Farewell to Thomas Graf Grote and Hello to Anastasia Razinkov – New Congregational Leader in the Irkutsk Region

Shelekhov

On May 13 Pastor Thomas Graf Grote officially concluded his ministry in the congregation in Shelekhov (Irkutsk oblast). On that day the congregation said its goodbyes with pastor Grote – a person who in many ways was responsible for the congregation's coming into existence. Its foundation was unusual. “First I came to Irkutsk as a representative of a German trading company in order to develop the lumber market. It was necessary for me to do so because I couldn't find work in Germany as a forester. However I quickly fell in love with Russia, and in particular with Irkutsk - this huge country with limitless possibilities and very hospitable people.

In 1995, four years after the fall of the USSR, a social worker who cared for the needy founded a group of Scouts that specialized in working with children and youth from disadvantaged families. This group helped the kids find meaning in life. A year later I began to take on an active role in this scouting group....from which eventually a independent Christian congregation was born. This congregation needed an official status, and we made the decision to join the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Urals, Siberia and Far East. Since there was no pastor available for this congregation the Church asked me to work on the church's legal status and to assume leadership. I stopped my work in lumber and became a student of the Theological Seminary of our church in St. Petersburg; I finished in 2006 and was ordained.” Later Pastor Grote also established contact with a special religious group in the village of Pikhtinsk of the Irkutsk oblast – Polish-speaking, ethnic German Lutherans who moved from Volyn to the Siberian taiga at the beginning of the 20 century. He was their pastor for many years.

Now the Grote family – Thomas and his wife Evgenia and their children – will return to Thomas' home in Germany. During the farewell party the congregation remembered with joy what they had went through together with their pastor, their pastoral care giver and their friend: worship services, prayer meetings, Bible groups, holidays, camps, hikes...

Now pastoral duties (with the exception of the Sacraments) for the region will be in the hands of Anastasia Razinkova. Her official title will be the representative of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Urals, Siberia and Far East in the Irkutsk oblast. She will also be responsible for two social ministry projects - “Istok” (a village with ministry with the handicapped) and “Tsvetnaya planeta” (a project dedicated to the well-being of the developmentally disabled through art therapy).

“These changes will be in large part useful for the Shelekhov congregation since I have been here already more than 20 years and the time has come when Anastasia can bring fresh ideas into the congregation,” Thomas said. Anastasia grew up in this congregation. After successfully completing her theological education in the full-time program of the Novosaratovka seminary in 2012 and an internship in Germany, she worked in the church as the coordinator of children's and youth ministry in eastern Siberia. This experience will help Anastasia in her new position since the congregation in Shelekhov is made up mostly of young adults that grew up in the Scouts (herself included) and their children. Dean Vladimir Vinogradov installed Anastasia and wished her inspiration and fruitful ministry.

New Space for the Chernogorsk Congregation

On July 31, 2016, the new congregational space in Chernogorsk (Khakasia) was dedicated – the conclusion of 4 year's worth of effort. They were supported along the way by the Evangelical Lutheran Mission in Lower Saxony (Hermannsburg), and Gustav-Adolf-Werk (GAW). The Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Urals, Siberia and Far East (ELCUSFE) also contributed to this project through offerings gathered throughout all the congregations of the church on Harvest Day celebrations.

The space that the congregation was using earlier was not large enough, and rent costs were high. “Your new space is a sign of hope for you, for us and for many others beyond the congregation's walls,” said Enno Haaks, the General Secretary of GAW.

Meeting of Staff in Eastern Siberia

Krasnoyarsk

 Near the end of October the prayer house of the congregation in Krasnoyarsk hosted a meeting of staff from the Eastern Siberia Deanery of ELCUSFE.

Vitaly Moor from Tomsk, Thomas Graf Grote from Shelekhov (Irkutsk), and Pastor Dmitry Schweitz from Abakan came at the invitation of the Dean, Pastor Vladimir Vinogradov from Omsk. Anastasia Razinkova (responsible for children and youth ministry in the region) and Viktor Zubkov from the Bishop's office also arrived from Omsk, while Andrey Masiorev, having blessed a week earlier as a preacher for the Abakan congregation, also was in attendance. From the Krasnoyarsk congregation, in addition to Pastor Gleb Pivovarov, there was Tatyana Serebrova, who is responsible for women's ministry in ELCUSFE, and Olga Wagner, church council president.

The reason to get together was to meet as a group with two guests from the Hermannsburg Mission, Helmut Grimmsmann (Asia Secretary) and Director Michael Thiel. They spoke about developments in the Mission over the past few years and also spoke about their plans for continuing cooperation. Director Thiel, who was in Russia for the first time, shared his impressions of the life of our church and expressed his thankfulness to those who serve in it. The rest of the time was spent hearing reports from the regions, sharing news and discussing current issues. It was agreed upon that such meeting increase the effectiveness of our congregations' ministries. 

The meeting took place on a Sunday and that allowed guests to take part in worship and in fellowship with the congregation; that allowed everyone to get better acquainted with the life of the Krasnoyarsk congregation.

On that evening everyone returned to their places of service; we hope that such fruitful meetings will serve the further development of the congregations of our deanery. May the Lord bless our congregations and all its ministers!

Dmitry Schweitz, Abakan

Regional Meeting in Khakasia

October 31 and November 1 were days filled with events in the congregations of Khakasia and the south of the Krasnoyarsk Krai.  There were many reasons for this - Reformation Day, the installation (after commissioning in Omsk) of Andrey Masiorov as a preacher, and meeting guests from the Hermannsburg Mission - Director Michael Thiel and Asia Secretary Helmut Grimmsmann - to discuss current issues and plans for the future. 

On Saturday morning the 31st there was a celebratory Reformation Day service in the congregation in Chernogorsk. At the beginning of the services guests from the city's music school had a small concert; afterwards there was a lengthy discussion of the possibility of buying property for the Chernogorsk congregation. After lunch the guests attended worship in the village of Bograd, where congregational members have finished a serious reconstruction of their prayer house. Not it has a wonderful exterior to match its interior. It is a happy thing that the congregation is filled with children; regular Sunday school is led by Viktoria Reva. 

Sunday worship in Abakan was attended by guests from all over the region - from Chernogorsk, Bograd, Shira and Kuragino. It has become a good tradition that once a year all the congregations of the region come together for common worship and fellowship, which is followed by a annual meeting to share problems and joys. This year a special event was the installation of Andrey Masiorov as preacher for the Abakan congregation. After worship there was a discussion of news from the synod assembly and plans for the future. The latter is particularly important in light of Pastor Dmitry Schwartz's upcoming return to Germany - plans need to be made for the time of pastoral vacancy.
Our guests from the Mission highly valued their time in our region. They took with them many impressions and much information. They spoke at our meetings and had a lot of personal interaction with our members. We were happy to hear from them that they desire to continue our cooperation. Small congregations need support. And such meeting show that we are not alone in our congregations - we have the support of our region, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Urals, Siberia and Far East, there is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia, and our partner churches abroad. But most important - God is with us. 
The Lord has wonderfully made everything. And we give over our human concerns into God's hands. For that which is impossible for humans is possible for God. (Lk 18.27) 
Zoya Geintse. Preacher, Chernogorsk.

24th Synod Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Urals, Siberia and Far East

Omsk

The 24th annual synod assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Urals, Siberia and Far East (ELCUSFE) was held in Omsk on October 16-18, 2015. In addition to delegates honored guests at the assembly were ELC Archbishop Dietrich Brauer and representative of the ELM (Hermannsburg), Area Secretary for Asia Helmut Grimmsmann.

The assembly welcomed new members, including Evgeny Lukinov (Ural Deanery), Alena Faifer (Western Siberian Deanery), Vitaly Schmidt (Central Siberian Deanery). Lidia Rogoza (Western Siberian Deanery), and Svetlana Fail (Ural Deanery) became members of the Synod Council. 

Much time was dedicated to the theme of diaconal work, in particular the reports of work with co-dependents by Larisa Yagofarova ("Peace to Your Home" Chelyanbinsk) and on work with the developmentally disabled by Anastasia Razinkova ("Colorful World" Irkutsk.)

A number of people were blessed as preachers during the synod assembly - Anton Neyfeld and Evgeny Strikker (Ekaterinburg), Andrey Massiorov (Abakan) and Elena Romanova (Sokol, Magadan obl.). Stanislav Mikula was commissioned as a pastor for the Western Siberia deanery, and Dean Valdemar Jesse (Chelyabinsk) was named the assistant to the Bishop. Constantine Pavlenko (Vladivostok) became the new vice chair of the synod council. 

The assembly concluded with a worship service with music by the Omsk congregation's choir. 

New Pastor in Tomsk

  On Palm Sunday, March 29th, the congregation in Tomsk (central Siberia) installed Vitaly Moor as its new pastor. After almost two years of a pastoral vacancy it was wonderful to receive the new pastor for whom the congregation had been hoping and praying for so long.
Vitaly Moor was born in Barnaul (also in central Siberia) in a family of Russian Germans who had been displaced there. In 1998 he finished the foreign languages department in Barnaul, and worked for a time as teacher there. In 2002 he and his family left for Germany, and in that same year he began his studies at the Hermannsburg seminary, which he finished in 2011. Vitaly had an internship with Manfred Brockmann in Vladivostok, and that positive experience helped him see that he would like to work as a pastor in Russia. The synod council decided to invite Vitaly to become a pastor in ELCUSFE,  and in 2015 all the details were worked out to make it happen. We wish Vitaly and his congregation God's blessing on their new path together.