This is a report of the missionary activities of The Apostolic Church in Italy for April 2023.
Relief Ministry
In 2022 we sent: €22,000 to Ukrainian churches to deal with the disasters of the War, about €2,000 for the earthquake in Turkey/Syria, and about €2,500 for the floods in Pakistan. We started collecting offers for a prophetic vision we received for the Balkans.
There is also a nice activity of preparation of “benches for Mission.” There are several communities that have put in place resources for the production of handicrafts with which we raise funds for the mission of particular importance.
National Missions
Inside Italy, the Apostolic Church Italy undertakes missions in various cities and regions.
Salerno
The work in Salerno advances, albeit in small steps. Souls are saved and receive the message of salvation. We continue to pray for Pastor Barbera and his wife, who, together with the community of Castellammare di Stabia and the District of Naples, are engaged in the front-line mission activities.
Naples
The mission in the Berlingieri district heads more and more towards consolidation thanks also to the step of faith of Pastor Sorrentino. Originally a pharmacist, he left his secular activity to devote himself more to the communities he leads. He also devotes time to the mission in the needy “border” neighbourhood of the Neapolitan hinterland. Let us pray for Pastor Sorrentino and his family.
Piedimonte Matese (CE)
Pastore Sorrentino also curated this mission in a town located north of Caserta, on the border with Molise. There are families eager to see the work grow. However, greater ministerial support is needed in terms of numbers.
Rho
The small group in the city of Rho hold meetings in a conference room in The Square made available by the Municipality. The group continues to grow both numerically and (and especially) personally at the level of discipleship. The atmosphere they have created is very familiar and there is a growing love for each other. At least 10 people gather for each meeting.
International Missions
The Apostolic Church, Italy sends out missionaries around the world. Here is a summary of these missions.
Germany – Freiburg
The work grows. The church has already held two baptismal sessions between December and February for the souls. They are followed up by the Pastor and his wife in conjunction with volunteers from the District of Milan. Our brothers on site are looking for a local pastor. They are assiduous in the study of the Word, in prayer and both in hospitality. The group show this especially when the missionary team goes to Germany and when they, in turn, visit the community of Milan. They use this exchange to strengthen communion with the Work in Italy.
Let us pray for the Pastor and his family and for the group in Freiburg. They are, in this phase of great zeal, trying to reach many friends and relatives with the Gospel; both in Freiburg but also in Italy where they have their roots.
India
After the missionary journey in January 2023, TAC Italy continues work of both social and spiritual support. They are completing the construction of the first bathroom in the house/church of a pastor in great difficulty of poverty. This pastor has a wooden prosthesis on one leg that makes him unable to work. Without a birth certificate, he is practically non-existent for the government. The funds for this construction (€1,200) came largely from a family of servants from America who know TAC Italy, but also from Dario (€900) and the rest from us as the Missionary Secretariat.
The next project will be a 5 year development plan for this mission. We aim to spread the Apostolic Vision in a way that adds value to the Indian Church, and will encourage its expansion in their nation. Let us pray for the persecuted church in India.
Togo
We continue to collaborate with the Apostolic Church in Togo. This takes the form of social projects, among which the one of schooling for children stands out. The Sicily area is very active in fundraising that allows us to always be faithful to the commitments made.
Corban Project
The Project continues faithfully. The pastors so far included in the project regularly receive their support in Togo, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
The Balkans and Portugal
For these two areas we have received, respectively, a prophetic and an apostolic indication. For the Balkans, there are possible synergies with the Hungarian and Albanian Church. We are being examining these possibilities and waiting on the Lord for direction. In Portugal we are exploring ways of collaboration with the Church in Spain.
Latin America
We have now established churches in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador and we are working to strengthen them.
Mission Field Lignano Sabbiadoro
This year we will repeat the experience in communion with the Apostolic Church in Switzerland. We will be evangelizing areas that are little reached by the Gospel. It is the turn of Friuli Venezia Giulia to get closer to the Balkans. The camp will be held in August and there will be more details shortly. Our communities of Udine, Verona and Pergine Valsugana will be involved with the servants operating in those areas. We ask you to pray that evangelistic action may be effective, and that seeds may be planted for the birth of new churches. Pray also that we may harvest the fruits of souls saved for Jesus. Participation in the Camp is open to anyone who feels this call and wants to test themselves. The situation require a spirit of adaptation as the logistics will be in camping mode!
Missionary Experiences
In a purely exploratory phase, we are examining ideas for the development of opportunities for missionary experiences to those who feel this call. Right now the ideas involve:
- For December 2023 we are trying to understand if there is the possibility of organising a trip to Togo. The idea is to send about twenty volunteers to help the Church in Togo in evangelistic activities in the north of the country.
- For the summer of 2024, we are thinking of organising a camp to evangelize both areas of Albania and Macedonia.
Please pray for these ideas. If they are in the will of God, they would spur us into action to spread, more and more, the missionary spirit in our Work. It is all for the expansion of the Kingdom of God throughout the globe, wherever the Lord wants to send us.
Future Perspectives
The development of the Mission includes two fundamental steps:
- The creation of a national strategy, inspired by the Lord, through an apostolic and prophetic vision that allows us to focus on specific missionary goals as and where the Lord will send us.
- The creation of a synergy with all the European Apostolic Churches, allowing us to channel all resources, human and financial, in a single point. This is to avoid overlapping and expenditure of energy and, at the same time, optimize missionary action.
Pastor Eduardo is the mission lead of The Apostolic Church in Italy. Please continue to pray for the Lord’s leading in his life and the success of the mission.