The International District Apostle Meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, came to an end on Sunday with a divine service. Strictly speaking, the meeting consisted of a series of individual sessions.
The conference kicked off on Wednesday with a première. For the first time since its constitution, the Board of Directors of the New Apostolic Church International (NACI) met. Its task, as the highest executive board, is to support the Chief Apostle in financial matters. The Church leader specifically wants worldly matters and the corresponding responsibilities to be distributed across several shoulders. Last June, the District Apostles had given their votes by secret ballot to District Apostles Mark Woll (Canada), Michael Ehrich (Southern Germany), and Joseph Opemba Ekhuya (East Africa), as well as to Apostle Robert Worship (Southern Africa).
Experiences and progress
The District Apostle Meeting Africa also conferred on Wednesday. On the one hand, it is comprised of the independent District Apostle Areas in Central, South, and East Africa, who occasionally refer to themselves as the Big Five because of the large number of members and in reference to the continent’s five largest mammals. It also includes Western representatives who co-manage African countries.
The central topic here was the expansion of the Church’s misconduct policies. The New Apostolic Church Southern Africa is currently particularly active in this regard. District Apostle John L. Kriel reported on the ongoing development of the corresponding policy in his working area (see our report this past Friday).
In addition, the District Apostles discussed different ways of coordinating the theological training of ministers. Besides content-related reasons, there are increasingly organisational reasons for this. For example, more and more countries expect appropriate certification for Church leadership.
A new member from the USA
The International District Apostle Meeting welcomed a new member: the recently assigned District Apostle Helper John Schnabel from the USA attended his first District Apostle Meeting. He was assigned to this function in August and will initially support District Apostle Leonard R. Kolb and then succeed him in September 2023.
Discussed, among other things, was the question to what extent the New Apostolic Church will continue to broadcast online services even after the Covid pandemic has ended. During the lockdown, many Regional Churches had used the video sharing website for broadcasts in order to be able to reach their brothers and sisters in faith. The offer had met with a big positive response—even beyond the active members. Sunday broadcasts are now planned in regions where this is structurally feasible.
The District Apostle Meeting International is the supreme decision-making body of the New Apostolic Church worldwide. It is currently comprised of fourteen District Apostles and their nine assistants, who usually meet twice a year: typically in the first half of the year in the country that is hosting the traditional Pentecost meeting, and in the second half of the year at the head office of the New Apostolic Church International in Zurich, Switzerland.