Church members want to understand Church doctrine. The current issue of community features clearly understandable teaching texts for just such members. What is divine service? What is forgiveness of sins? Answers to important questions.
The core content of community consists of twelve pages that are also regularly published in Unsere Familie, the German-language magazine of the Church, and in the newsletter African Joy. In addition to a letter from the Chief Apostle and a divine service report, this core content also includes four pages of Church doctrine.
Church doctrine in understandable language
community continually publishes questions and answers from the Catechism of the New Apostolic Church (CNAC). The textbook on faith offers many answers and fulfils various needs. As it says in the foreword of the CNAC, “It can be considered an important function of the Catechism to serve as a basis for Church instruction and ministers’ meetings. Beyond that it is intended to bring greater uniformity to doctrinal statements while taking other languages and cultures into account.”
Promoting faith
And it is only by learning more about this doctrine that knowledge can be deepened and that the faith of the New Apostolic Christian can be strengthened. The community magazine supports this aim of the Church leadership. The articles of community are translated into several dozen languages, and the various language editions are then distributed to all continents.
Communication, even without the internet
Not all members of the Church have access to the Internet. For this reason, communication must also take place offline. The Catechism of the New Apostolic Church is therefore available for reading as a foundational work both online and in classical book format. Beyond that, for the media-savvy, there is also a corresponding app of the long version of the CNAC, as well as the Question-and-Answer version. community is taking the same path: it can be read online in digital format or ordered as a printed magazine from the church office.
Bonus content—both international and regional
In addition to the core content, the complete issue of community features many pages of interesting news from congregations around the world. The 32-page issue also incorporates a Bible story for children as well as further reports on the travels of the Chief Apostle.
Beyond that, some District Churches add regional sections to their edition of community. Such regional portions can be flexibly appended to the twelve-page core community issue or the full issue of the magazine. The ‘community’ archive on nac.today offers a variety of these issues for free download.
Communication is a top priority
At the launch of the international member magazine, ‘community’, the Church’s leader, Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider stated, “Communication is vital and must also play a corresponding role with us. It supports coordination and global exchange. It is in this way that we promote the unity of doctrine and become better acquainted with different cultures, for example.” The new issue of ‘community’ is also part of this international communication.