Synod Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Georgia

Tbilisi

The Annual Synod Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Georgia was held on November 21. Honored guests of the assembly were representatives from the Armenian Apostolic and Georgian Orthodox churches and Klaus Rit from partners in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wurrtemburg. 

The main work of the synod consisted of hearing the 2015 reports from the synod council as well as adopting a budget for 2016. 

The offerings and expenses for 2016 are not expected to change much, and that means that the ELCG remains dependent on outside sponsors. Something new this year is the transfer of additional funds from the central office to congregations for diaconal work among congregational members. As usual the Synod listened to reports from church council presidents and from the coordinators of womens', mens' and children's work as well as the head of the summer camps committee. 

The synod assembly made a number of important decisions:

1. Gayan Melkonya-Chikhradze took over for Nanya Menteshashvili as the representative of the Rustaveli congregation in the synod council. 

2. The make up of the Presidum was changed to include the treasurer, insofar as it is critical for this church officer to take part in important decisions of the Presidium.

3. Natali Kaiser was named the ELCG treasure; her qualifications include having a degree in economics and being fluent in German, which is important for contacts with German partners. In this way all of the responsibilities of Christina Hummel have been split among three persons: the chair of the Evangelical Lutheran Diaconal Service of Georgia Larisa Babaeva, the accountant of the ELCG Tima Aresheva and the ELCG treasurer Natali Kaiser. We wish God's blessing to this team of servants! 

Synod delegates considered two documents - "A Petition to the City Council (Sakrebulo) of Tbilisi Requesting Renaming a City Street in Honor of Martin Luther" and "A Resolution Concerning the German Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ukraine (GELCU)." The request to the city council is made upon the basis of the contribution of German immigrants to the culture, architecture, industry and agriculture of Georgia and is tied with two anniversary - the 200th year anniversary of immigration of Swabians from Wurttemburg to Georgia and the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The resolution related to the GELCU is tied with the situation of the church in Ukraine and the loss of unity in the church. Both documents were approved unanimously by synod delegates.

The work of the synod assembly was done in a constructive atmosphere in which it was clear that everyone was looking for decisions that would be for the good of our church and to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Irina Soley

Dedication of a Diaconal Center in Ufa

Ufa 

On November 22 Archbishop Dietrich Brauer dedicated the building of a new diaconal center in Ufa.. The building process began in 2014, after the long-term projects of restoration of the church building and the parsonage were completed. The two-story diaconal center was built quickly, and thanks to constant financial support the total cost came to 15.3 million rubles. The largest part of that money - 14.6 million - came from a local charity fund, "Ural." The rest came from Martin Luther Bund and Gustav Adolf Werke, while the congregation also contributed 100000 rubles. 

But receiving financing is only part of a successful project. No less important is using the finances well. The building project was coordinated by Elvira Gartman, the church council president. At the Sunday worship service in the Ufa kirche, just after the dedication of the building, Archbishop Brauer gave Mrs. Gartman a medal for service to the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

The end of the building work is just the beginning. Now Ufa Lutherans will have a difficult and interesting tasks - deciding how to use this building for works of mercy and to fill it with new life. At present the congregation does not have a clear plan regarding how to do this. There are a few different ideas and they will be explored and developed as time goes on. Of course cooperation and learning from others will a big part of that work.

That was the topic of discussion at the round table hed on November 23rd in the diaconal center. Taking part were representatives of various religions and Christian denominations, NGO's and the Bashkirtostan government. The meeting was led by Pastor of the Ufa congregation, Genrich Minikh. Church workers from the local Orthodox and Roman Catholic congregations shared their experience in diaconal ministries, and they experienced their willingness to cooperate on future projects. The Bishop's Vicar of ELCER, Norbert Hintz, gave a moving example of diaconal work in the Germany context. The Muslims of the republic also expressed their good wishes. 

ELC Archbishop Dietrich Brauer, in his opening words at the round table, emphasized that "diaconal work is our answer to God's grace." May this answer given by the Ufa congregation in response to gaining a diaconal center be a worthy one! 

Office of the Archbishop

Meeting of Youth Coordinators of the Union of Evangelical Lutheran Churches

Bishkek

The annual meeting of Youth Ministry Coordinators of the members of the Union of Evangelical Lutheran Churches was held this year in the capital of Kyrgyzstan from November 12 to 16. The meeting was attended by Vladimir Vinogradov and Anastasia Razinkova (Urals, Siberia and Far East), Vera Tkach (European Russia), Vladimir Lizunov (Georgia) and the local hosts Nikolai and Maria Vorobyov.

At the beginning of the meeting the youth coordinators summarized what had happened since their last meeting, with each person sharing their own stories of challenges and joys of doing youth work. Many of the problems were shared by all, despite the differences in culture and many miles between them. Already early in their meeting they began to discuss their most successful region-wide projects. For example in Kyrgyzstan they have the "alarm clock" program, which sends out daily Bible verses to the telephones of congregational members, friends and acquaintances using the "WhatsApp" program. Or the "School of Leaders" training program in ELCSUFE, which has young people training up the next generation of youth leaders. And, of course, they spoke about a large number of summer camps, day camps, conferences and trips. 

The coordinators also spoke over Skype with Caroline Bader, the Youth Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, about the possibilities of working with young Christians from other countries. She told them about the possibilities for developing cooperation. She also suggested that they join the Young Reformers Network. Not long ago, in August-September of this year, they met in Wittenberg as part of the preparations for the 500 anniversary of the Reformation. The idea is that young people unite others in a project in one of three areas - people, creation, or salvation. Caroline noted that Vera Tkach has already taken the first step in that direction; she visited the conference in Wittenberg, and now is leading a project of cleaning up historic Lutheran sites in Russia. For Lutheran youth in the CIS this might be a first sign of development in international relations. 

At their previous meeting in Georgia the youth leaders decided to form a "Evangelical Youth" movement, uniting the staff of youth work throughout the CIS. They spoke about how the first year of this project went and noted that it is very important for motivation and for unity. Over the past year 3 youth worship service have been planned and held in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan. They will continue and in 2017 a big youth conference dedicated to the anniversary of the Reformation is planned. 

The schedule of the meeting was planned in such a way as to maximize the amount of time the coordinators could spend with congregational members from Bishkek and the surrounding areas. They took part in a youth group meeting with the theme "The Kingdom of God" in Bishkek, visited the congregation in the village of Ananevo and Sunday services in the villages of Vinogradnoe and Tokmak. On the 14th of November there was a youth gathering in Vinogradnoe with more than 70 young Christians from around the country in attendance together in order to learn about following Christ at the "Iron Man" seminar, led by Vladimir Vinogradov. 

Thanks to the warm hospitality of the Church of Kyrgyzstan, the Vorobev family, Bishop Alfred Eicholtz and many others the time spent together in Bishkek was not only comfortable, it was unforgettable. 

Vera Tkach

Visitation to Congregations in the Northern Caucuses

On November 6-8 Dean of the Northern Caucuses Sergey Maramzin visited a number of congregations of his region – Labinsk, Stavropol, Cherkessk, Pyatigorsk, Maisky, Prokhladny and Georgievsk. He led worship in these places and also performed baptisms; in addition, he met with representatives of regional government and with those people who are interested in cooperating with our church. “What made me particularly happy during this trip was that a number of people decided to be baptized and to have their children baptized. In these days a strong foundation was laid for the work of the Lutheran Church in the Northern Caucuses,” the Dean said at the conclusion of his visitation.

Pastor Hans-Hermann Achenbach (Petrikirche 2002-2008) Has Passed Away

On November 17th and after a long illness Pastor Hans-Hermann Achenbach (March 1, 1946-November 17, 2015) passed away in Germany. He was Dean of the Northwest Deanery and Pastor of St. Peter and Anna's Church from 2002 to 2008. We remember this servant of Christ's church, our brother and colleague, with great fondness. May he rest in peace.

Meeting with American Partners

Bishop (ret., ELC in Canada) Cindy Halmarson became ELCA Global Mission Area Program Director for Europe, the Middle East and North Africa in February 2015, and in the beginning of November she came to together with Arden Haug, ELCA area representative for Russia, to Moscow and St. Petersburg in order to get acquainted with the work of the churches. In Moscow they met with ELCA Pastor Bradn Buerkle, with representatives of the ELCER, of the French-speaking Lutheran congregation and of the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy. In St. Petersburg they met with Dean and Pastor of Petrikirche Michael Schwartzkopf, ELCR Administrator Marina Khudenko and Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ingria in Russia, Arri Kugappi. The partner relationship between Lutheran churches in America and Russia have existed for quite some time, and it is important to learn about new projects, ideas, problems and successes.

Arri Kugappi spoke about recent events in the Ingrian Church, and in particular about events – especially youth events – that have taken place inside St. Anna's Church, which is in need of restoration.

Arden Haug and Cindy Halmarson expressed their hope that contacts will be strengthened and that in the future they can regularly receive information about the life of both churches.

1st Annual Reformation Day Theological Conference in Moscow

Moscow
The first annual Reformation Day theological conference was held on October 31 in the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Moscow. The theme chosen this year was: "Reformation: from Conflict to Dialogue."
Elena Bondarenko, Dean of the Central Deanery and Public Relations director for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in European Russia, opened the conference. She noted that for such an ecumenical conference, it is inappropriate to approach the Reformation as something that is either simply positive or simply negative. "Many centuries later Christians of all denominations are seriously thinking about points of contact and not about what divides us. The experience of Martin Luther's Reformation needs a serious, well-thought-out approach, not an apologetic defense." The interesting speakers for the day provided a wonderful opportunity to do just that.
Many guests from various churches attended, including representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate, of the Archbishop of Canterbury,from the German embassy congregation, the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy and the Moscow Bible Church.
The friendly tone of the conference was set by Pavel Gnilorybov, a historian of Moscow. He spoke about the history of the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral on Starosadsky alley. The rector of the St. Thomas Institute, Tomas Garsiya and Father Kirill Gorbunov, press secretary of the Roman Catholic Archbishopric of the Mother of God in Moscow, shared their thoughts about the development of friendly and partner relationships between the Lutheran and Catholic Churches. Andrey Desnitskiy, a consultant with the Bible Translation Institute and a member of the Oriental Studies division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, spoke about the problems that all Christians (of any denomination) face. The conference was concluded by the Rector of the ELC Theological Seminary, Anton Tikhomirov, who spoke about his research into a number of church sounds from Western Christian denominations.