Stop-and-go at Christmas in Brazil … This is not only caused by people travelling home over Christmas, but especially because people are stopping to admire the Christmas lights. This can even interfere with carefully timed bus schedules, Karin Zwar reports.

Forty degrees Celsius in the shade and a long holiday break … While the people in the northern hemisphere are dreaming of a white Christmas, the southern hemisphere is in the midst of summer. We asked a European living in South Africa about the festive season there …

Christmas in Australia! How does that go? It is summer in the southern hemisphere. Daytime temperatures range between 25 to 32° Celsius, people are soaking up the sun. Do people get in the Christmas spirit? nac.today asked an “expert” in these matters, and his answer was a definite yes.

The new poster series for the upcoming year is ready. The series is captioned “I manage to …”. The Public Relations working group wants to express how great God’s help is—for each and everyone. Following is a brief introduction.

Already the poet Tibullus referred to the city as eternal. By then the city on the Tiber was already several centuries old if one believes the myths that have been handed down. Today bella Roma is the largest city of Italy, and certainly worth a trip.

“The congregations are like remote islands,” Raúl Eduardo Montes de Oca, the responsible District Apostle of Brazil, says. Following is his report about the Chief Apostle’s recent visit to Brazil and the life of the congregations there.

“It can never be said that the Apostle was a coward. I risked everything to help in the quick movement and furtherance of the Church work.” These words were written by the Chief Apostle’s right hand: Apostle Heinrich Franz Schlaphoff. Fifty years ago today he passed away.

Lit tea-lights in the shape of a heart in Luxembourg, flowers and a “Pray for Paris” banner in Germany: the terror attacks last Friday in Paris have left people in shock, especially in Europe. But the District Apostles are also directing attention beyond Europe’s borders, to other parts of the world.

The Acer campestre, commonly called the field maple, was named as the Tree of the Year in Germany. Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider and the European District Apostles planted a young field maple at the conference of European District Apostles taking place in Zurich in Switzerland.

Twice a year the District Apostles of Europe come together for conferences to discuss topics that are relevant for the European regional churches. The conference centre at the international head office of the New Apostolic Church provides an ideal environment for such meetings.

Sitting in Sunday School with the Chief Apostle is something that not everyone gets to experience. Girls and boys in New Zealand had this exciting opportunity, and they are still talking about it.

The month of November in the northern hemisphere is cold and dark. There is an autumn mood, the leaves are falling, and the nights are long. It is the month of the more quiet church festivals. nac.today takes a closer look.

This week we look at a new church building on Sumatra and an emergency relief programme for Syrian refugees in Lebanon …

The New Apostolic Church is active in almost all countries on all continents. Africa is home to the majority of members. Countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia top the list. At its recent conference in Johannesburg, the District Apostle Meeting made a slight adjustment to the worldwide membership figures.

District Apostle Wilfried Klingler will go into retirement in June 2016. He is responsible for the New Apostolic Church in four German states: Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony, and Thuringia. Legally, the Church in this part of Germany is registered under the name Neuapostolische Kirche Mitteldeutschland (New Apostolic Church Central Germany). Beginning with the District Apostle’s retirement, this region will merge with the District Apostle Area of Northern Germany.

From 30 May to 2 June 2019 there will be a remake of the European Youth Day—this time with participants from around the world. “I hope to see many young people from all over the world in Düsseldorf on Ascension 2019,” Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider says.

“We can hardly imagine under what horrible circumstances many people have to live!” the Chief Apostle prayed at the beginning of the District Apostles’ conference in Johannesburg in South Africa. Afterwards there was much to discuss and to decide for the District Apostles.

The monsoon season is nearly over. But even then, the people still have to cope with the devastation left by the earthquakes in April and May of this year. On the long path towards normality, Nepal is still at the very beginning. So is the village of Sipapokhare, a village situated in the Himalayan foothills. The following report is from our nac.today correspondent Christy Eckhardt.