Dresden. None of the 53 Apostles currently active in Europe—which includes the Chief Apostle and the District Apostles—were missing. All took part in the Apostle Meeting that coincided with this year’s celebration of Pentecost in Dresden. Chief Apostle Wilhelm Leber encouraged the group to preserve the unity among the Apostles through the bond of peace: “Let us preserve the unity of the Spirit!”

The conference of the European Apostles began with a spiritual component for which the international Church leader referred to a passage from Ephesians 4: 3: “[Endeavour] to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” “The bond of peace,” explained the Chief Apostle, “is the Lord Himself.” He thus concluded from this Bible text that believers in our time are to take direction from the Lord. He expressed to the Apostles his desire that they may all continue to stand together despite their differences. “Unity does not necessarily mean that we all give the same answers to all questions,” he noted, “After all, our upbringing, environment, culture, and time defines each one of us individually. But those who are concerned about preserving unity will always focus on what we have in common: “Our shared good is the Lord!”  

Unity in Jesus Christ

Chief Apostle Leber formulated a concrete piece of advice. He recommended conservative thinkers to also take an interest in progressive attitudes and vice-versa. He stated that he expects the Apostles to take the attitudes of others into consideration. For him this is what it means to preserve unity in Jesus Christ and to focus on the core of the gospel. “We do not want to polarise, but rather unite.”