No 12 Christmas 2014 Newsletter to members and friends Anibonani abangame, dear Friends of Partnership, NEWS from liebe Mitglieder und Freunde sowie Freundinnen von The Friends of The Skill Training centre Partnership Committee in Bishopstowe During the last months the com- 8th Oct, 2014, Mr Pius Mbuyisa This is our Newsletter No. 12, mittee focussed on adjusting the sent this message: Christmas 2014 charter of Friends of partnership "The good news is that the project to the challenges by the changes at Bishopstowe is moving fast now in its structure and by revenue re- since KZNCC took the initiative to greet you all in gulations. We will hopefully finalize help some funding with chicken, this Advent season in the name the new charter on occasion of the piggeries and ducks farming. The of our Lord Jesus Christ. general meeting on 19, May 2015. Deanery is waiting for the dig- We are all preparing for Christ- ging of the ground to be comple- mas. Maybe the following words Chairperon’s Visit ted. Pass all the best wishes to all will only match older people, for to South Africa friends there and hoping to meet sure they originate in the head Rev. Heribert Duscha has the one day. Yours in Christ. of a man who becomes aware idea to see the South Africa part- Pius Mbuyisa" of his own age: Despite all the ners and friends maybe in Janua- commercial and different other ry 2015. He is looking for a fitting distractions which are not only date and flight for South Africa. in Germany connected with the- The main purpose of his visit will se weeks before Christmas we be to bring forward the publica- prepare thoroughly for the days tion of the partnership book on the of Christmas. In these days we South African side. remind and celebrate this unique present which God gave to all humankind when sending Jesus gives thanks to partners and friends for all Christ into this world. Let us just companionship, hospitality and love in 2014 and invites to enjoy this present! share 2015 under the motto of our church: Ngalokho yamukelanani, njengalokho noKristu wasamukela, ukuze kudunyiswe uNkulunkulu. Annual Meeting AmaRoma 15:7 Members of Friends of Nehmt einander an wie Christus euch angenommen Partnership will meet hat zum Lobe Gottes. (Röm 15, 7) for the annual assembly Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, on May, 19th, 2015. in order to bring praise to God. Romans 15:7 Delegations and other visits Common cooking and public viewing the question, how church can be at- Youth meeting in Melle-Georgsmarienhütte circuit tractive for young people. A workshop on HIV/AIDS at the Has- te Vocational School gave important impulses for all who were involved. And, of course, the encounters and joint enterprises were important: common cooking, public viewing of the World Championship or the common rehearsal of gospel choirs. In addition to these centrally orga- nized events, there was left space in the guest family and in partner congregations. Here too there were many intense encounters. In line of the youth encounter, con- nections have been created in many ways: in South Africa, three circuits Henning Enge, Circuit Youth cluding youth ministry. A broad pro- worker of Melle-Georgsmarien- gram was designed to meet diverse huette Circuit, reports: opportunities. Young people should “From 2014, Jun, 28 to July, 19 nine have space to get to know one ano- young adults with their leader Dali- ther and to share. su Sithole from the South African Particularly, intense talks with refu- partner circuits Durban, Umngeni gees took place, e.g. with a young and Umvoti were guests in the cir- Iranian woman which escaped due cuit of Melle-Georgsmarienhütte. to being a Christian and currently This youth encounter was one of the lives in Melle. We also met a group first circuit wide delegations and en- of refugees in Hamburg that arrived counters in our new circuit. via the Italian island of Lampedusa in Stay time roughly divided into two Germany and had found asylum in sections. In the first week, the de- the Church of St Pauli in Hamburg. legates were mainly guests of Haste In the workshop on "Youth and Vocational School in Osnabrueck. Church" and by participating in the The following fortnight the young Church wide youth camp of the people were hosted in our circuit in- Church of Hanover we followed up (which since 2013 are partner cir- cuits to Melle-Georgsmarienhütte) had to work together in the planning and selection of delegates. And also for the new circuit of Melle-Georgs- marienhütte, this encounter was the first large joint action in the field of partnership work. To experience both, school and church youth work has proven suc- cessfully. A new evidence was on hand that creating meeting places and enabling mutual getting to know was well accepted. Delegations and other visits 17, November, 2014 Anke Meckfessel gave hints to the two News from Mpumalanga follwings reports in local newspaper: and Oldendorf parishes German retired Vocational School Principal Renovation of the crèche shares knowledge with South Africans In addition to the news in our pre- ceding newsletter we can report that the créche was opened in May 2014. Jürgen Kipsieker, member of the the first two weeks they have been Partnership Committee in Melle- working in the guest house repai- Georgsmarienhuette, was (in Octo- ring doors, cabinets, beds, sani- ber / November) in Umvoti Circuit tary equipment. Thereafter a new for six weeks to redirect to (young) kitchen was provided with new people, to learn and perform inde- electrical appliances. The work- pendently minor renovation work. shop participants should later in- A "training ground" has been the sert their knowledge in their own circuit center in Hermansburg. In congregations. 10 October, 2014: Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung: Visit begins in Hilter Melle-GMHütte Circuit strengthens friendship with South Africa Oldendorf parish is still raising funds, particularly when the parish bids farewell to Pastor Keding (see photo) who will retire on January 31, 2015. b.r. Hilter/ Georgsmarienhütte. from these purposes, the South Four South African parishioners Africans visit a farm, the “Osna- are guests in their partner con- brück Workshop” in Schledehau- gregations in the former circuit of sen and the Vocational Schools Georgsmarienhütte. The first get- in Melle. On the program, there is ting to know or the reunion was also a two-day stay in the German celebrated in Hilter. Two weeks Si- Hermannsburg. nenhlanhla Musuku, Lucia Nguba- Sinenhlanhla Musuku is at home ne, Thokozani Nlhlongo Jabulani in the South African Hermanns- Ngubane want to visit their partner burg in the Province of Kwa-Zulu parishes of Hilter, Vehrte and Bad Natal. Her partner congregation is Rothenfelde, Bad Laer and revi- Hilter. The South African thanked ve the contacts. New educatio- for the support of the John the nal opportunities for young South Baptist congregation of Hilter by Africans are another focus of the which was the congregational visit. By these visits the Education house was renovated and is now Fund should be promoted. Apart a busy center. Delegations and other visits News from Chatsworth and Barkhausen-Rabber parishes 9 November 2014, Ernst-August Gausmann from Barkhausen-Rabber parish reports: "From the Indian Ocean to the River Hunte" "From the Indian Ocean to River Hunte" the Wittlage newspaper ran the headline of an article by Eck- hard Eilers on the occasion of the visit of a delegation from our part- ner parish Chatsworth. Yes, really, from the other end of the world in our world. The contrast can hardly be greater. About 12,000 km from home, in a different climate, in dif- ferent conditions, other life realities lists performed to the glory of God, burg Castle and to the Luther Hall and yet – as it turned out, we had and - of course, to the honour of in Wittenberg were the top high- also much in common. Our three our guests from South Africa.The- lights of these days. friends from the rainbow nation re was also strawberry and cream Back to Barkhausen-Rabber, get- visited us during the period from – fed up - but unfortunately there ting to know our community and its June, 14th to 25th, 2014 and lived was not enough for all, so on the structure was on the agenda. The in private accommodation in Bark- way home we had to look for more delegation visited the Marienkirche hausen. to enjoy at home. in Rabber and the St. Catherine's The visit was under the theme: On Monday and Tuesday, we were Church in Barkhausen. A visit to congregational life – partner- on the road tracing steps. In Thu- the Independent Lutheran Con- ship in a changing world and in ringia and Saxony, Mr Sanders gregation Rabber as well as to chang ing structures. This theme and I accompanied Olive, Collin, the Baptist Chapel in Lintorf gave was supported by an ambitious and Robin to the most important a good insight into religious life of and varied program. places of the Reformation and our region. The Visit to the mosque At Hamburg Airport we welcomed Martin Luther’s life. We visited the in Linne was a very special and our friends from Chatsworth and Wartburg, Eisenach, Erfurt and good experience. In a friendly di- travelled by train to Bohmte. On Wittenberg. It was a pity that the alogue the Imam and our guest, Sunday, we visited with our guests Castle and the town church due to Pastor Collin Chellan, agreed that and members of the congregation restoration works were not to be God's love is above all.