Meeting points

Giving joint witness

The Long Night of the Churches is an annual ecumenical event in Pinsdorf (Austria). In May this year for the first time, the Catholic church and the New Apostolic congregation planned joint activities. Man meets man: “Jesus, builder of bridges to the hearts of the neighbour” was the topic of a Bible workshop with the retired Apostle Rudolf Kainz. Death meets life: after dark, a path marked with lights led to the local cemetery, offering points where one could pause and reflect. The past meets the future: half way between the two church buildings a station was set up, reminding the participants of the Peasant’s War in Upper Austria in the seventeenth century. The next part of the path was dedicated to reconciliation. At midnight, the New Apostolic Church was full when the Lord’s Prayer was prayed and the benediction pronounced. The musical framework was provided by choristers drawn from both parishes, who had met an hour earlier for a choral workshop entitled “Voice meets choir”.

Visit to a memorial

District Apostle Rüdiger Krause of Germany conducted the divine service for the departed at the beginning of July in Poland. He was accompanied by Apostle Helge Mutschler. The day before the service, his programme included a visit to the Auschwitz concentration camp. “We will never again forget what we saw and heard,” the District Apostle said. In the divine service in Chorzowie he prayed especially for the victims of the Nazi regime. “It became more and more clear just how important it is to intercede for the souls in the beyond,” the District Apostle wrote in his travel notes. The divine service for the departed was the final point of his trip to Poland, which began on Friday with a service in the congregation in Poznań.

Giving the future a chance

Recently, the members of the board of human aktiv, the aid organisation of the New Apostolic Church Southern Germany, were informed about an upcoming project in the West African countries of Sierra Leone and Benin. The agenda of the board meeting included the annual report by the board of directors, the election of the members of the board of directors, and discussions and resolutions concerning the 2020 budget. A representative of the Jörg-Wolff-Foundation provided information about the planned education project, entitled “Teacher Training Scholarships”. The project will serve to promote the training of teachers in Sierra Leone and Benin, both of which have a low literacy rate. The project will have a lasting impact on the population and give talented young people a professional perspective. Another important aspect is that it also gives women access to higher education.