The generational changes at the top of New Apostolic District Churches continue their progress: in 2024, two new District Apostles were appointed and two District Apostle Helpers were assigned. This is also reflected in the Church’s international leadership bodies.
In June, there was a change in leadership in the Regional Church of Western Germany: Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider retired the previous District Apostle Rainer Storck and appointed his previous Helper Stefan Pöschel as his successor.
Stefan Pöschel (born 1968) was ordained an Apostle in 2019 and assigned as District Apostle Helper in 2022. Before that, he served as a congregational and district rector, among other things. As Church leader, he is now responsible for around 600,000 members in more than 40 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America. This includes the core area of Western Germany and the country of Angola, which is home to many members.
Switzerland under new leadership
Thomas Deubel is the new Church leader for the District Apostle area of Switzerland. The Chief Apostle appointed him in September, in the same divine service in which he retired his predecessor, District Apostle Jürg Zbinden.
The new District Apostle had served as a District Apostle Helper for the area for a year. Prior to that he had been active as a minister of the New Apostolic Church since 1984, and he has worked in the Apostle ministry since 2014. The 60-year-old now looks after 55,000 believers in Church congregations across fifteen countries in Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe, as well as in Cuba.
A successor for Canada
“We must prepare for the future.” It was with these words that the Chief Apostle presided over the assignment of Arnaud Martig (born 1971) as District Apostle Helper for the Canada area in October. He received his first Church ministry as a Deacon in 1998, and his most recent ordination was as an Apostle in 2020.
Arnaud Martig was born in France and has lived in Canada with his wife since 1998. In addition to French, he also speaks English, German, and Spanish. In addition to the core country in North America, the District Apostle area of Canada includes around a dozen countries in Africa and Asia which are home to over 750,000 members.
A Helper in the Democratic Republic of Congo
A District Apostle Helper is now also active in the western part of the Democratic Republic (DR) of Congo: Apostle Elie Tatien Mukinda Mudinganyi was assigned to this position in September.
The 48-year-old has been a minister of the New Apostolic Church since 2006. In July 2021, the then district rector was ordained as an Apostle in Kinshasa. The new District Apostle Helper supports District Apostle Michael Depner in his working area in the western part of the Democratic Republic Congo, which includes more than 1.3 million Church members.
Changes in the Coordination Group
These developments represent a continuation of recent generational changes in the international Church leadership: last year John Schnabel succeeded the US District Apostle Leonard R. Kolb, and Peter Lambert replaced John L. Kriel at the head of the New Apostolic Church in Southern Africa.
This will also have an impact on leading international assemblies, including the body known as the Coordination Group (CG): the group has recently bade farewell to four of its previous members and gone on to welcome four new ones. The CG functions as the interface between the Church’s Work Groups and Project Groups and the District Apostle Meeting, which is the highest decision-making body of the New Apostolic Church.
The group prepares globally relevant resolutions on spiritual matters. In addition to Chief Apostle Schneider, the group now includes the new District Apostles Peter Lambert (Southern Africa), Thomas Deubel (Switzerland), and Stefan Pöschel (Western Germany), as well as District Apostle Helper Helge Mutschler (Northern and Eastern Germany).
Photo: Oliver Rütten