When young people come together to celebrate

The young people of the Southern Cape Apostle district (South Africa) had a Get2gether on 3 August 2024. District Apostle Peter Lambert travelled from Bridgton to George to spend time with as many young people as possible. He conducted two services over the weekend. One for the youth of the districts of Ladismith, Heidelberg, Oudtshoorn, and Beaufort West in Bridgton together with Apostle Gavin van der Hoven. And on Sunday, 4 August, he was in George for the youth of the districts of George, Knysna, Mossel Bay, and Riversdale. Apostle van der Hoven and Priest Crouch were called to assist.

Praying and serving

The youth from Portugal gathered in Torres Vedras on 15 June 2024. Their motto was “Those who pray and serve with love are holy”. At the opening event, some young people explained the idea behind the motto and that it was based on our 2024 motto “Prayer works”. They said that it emphasises the commandment given by Jesus: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind,” and “You shall love your neighbour as yourself” (Matthew 22: 37, 39), whereby prayer is the best way to ensure unity and communication with God. Apostle Dimitrios Diniz spoke on the topic of unity in his presentation “Unity and diversity of the Church”. The young people were also able to take part in Bible mime games, a Bible quiz, and various games designed to promote fellowship and unity among them. The first day of the two-day event ended with a Q&A session with the Apostle. On Sunday, 16 June, the young people attended a divine service conducted by their Apostle in which the focus was on preserving the treasure that God has given us. Afterwards there was another quiz with questions focusing on the Bible and the Catechism. At the end, the young people formed a prayer circle and said the final prayer together.

The missing piece of the puzzle

And the youth of the Spanish district of Centro enjoyed a weekend of barbecuing and swimming, and of course a divine service. They met on 3 August 2024 on a country estate, where there was a pool, plenty of space for lots of activities, and delicious food. The motto of the weekend was: “The language of love”. On Sunday, 4 August, the young people had an open-air service, which was based on Genesis 11: 1: “Now the whole earth had one language and one speech.” The officiant interpreted this as a call for unity and love. Although there are different languages and cultures and different experiences, there is one language that everyone understands: love. Before the divine service, all the young people were given a piece of a jigsaw puzzle, which they then put together to discover the motto: “The language of love”.

Proclaiming their faith

The fact that New Apostolic young people were together in Amuzu-Ohanze (Nigeria) from 6 to 8 September 2024 probably did not escape anyone’s notice in the area. As soon as they had settled into their accommodation on Friday, 6 September, they took to the streets with printed T-shirts, whistles, and posters to publicly profess their faith. Among the more than 400 participants in the divine service conducted by Apostle Chima Ibekwe on Sunday were also some visitors. On Saturday, in addition to games and sports, the young people could even acquire some new skills: making liquid soap and perfume. There were also various choir performances, talent shows, and a praise night in the evening. The three-day event concluded with a divine service by Apostle Chima Ibekwe, in which he once again referred to the annual motto “Prayer works”.