Mourning, celebrating, worshipping

It does not happen every day that the website of a District Church dedicates a whole page to a District Elder. Yet this is what the New Apostolic Church in the Philippines has done.

“Mourning our founding father” is the title of the article, which is dedicated to District Elder Herbert Pache from Canada, who passed away on 26 February 2019 at the age of 84. He touched many lives in this part of the world, the Church writes. “He was the first one in Japan, Korea and the Philippines. Also in Hong Kong and Taiwan he gathered the first souls; His name is known here and has a special place in the history of the New Apostolic Church.”

Chinese New Year celebration in New York

“These celebrations speak for what Chief Apostle Schneider said in his church strategy interview: ‘The New Apostolic faith can be practised within the most diverse of cultures.’” This is how the New Apostolic Church USA closes its report on the New Year celebrations of the Chinese congregation in New York on 17 February 2019.

The festivities started after the divine service with a traditional lion dance. This was followed by a Chinese zither solo and a poetry recitation by a group of friends who have been learning Chinese for two and half years. The congregation was then invited to join in singing the traditional Chinese New Year song “GongXi GongXi” (Chinese for “congratulations”).

Everyone then moved to the fellowship hall for a luncheon and engaging activities. Everyone shared traditional cultural dishes including Chinese dim sum and specialty desserts. The activities included calligraphy.

Defying all obstacles

High temperatures and a border-crossing on foot with luggage: such are the difficulties that brothers and sisters are willing to take upon themselves in order to attend or conduct a divine service.

Ministers from Venezuela recently had to cross the border into Colombia to be able to see District Apostle Kolb. Owing to the ongoing political tensions between the two countries, the American District Apostle cannot visit Venezuela. The Venezuelan ministers were therefore invited to come to Cúcuta in Colombia for discussions and seminars. The city lies on the border with Venezuela.

When District Apostle Rainer Storck (Germany) recently travelled to Guinea-Bissau it was extremely hot. The final divine service of his week-long trip to Africa, which also included stops in Senegal and Gambia, took place in our Bissau-Central church. On that day it was 38 degrees Celsius. The District Apostle had a busy week with numerous ordinations, meetings with Apostles and Bishops as well as with district rectors and congregational rectors, and a discussion round with young people. On this trip, an organisational change was put into effect. Apostle Opdenplatz took over responsibility for the congregations in Gambia from Apostle Jens Lindemann, who in turn will be looking after additional countries in Eastern and Southern Europe.