, liturgy, prayers and holy acts in divine service, understanding sacraments and ministry, salvation for the departed, pastoral care, and conflict resolution.
The content is prepared in a varied and didactically targeted manner: in addition to passages of text, there are videos, animations, images, and infographics. Users can check on their progress by testing themselves in multiple-choice or quiz format.
As international as possible
So far, ten languages are in the works. In addition to the so-called primary languages of NACI—namely English, French, German, and Spanish—these include Portuguese, Romanian, and Italian, as well as Bahasa (Indonesia), Tagalog (Philippines), and Swahili, the most widely used lingua franca in East Africa.
In order to offer such linguistic diversity in the first place, NACI uses artificial intelligence to produce the videos. “Studio recordings of each version with native speakers do not offer the most efficient solution from a time and budget management perspective,” says Project Manager Heiniger.
Trial users want more
The District Apostles were able to see what it all looks and sounds like at their meeting in Ghana in November 2024. The first lessons are almost ready. And the trial users are very satisfied.
Around 250 ministers from Africa, Europe, America, and Asia have already worked with the “preaching” and “pastoral care” modules. Some 96 percent of them have made progress with the training, and 97 percent have expressed the desire for more training of this kind.
The question of when the training courses will be available in the respective countries depends on further progress in the various language versions and the needs within the Regional Churches. Ultimately, a certain basic package of modules will be launched. The further procedure will then be regulated by the respective District Apostle area.