New chairman for the public relations committee

For many years, District Apostle Rüdiger Krause from Hamburg in Germany chaired the public relations committee of the Church in Europe. He has now handed the baton over to Apostle Franz-Wilhelm Otten (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). The handover took place at the end of a work session.

District Apostle Krause has been appointed to the Coordination Group (as reported). The international division of the New Apostolic Church has commissioned a number of work and project groups to cover various special fields. So that these groups can work efficiently and in a targeted manner, a coordination group was set up, which the Chief Apostle himself chairs. Within the group, various District Apostles serve as consultants for different divisions of activity in the Church’s work. These divisions are: Doctrine, Congregational Management, Congregational Life, and Church Strategy. In addition to the Chief Apostle, the current members of the Coordination Group are District Apostles Bernd Koberstein, Leonard Kolb, Rüdiger Krause, and Rainer Storck, as well as District Evangelist Daniel Brenner, who as NACI project manager has an advisory capacity.

Rüdiger Krause coordinated the public relations work of the Church in Europe for many years. He always enjoyed the work in the group, he said at the handover. Although not all their objectives had been achieved, quite a number of impulses did reach the congregations. Apostle Franz-Wilhelm Otten, who was designated by Chief Apostle Schneider to succeed Rüdiger Krause as chairman of the group, has been a member of the project group for many years. He said that his predecessor had not only shown courage but also great sensitivity in dealing with the various Church traditions. “You made an outstanding contribution to the positive image that our Church has in society,” he concluded.

The task of the Public Relations committee in Europe is to develop strategic goals for the representation of the New Apostolic Church in society. Among the tasks are long-term projects such as the continued development of the Church’s corporate design, but also short-term goals, such as the development and production of the annual poster series that is put out by the Church in Germany. Additional members of the project group are Björn Renz (New Apostolic Church Northern Germany), Andreas Grossglauser (New Apostolic Church Switzerland), and Peter Johanning (New Apostolic Church International).

To clarify topical questions, as well as questions concerning the faith, to compile teaching aids and teaching material, to unify the musical character within the Church, and to simplify administrative procedures, the Chief Apostle has set up project and work groups to which brothers and sisters are appointed who are experts in a particular field. The panels are not decision-making bodies of the Church; their task is of a purely supportive and advisory nature. Their activity is limited to the theme or subject matter to be dealt with. You will find a current overview here.