UCG-Netherlands

As of Jan. 1 this year, UCG-Netherlands is a separate, distinct entity in Europe with its own National Council, like Italy, Germany, France and the British Isles.

When UCG-Netherlands was founded, there were no resident ordained elders in the Netherlands. Therefore, it was decided to temporarily associate with another UCG entity—in this case, UCG-Germany, with Paul Kieffer serving as pastor. The Dutch brethren have been most grateful for Paul Kieffer’s many years of faithful service to the Church in the Netherlands.

Since we now do have two Dutch elders, the time has come for the Church in the Netherlands to stand on its own. Wim Dekker is now the new UCG-Netherlands National Council Chairman, supported by Marcos Rosales.

The official name of the Church in the Netherlands is ‘Verenigde Kerk van God’ (VKvG) and the geographic area of responsibility of VKvG is the Dutch kingdom and any area bordering on the Netherlands where the Dutch language is spoken (Flanders in Belgium). Where possible, UCG-Netherlands supports other Dutch-language regions (such as Suriname in South America, the Dutch Antilles in the Caribbean and South Africa) with our Dutch literature and in other ways.

All of the English UCG booklets and Bible lessons have been translated into Dutch, and currently progress is being made to finish typesetting and printing them. The English Beyond Today magazine is distributed and, with each issue, a four-page Dutch supplement is included.

In addition, the Dutch provide subtitles to the English Beyond Today TV programs which can be accessed through the Dutch website (verenigdekerkvangod.org). It can also be found on YouTube.

There is one nationwide congregation. Services are held alternately in Maarn (in the middle of the country) and in Reeuwijk (in the west of the country). The average attendance is 40 people with 28 baptized members. All age groups are relatively equally represented and include first, second, third, fourth and even fifth generation Christians!

Because of the growing number of COVID-19 infections, the Netherlands is officially still in lockdown and, for the time being, Church members meet online for services. The Dutch congregation always enjoys hosting guests. A new Feast of Tabernacles site was scheduled for 2020, but had to be canceled. The Dutch are looking forward to meeting with everyone once again in person.

In June 2016, Beverly and I were privileged to visit our brethren in the Netherlands to get better acquainted with many in the congregation and visit some in their homes. You can read about our visit in my TravelArk blog at http://v2.travelark.org/travel-blog/victorkubik/18. It will give you insight into the Church as well as a nation associated with tulips, windmills and ships. Rotterdam is by far the largest port in Europe.

Afrikaans Translation—a related note

In South Africa, our booklets are being translated into Afrikaans—a project long-discussed and now being realized.

Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch and—unlike Netherlands Dutch, Belgian Dutch and Surinamese Dutch—a separate standard language. However, an estimated 90 to 95 percent of Afrikaans vocabulary is of Dutch origin.

A team of three members is translating, proofreading and laying out over 40 booklets—a responsibility that they are fulfilling eagerly. A number of these booklets can already be seen on the South African website at https://ucg.org.za/en/. We thank the Australian office for developing this dual English-Afrikaans website. A Bible study and Easter, the Rest of the Story are being prepared to coincide with the upcoming Easter season.

Your prayers would be greatly appreciated for the accurate translation of these booklets and for a good response from our Afrikaans readers.

As we pray for the Work of God, this information may be helpful to know about how wide our worldwide reach is and how our laborers cooperate.

Streaming, Streaming

This past Tuesday evening, I watched our pastor for the Washington, D.C. area, Steven Britt, stream his Bible study titled “Walk in the Word” on Facebook Live. He gave an expository presentation on the third chapter of Romans. As he spoke, some of the viewers commented on the Bible study. From what I saw, there were 96 connections. On his Facebook page, you can see a video timeline of his previous Bible studies. As he spoke via Facebook, he was simultaneously reaching an audience on Zoom, as well.

Lewis VanAusdle, in the New York City area, also uses Facebook for streaming. COVID-19 has stimulated not only the technology of streaming, but creativity to provide this kind of care for our brethren, which can also be a tool of reaching beyond to others.

These examples show how scattered brethren in congested areas of our country can be brought together in a service and is a practice that will likely continue long after the pandemic passes.

One of our Florida pastors, Rick Shabi, also conducts regular online Bible studies—not only in the evening, but also in the middle of the day when many of our elderly or retired brethren are more available. I applaud all of these efforts!

More of you pastors may be interested in doing this yourself. It is free or inexpensive, and the equipment needed may often be no more than your laptop or phone. We ask that you check with Peter Eddington (peter_eddington@ucg.org). There are specific guidelines and policies that we would like for our pastors to be aware of.

Home Office 2021-2022 Budget Planning Meeting

All of us pray “Give us our daily bread.” That not only goes for individuals and families, but also for us who manage the work of the Church—as we have to pay for the production and airing of the Beyond Today television program, our magazine, booklets and the literature that we always provide free of charge. We also have to pay salaries to our employees and ministers who care for our hundreds of congregations worldwide.

On Tuesday this past week, our home office administration met to discuss a proposed 2021-2022 budget to present to the Council of Elders at their scheduled February meeting. Treasurer Rick Shabi came from Florida to be at these meetings and stayed at my home, giving us ample time to discuss financial plans for the next fiscal year.

In this unusual year of the pandemic, riots, a controversial election and economic uncertainty, we are grateful that monetary support for the Church has not lessened. For the first half of the current fiscal year, revenue has been consistent at 10.3 million dollars. Our brethren have been faithful. We have gained more donors and co-workers. Our Planned Giving program, which has been producing an article for each issue of the United News, has brought interest in the Church and its work and has resulted in increased revenue. That interest has come not only from within but also from those who are watching us on television and receiving the Beyond Today magazine.

In our draft budget, we are optimistically proposing $20 million in income. We are happy to say that no cuts to our operations are being proposed. We have not forgotten our international areas—some very heavily subsidized—and we are happy to help as we are able. Let’s pray that this assistance to them can continue.

I conclude with the words of the apostle Paul: “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you” (2 Thessalonians 3:1-2).