Winning people for Christ: this is common goal of the Council of Churches, which has now expanded to include the New Apostolic Church as a full member.
Since the beginning of the month, the New Apostolic Church is a full member of the Council of Christian Churches (CCC) in Germany. It had submitted its application for membership last year. As part of a written procedure, the consent of the twenty other full members was required.
With the receipt of the final letter at the end of June, it is clear: the decision was unanimous. The proceedings will be officially concluded in September with a divine service at the New Apostolic Church in Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin. The official responses to this can be found in the announcement on nak.org.
The question posed by nac.today, however, is: Why would anyone pursue something like this in the first place?
A voice in the Christian chorus
“We are aware that we are all Christians,” Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider, who had just been ordained at the time, had explained in an interview back in 2013. “We must fight together for the gospel. The voice of the gospel must also be heard in today’s society, and we are working together towards this.”
“We believe it is good for Christians to join forces to make this call heard. That is why we are committed to the ecumenical movement,” Chief Apostle Schneider stated during the spiritual part of the most recent District Apostles’ Meeting—the last of his active term of office. “Our common goal is for people to come to Christ.”
Chief Apostle Fehr led the way
He was by no means the first Chief Apostle to address this subject. Chief Apostle Richard Fehr set the ball rolling when he founded the Project Group Ecumenism in 1999.
Since 2001, there has been regular dialogue between the New Apostolic Church and the Council of Christian Churches in Germany at the regional level, and since 2008 at the national level. Since April 2019, the New Apostolic Church has been an associate member of the Council of Churches in Germany.
In other European countries, too, the New Apostolic Church is one of the churches actively involved in ecumenical work. For example, in the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Austria there are partnerships or memberships at all levels, from local to national.
Preserving our identity while introducing new impetus
Apostle Arne Herrmann, the ecumenical officer of the New Apostolic Church International, is aware that such activities can give rise to reservations among Church members. “We have not abandoned our identity, but have brought it to bear,” he states, looking back on the past 25 years or so.
After all, the Catechism teaches that the Apostle ministry is given for the whole church of Christ. And the expectation of Christ’s return and the doctrine of the departed provide ample topics for discussion to fuel theological dialogue.
It became apparent four years ago, when the World Council of Churches met for the first time in Germany, that there was still some way to go, particularly at an international level. In the 1960’s, the Church leadership had still refused to participate at this level. And in 2022, the New Apostolic Church sent an official delegate—then still with observer status.
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