Going Beyond Normal to Make God Known in Europe

21 November 2013 | St Albans, England [tedNEWS Staff] Ninety-six delegates from the eleven Unions and three attached Fields, which constitute the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Trans-European region (TED), met from 15-20 November in Be?i?i, Montenegro. The theme of the Annual Council was ‘Making God Known in Europe – Go Beyond Normal‘.

Although the primary purpose of these annual councils is to consider various reports, plans and projects, this year’s council was a little different in at least two aspects. The first of these was the presence of Pastor Ted Wilson, General Conference President (GC), who attended all of the meetings, including the preceding Secular and Postmodern Conference. Delegates were also delighted to meet his wife, Nancy, who made a significant contribution to the council. The second special aspect of the council was the much anticipated presentation of a major study on the Theology of Ordination by Pastor Bertil Wiklander, President of the TED. A separate report has been published on this but the implications of the study, particularly for the role of women within the TED, were an underlying theme of discussion in the dining room and corridors for much of the council.

There were other special guests at the Annual Council, including: Daisy Orion from the General Conference, Radiša Anti? from the Ellen White Centre at Newbold College, Sandra Richards Grice, Alan Redfern and Frensly Panneflek (board member) from the GC Auditing Service, Tim Northrop and Cesar Medina from Adventist Risk Management, and Rene Metz from ASI Europe.

The Fields are Ripe
In his keynote address Pastor Wiklander focused on Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman as recorded in John chapter 4. Painting a picture of the tension which existed between Jews and Samaritans in Jesus’ day, Wiklander said, “Jews detested Samaritans, they planned their journeys to avoid them and had special rules of how to deal with them if they happened to meet. A Jew couldn’t marry a Samaritan and they wouldn’t even use dishes that Samaritans had used.” Jesus however, deliberately chose to travel through their territory and because of this a Samaritan woman was converted and became the first missionary to those people. Drawing a parallel with the current situation in the TED, Wiklander challenged his audience to find new ways of encountering the predominantly postmodern people of Europe. “Do we really think that the people of Europe don’t want to know God?” Quoting Jesus in John 4:35 he said, “Open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.”

Mission with Maintenance
Audrey Andersson, TED Executive Secretary, presented the Division’s statistical report showing that the membership of the Trans-European Division was 84,093 in June 2013, a net increase of 1,325 since a year previously. There had actually been 3,768 baptisms during the year, averaging 10.3 people per day. The difference between these two figures was accounted for by deaths, members being dropped from membership, and others going missing. With 334 dropped and 450 missing over the last year Anderson pointed out that we obviously have a problem. “Our motto,” she said, “is Mission with Maintenance. We must hold those who we win.” One way to do this is through the church’s Sabbath School programme. “A recent survey has shown that 90% of those questioned found Sabbath School to be helpful in their spiritual development,” Andersson concluded.

Finances
The financial report was presented by Nenad Jepuranovi?, newly appointed TED Treasurer. With charts and graphs going back more than ten years Jepuranovi? showed how the TED had largely weathered the financial storms and maintained balance by keeping some investments in fixed income bonds and other in equities. He also showed how the US investment market had helped to keep stability during times of European volatility. This was of course during the time of his predecessor, Jóhann E. Jóhannsson, who had recently accepted a call to serve in the Norwegian Union. Jepuranovi? explained that other staff changes were also presenting a challenge to the department: Caroline Swain retired earlier this year and Pat Walton will be retiring at the end of the year.

Strategic Plan
In an information-packed eight-minute report Pastor Raafat Kamal, TED Field Secretary, gave an overview of how the Division was meeting the goals of the General Conference’s ‘Tell the World’ strategic plan. This plan has three specific aims: to Reach Up (worship), Reach Out (witness) and Reach Across (build community). In pursuit of these aims, which have been grouped together under the banner ‘Making God Known in Europe’, the TED has run 110 separate training events throughout its territory this year. Numerous resources have been produced, ranging from DVDs, books and magazines, to websites and multi-media programmes. Particularly impressive is a more than doubling of activity on the LIFEconnect social media website, with nearly two million visitors so far this year.

Evangelism
Pastor Janos Kovacs-Biro, TED Evangelism Director, reported on the Mission to the Cities project. While some may think that this is a fairly new initiative, Kovacs-Biro quoted from the writings of Ellen White to show that the cities have always been a priority for Seventh-day Adventists. “The work in the cities is the essential work for this time.” (Letter 46, 1910). “There is no change in the messages that God has sent… The work in the cities is the essential work for this time. When the cities are worked as God would have them, the result will be the setting in operation of a mighty movement such as we have not yet witnessed.” (Medical Ministry p. 304). With this mandate Kovacs-Biro went on to emphasise the challenge that we face. In 1850 only 9.5% of the world’s population lived in cities; in 2007 it reached 50% and by 2050 it is projected to reach 67%. However these are world figures; in Europe the percentages are even higher. Reaching the urban masses is not an easy task. They have been affected by their environment and traditional values have, in many cases, been eroded. “We need to analyse all our cities, set time-based goals and make plans for their implementation. In particular we need to focus on the indigenous population of these cities,” Kovacs-Biro said.

Pastor Wilson expressed his gratitude and appreciation for the way that the Trans-European Division was taking the Mission to the Cities so seriously. “I’m delighted for the way you are moving full force into this through the power of the Holy Spirit,” he said.

Health Evangelism
In order to implement the Mission to the Cities project, and to facilitate evangelism in other areas, the TED has made an almost bewildering variety of resources available. Stephen Cooper, TED Health Ministry Director, spoke of how Health Ministry is being integrated into all the departments of the church, with the specific aim of reaching out to the community. “Our health ministry should be Christ-focused; it should create positive friendships and foster good will; and it should be evidence-based so that we can avoid the conflict and arguments that arise from the taking of extreme positions,” he said.

Again Pastor Wilson endorsed this message. “The Health Message is the right arm of the Gospel,” he said, “but it is not the gospel – that’s when fanaticism comes in. Our health message is a moderate approach, a middle of the road approach, but it’s also integral to the final loud cry – to return to a simple understanding of our responsibility to God.”

Social Media Evangelism – LIFEconnect
Evangelism in the 21^st century is becoming increasing hi-tech and the report by Miroslav Puji?, TED Communication & Media Ministries Director, on the LIFEconnect social networking project was an eye-opener for many of the delegates. “We don’t have a choice on whether we do social media, the question is how well we do it,” he said, quoting an authority on the subject. Through the LIFEconnect website Puji? is putting in place a complete digital discipleship process. This includes: connecting with people, through Facebook; sharing ideas; dialoguing with people; meeting them – either virtually or physically; and finally inviting them to join more traditional communities, such as our churches.

The website is only part of the LIFEconnect process as there have also been a number of live events which have been simultaneously broadcast on the internet. “These events have been a great success,” said Puji?. “Over seven weekends we had 31,911 viewers and 1,629 live-chat users from 86 countries. This figures aren’t just guesses – with electronic media we get precise information reported back to us.” To date there have been 20 baptisms as a direct result of the LIFEconnect project, but Puji? expects many more.

Youth Congress
Pastor Paul Tompkins, TED Youth Ministries Director, spoke enthusiastically about the ‘Power of One’ Youth Congress that was held in Novi Sad, Serbia, this summer. It was a joint venture with the Inter-European Division (EUD) and attracted over 3,000 young people from across Europe and even further afield, plus many more day visitors. In addition to the regular meetings the Congress had a practical impact on the local community as attendees took part in a number of local community project. Some gave blood, others painted fences, and still others gave out literature. The evangelistic impact of the Congress was underlined by the fact that 12 young people were baptised at the event itself, while a total of 200 filled in cards saying that they wished to be baptised at some stage in the future. Miroslav PPuji?, who was heavily involved in the multimedia and artistic side of the Congress, was thrilled with the way that everything came together for the meetings. “This is the most advanced technological event that I’ve ever been involved with,” he said. “We had professional companies setting up the video and audio equipment and the end result was fantastic. The young people really loved it!”

Our Ministry is to Protect Your Ministry
Tim Northrop from Adventist Risk Management (ARM) gave some very useful information about church insurance and how it can enhance the work of spreading the gospel. “Our ministry is to protect your ministry,” he said. “We want to make your activities as safe as they can be.” Northrop went on to explain that it’s not just about insurance, it’s also important to assess risks so that you can minimise and control them. Prevention is better than cure, as the saying goes, but when the worst does happen it is important to have a protective net in place. Pastor Wiklander reminded the delegates that it was just five years ago that the British Union Conference office burned down. It was largely due to the insurance cover that office was able to be rebuilt relatively quickly. Pastor Wilson endorsed the report and explaind that ARM really did want to help the churches. “Some places think they can get a better deal by going to other providers,” he said, “but I ask that you give our own organisation a chance to provide for the church. Work with them and see what they can do for you.”

Regional Reports
Each Union and Field presented a report to the delegates. There were literally hundreds of encouraging projects, events, and stories giving very clear evidence of commitment of the leaders, ministers and members in each part of the Division. A number of factors were common to most, if not all of the reports, including the challenges of postmodernism and secularism. However it was good to hear that certain things seemed to be working across a wide range of cultures. One of these is the Great Hope Project, with its emphasis on the mass distribution of magazines like ‘Escape’ and ‘Connect’, backed up by a full suite of multimedia resources. Also very popular was Messy Church – an Anglican initiative, now fully adapted for use within the Seventh-day Adventist Church. In the monthly Messy Church meetings, children and parents are educated and entertained and generally made at home in a warm and welcoming environment.

Here we will pick out just a few highlights from each region: In Belgrade an evangelistic series run by Pastor Radiša Anti?, from Newbold College, was so popular that people were in their seats an hour before the scheduled start time. In the Swedish Union, which has 2,786 members, the Impact Scandinavia event attracted 400 participants from 25 countries, 15 of whom made a decision for baptism. In Poland good work by those involved in Public Affairs and Religious Liberty (PARL) enabled a message by Pastor Wilson to be broadcast on state television. In Norway the government has recognised the work of ADRA-Norway and pledged the equivalent of half a million pounds to them for next year. In Hungary, where Adventist are not very well known, 70,000 copies of the Great Hope have been distributed. In Finland, where only one or two percent of the population attends church, the challenges are great, but tithe income is increasing above inflation. In Denmark a new film produced by the General Conference entitled ‘Creation’ has been shown to 1,500 people, 123 of whom attended follow-up lectures. In the United Kingdom and Ireland there is a big challenge to reach the majority population, but the Mission to the Cities initiative has already led to 200 baptisms. In Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia – the countries of the Baltic Union – tithe is up by 7% and there have been 194 baptisms in the last 12 months. In Croatia a youth café is using pancakes and fruit drinks to engage the public once a week, and in Slovenia the ‘Agape’ Adventist music group featured on a TV show. In Albania, where the church is just 20 years old, public evangelism has doubled over the last four years. In the Netherlands there have been 33 church plants since 2000, 20 of which are still going strong now, and seven have been organised into churches. In Greece new websites are reaching new audiences, with one attracting more than 46,000 visitors over the last year. In Iceland the church is facing great challenges due to the fallout from the recent economic crisis, but the church still maintains eight properties and is finding new ways to promote their use. Cyprus probably faces the greatest challenge of all the fields in the TED. Although it has been in existence for 100 years, it still only has about 100 members. Nevertheless there have been 16 baptisms in the last twelve months.

Comments
Pastor John Surridge, President of the Welsh Mission, commented on the atmosphere of prayer and worship which surrounded all of the meetings, “Pastor Michael Hamilton did a good job of keeping us spiritually focused through a variety of different prayer approaches – in pairs, groups, and even some times of silence. The music was also great, with the tedMEDIA DVDs demonstrating just how useful they can be in a worship setting. All in all we kept a good balance between business and worship, which is as it should be at these events.”

Carolyn Guenin who joined the TED staff earlier this year said that the best thing about the meetings for her was how open minded people were. “I was expecting there to be a strong contrast between the conservatives and the more liberal thinkers at the council. In fact I found everyone to be very forward thinking, which was quite refreshing.”

Conclusion
At the end of the meetings Wilson had all the delegates join hands in a circle which went right around the meeting hall. In his closing prayer he asked for God’s special blessings on a territory which has tremendous challenges but also great potential for growth. [tedNEWS]

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If you would like to see more photographs from the TED executive meetings, please click here.

To learn more about the Trans-European Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, please visit our websites: www.ted-adventist.org – www.lifeconnect.info – www.tedmedia.org – www.essenceofworship.org – www.lifedevelopment.info – www.ministrytopostmoderns.com – ted-relay.org – www.tedadventistvolunteers.com – www.adra-te.org
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tedNEWS Staff: Miroslav Pujic, director; Deana Stojkovic, editor
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