Zurich/Dortmund. The three-day discussions of the first International District Apostle Meeting of the year have begun today with topics concerning the Asian continent. District Apostle Urs Hebeisen presented the new District Apostle district of South East Asia, a good year after its establishment.

Spring meeting of the international Church leadership, day 1: District Apostle Meeting Asia. One year ago, Chief Apostle Wilhelm Leber, the international Church leader, laid the groundwork for the establishment of the new District Apostle district of South East Asia with the ordination of District Apostle Urs Hebeisen. A total of fourteen independent District Churches were thus amalgamated to form the “New Apostolic Church in South East Asia”. District Apostle Hebeisen, who lives in the Philippines, reports that the individual District Churches are slowly but surely growing together into a larger New Apostolic entity. However, he also made it clear how important it remains to take into account the various cultures and historical development phases of the New Apostolic Church in these South East Asian countries. He gave an example: the Church in Indonesia is already 130 years old, the congregations there are stable, their New Apostolic identity has grown, and there is solid awareness both within and outside of the Church. Other regions, by contrast, are only now being established.

The Asian Way

“The developments are promising,” said the District Apostle, who is very familiar with the multicultural traditions of these countries. His summary for the future direction of the New Apostolic Church in South East Asia is simply: “Step by step – no big jumps – the Asian way!”

South East Asia and India

Chief Apostle Leber also welcomed David Devaraj, who was appointed a District Apostle Helper for India a few weeks earlier. He and District Apostle Helper Mark Woll reported on the progress of the New Apostolic Church in a number of Indian states. The social and cultural challenges are immense, noted District Apostle Helper Woll, who lives in Canada but travels in India for about half of each year. There are still a number of larger cities in India where the New Apostolic Church does not have a building of its own, for which reason a support program for the construction of new church buildings is about to be launched. All in all, so his conclusion, the work of the New Apostolic Church is moving in the right direction with the appointment of an Indian District Apostle Helper.

You can also read our report on the website of the New Apostolic Church North Rhine-Westphalia.