When people hear Angola they think of oil and diamonds, beautiful beaches, desert, and jungle. But Angola has so much more to offer. Deeply religious people live there with dreams and hopes for a future.
The country offers almost all the landscapes that are typical of Africa: in the west a 1,600-kilometre- long coastline along the Atlantic, in the middle the central highlands with the savannahs, and in the east the rainforests. Angola is a country of contrasts, rich and poor at the same time. Rich in raw materials, with oil, gold, and diamonds as the largest sources of income. Thanks to its natural treasures, the country is one of the ten strongest African economies.
And yet, a large proportion of the population lives in poverty. Many Angolans do not have access to safe drinking water and food. There are too few hospitals, doctors, and medicines. And there is a lack of schools, teachers, and textbooks.
The glad tidings remain glad
When Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider travels to this country in south-western Africa at the beginning of May, he will be visiting his brothers and sisters first and foremost as a brother. The membership of the church is currently at around 330,000, who are spread over 1,800 congregations. Seventeen Apostles, including District Apostle Helper João Uanuque Misselo, travel through the various provinces providing pastoral care.
Angola’s population is overwhelmingly Christian. All confessional families offer church services. Only a few people still adhere to the traditional belief in natural powers, at least publicly. This is a legacy of the Christian missionaries. Only occasionally do traditional ideas mix with the Christian message.
Luanda in the north-west
The Chief Apostle’s first stop will be the capital Luanda. With two international airports, Luanda is vibrant and pulsating. As Angola’s capital it is home to an estimated ten million inhabitants. This makes it the third largest Portuguese-speaking city after São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro—even larger than Lisbon. And Luanda is constantly growing. Many people, especially young people, are settling here. As in all big cities, not everyone finds fortune and happiness here.
Luanda is too expensive for many, and for expats it is even said to be the most expensive city in the world. Many employees of international corporations pay high rents to live in a safe neighbourhood. In addition to the endless musseques—settlements which house the urban poor and are without sewage and waste disposal, mostly without water and often without electricity—there are recently built satellite towns that bear witness to the capital’s economic growth.
Saurimo in the north-east
Saurimo is also on the Chief Apostle’s programme. Around 570,000 inhabitants live here in the north-east of the country. Saurimo was only granted city rights 70 years ago. The provincial capital is the archbishopric of the Roman Catholic Church.
Many who hear the name Saurimo, usually think of the Catoca Mine, the fourth largest diamond mine in the world. Travelling to the eastern part of Angola is always fraught with difficulties. In the meantime, however, a small domestic airport makes travelling easier. In 1986, Apostle Sukami Landu Ronsard visited Saurimo for the first time and sealed the first believers there. Today, the New Apostolic Church has 27 congregations in the city. District Apostle Helper Misselo, already a third-generation New Apostolic, is at home here.
Forty years INA Angola
The New Apostolic Church celebrated its fortieth anniversary in 2023. A comprehensive anniversary brochure provides information on the rapid growth of the Church in this country. On the first trip already, thirty believers were sealed. By the end of 1983, three congregations had been founded: Luanda, Uíge, and Malanje. Luanda is also home to the central church. It is located in the suburb of Palanca. The Chief Apostle has visited here many times, most recently almost exactly one year ago. At that time, District Apostle Stefan Pöschel was still a District Apostle Helper and the Chief Apostle introduced him to the many thousands of believers in the divine service.
On his current pastoral trip, Chief Apostle Schneider will also be accompanied by District Apostles Stefan Pöschel (Western Germany), John Schnabel (USA), and Kububa Soko (Zambia).
Bem-vindo a Angola!
Photos: NAK Westdeutschland
