“When peace with the Father attendeth my way”—an oft sung hymn in Christian churches. Peace with God is certainly right at the top of the list for Christians, but what about peace with one another? Some reflections on the occasion of the International Day of Peace. Horatio Gates Spafford was born in 1828 in Troy, […]

Baptism—such a simple act and yet so rich in significance and history. More than half of this series so far has revolved around this sacrament alone. It is time for a summary: here are eight key statements to remember. Baptism comes from diving—at least in the Greek. The uniquely Christian creation baptisma (baptism) derives from […]

In 2014 the congregation in Somerset in Cape Town (South Africa) moved into a different place of worship. The congregation’s new home is an old Dutch Reformed Church that was taken over by the New Apostolic Church and renovated. The building is over 200 years old. Photo: NAC Somerset Photo: NAC Somerset Photo: NAC Somerset […]

It all began with a woman who became New Apostolic while on a trip to Denmark fifty years ago. Upon returning to India, she did not keep her faith to herself, but rather told many others about Jesus and living Apostles. And against all odds, there are around 45,000 New Apostolic Christians living in India […]

The New Apostolic Church in Bad Schwalbach has an unusual church building. Though it was dedicated in 1875 as an Anglican Church, the Anglican congregation left their little chapel some 54 years later. In 1957 in was purchased by the New Apostolic Church, and serves its members as a place of worship to this very […]

Acknowledging the baptisms of other denominations is not as simple as it sounds, and the journey there has had its ups and downs in church history. A number of things had to be set into motion before the New Apostolic Church was in a position to acknowledge the baptisms of other Christian denominations. “Holy Baptism […]

A New Apostolic church building that is 350 years old—you don’t see that every day. But the Schildesche quarter of the city of Bielefeld is home to a venerable historic monument that still keeps our attention today. A little excursion into history. The exterior of the Bielefeld-Schildesche church in 1904 … Photo: NAK Bielefeld-Schildesche … […]

“One time doesn’t even count,” people often say in an attempt to diminish the weight of individual decisions and put them into a broader perspective. And indeed, what counts in the long run is not the individual misstep, but rather the fundamental inner values of the person. Science tells us that people make some 20,000 […]

Naturally baptism belongs inside the church—doesn’t it? Not necessarily: the sacrament has spent a good part of its history just outside the church doors, or in other spaces altogether. This is the story of how baptism made its long journey into the church, only to slip back outside again briefly, and finally end up back […]

Water is life. And baptism is new life. But how much water does baptism require? And how is one supposed to perform the act anyway? Theologians have arrived at three answers—and archaeologists are offering a fourth. Is there a single right answer? The baptism of Christ: for centuries, artists have had their problems getting the […]

She was much more than an anonymous secondary character in the Bible—to this day, Judaic tradition regards Miriam, the dancing prophetess, as a positive and important woman. And this despite the fact that she lived in a time when the world was ruled by men. It was around 1300 bc. The Egyptian Pharaoh and his […]

Some assigned the death penalty to baptism. And others established their very own “thousand-year kingdom of peace”. And it all began with an issue that still divides the denominations today. And suddenly the Reformation went off the rails: as of the early 1520s, Zurich and Strasbourg were the first centres of a movement of the […]

It is not all that uncommon for a pendulum to swing to the other side. This too is part of the story of Chief Apostle Johann Gottfried Bischoff, who died on 6 July sixty years ago—to the dismay of many brothers and sisters. “It is an illusion to think that Jesus dwells only in the […]

The divine service themes in the month of July are filled with contrast: they range from God’s loving grace to His strict law, from the hallowed Sabbath to the prohibition against killing. Opening the treasure chest Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider compares the hope of the faithful in eternal life with a marvellous treasure. And then […]

Acceptance, cleansing, total renewal: Scripture knows many interpretations of baptism. What the sacrament meant to people in concrete terms has changed in the course of history. Often it was a matter of politics and society. The decisive turning-point was the Constantinian Shift, that is the period in the fourth century, when Christianity developed from a […]

Incense, candles, ornate robes? Without Apostle Menkhoff, divine services in the New Apostolic Church would perhaps still look like this today. Here is a tribute on the 125th anniversary of his death. Friedrich Wilhelm Menkhoff was born on 2 February 1826 in Wallenbrück (Germany). This is a portrait of him as a young man. Photo: […]

The workspace of all Christians is the world. It is through believers that the triune God desires to speak and act. And that is precisely how the Son of God set everything up: His gospel needs a church in which it can be preached. Thoughts on the feast of Pentecost 2020. This year, Pentecost is […]

It is always quite a lot of work, but it is worthwhile in any event. When the Chief Apostle steps behind the altar on Pentecost Sunday, there will be hundreds of thousands who will see and hear him—despite the corona crisis. The technicians and interpreters will also have a great deal to do. After all, […]