An Open Letter to the Members and Friends of the Croatian St Albans SDA Church
St Albans, 19th December 2024
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
We, the Church Board, would like to inform you of some recent developments to ensure transparency, promote unity, and avoid any misrepresentation or misunderstandings that could harm individuals or hinder our shared mission and ministry.
In recent months, several members of our church, along with a few individuals from neighbouring SDA churches, have decided to form a new Keilor Seventh-day Adventist Church Group. This decision stemmed from their desire to pursue an English-only mission, which they felt was not fully achievable within the Croatian St Albans SDA Church.
Our pastor has provided support for this initiative and worked alongside the Conference leadership to facilitate this transition. The new group will focus on ministering to the multicultural community of St Albans, Keilor, and surrounding areas, conducting all services and outreach exclusively in English.
On November 27, 2024, the Conference officially approved the formation of the Keilor Church Plant, with our pastor appointed as the group’s principal leader in addition to his current responsibilities at the Croatian St Albans SDA Church. The group will meet at the Uniting Church in Keilor.
As part of this process, it is expected that members opting to join the new group will request a transfer of their membership to the Conference roll, in line with the suggestion and recommendation of the Conference leadership.
The Church Board extends our best wishes to the new church plant as they focus on their mission. It has to be noted that our pastor, Manuel Tikulin will provide pastoral oversight for the new group. The group's leadership is as follows: Nevenka Rogulic (Lay Leader), Andrea Claydon (Treasurer), and Deborah Jenkins (Secretary). May God guide and empower their ministry as they serve the community.
The current Church Board has met with the Conference leadership to seek clarity and chart the path forward. During our official dialogue in Nunawading last week, we discussed key steps and acknowledged that decisions of this magnitude should ideally be presented and voted on at a Church Business Meeting, which is the highest decision-making authority of the local church. However, given the timing and fluid nature of the situation, we felt it was necessary to share this Open Letter now as an initial statement.
Further clarification and dialogue will take place at a Church Business Meeting in early 2025, where all questions and concerns will be addressed.
We seek your understanding, support, and prayers as we move forward in faith. Let us remain united and focused on our shared mission: to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ and prepare for His soon return. Together, let us trust in God’s leadership, His provision, and His plans for our church and its ministry.
With God’s blessings,
The Church Board
Croatian St Albans SDA Church
Otvoreno pismo članovima i prijateljima
Hrvatske Adventističke crkve St Albans
St. Albans, 19. prosinca 2024.
Draga braćo i sestre u Kristu,
Crkveni odbor želi vas obavijestiti o nekoliko nedavnih događaja kako bismo osigurali transparentnost, promicali jedinstvo i izbjegli bilo kakva pogrešna tumačenja ili nesporazume koji bi mogli povrijediti pojedince ili ugroziti našu zajedničku misiju i službu.
Tijekom proteklih mjeseci, nekoliko naših članova, zajedno s nekolicinom pojedinaca iz susjednih adventističkih crkava, odlučilo je osnovati novu skupinu pod nazivom Keilor Seventh-day Adventist Church Group. Ova odluka proizašla je iz njihove želje za misijom isključivo na engleskom jeziku, što su smatrali da ne mogu u potpunosti ostvariti unutar Hrvatske crkve St Albans.
Naš pastor pružio je podršku ovoj inicijativi i surađivao s vodstvom Konferencije kako bi olakšao ovaj prijelaz. Nova grupa će se usredotočiti na služenje multikulturalnoj zajednici St Albansa, Keilora i okolnih područja, pri čemu će sve bogoslužne aktivnosti i službe biti isključivo na engleskom jeziku.
Dana 27. studenog 2024., Konferencija je službeno odobrila osnivanje crkvene grupe Keilor, a naš pastor imenovan je glavnim vođom grupe uz svoje postojeće odgovornosti u Hrvatskoj crkvi St Albans. Skupina će se okupljati u Uniting Church u Keiloru.
Kao dio ovog procesa, očekuje se da će članovi koji se odluče pridružiti novoj grupi zatražiti prijenos svog članstva na Konferenciju, u skladu s prijedlogom i preporukom vodstva Konferencije.
Crkveni odbor upućuje najbolje želje novoj crkvenoj zajednici dok se fokusiraju na svoju misiju. Važno je napomenuti da će naš pastor, Manuel Tikulin, pružati pastoralni nadzor za novu grupu. Vodstvo grupe čine: Nevenka Rogulić (laik vođa), Andrea Claydon (blagajnica) i Deborah Jenkins (tajnica). Neka Bog vodi i osnaži njihovu službu dok služe zajednici.
Sadašnji Crkveni odbor sastao se s vodstvom Konferencije kako bi osigurao jasnoću i dogovorio korake za budućnost. Tijekom službenog dijaloga u Nunawadingu prošlog tjedna, razgovarali smo o ključnim koracima i naglasili da bi se ovakve odluke trebale iznijeti i izglasati na Crkvenom poslovnom sastanku, koji je najviši autoritet lokalne crkve. Ipak, s obzirom na vremenski okvir i dinamičnu prirodu situacije, smatrali smo potrebnim podijeliti ovo Otvoreno pismo kao početnu izjavu.
Daljnje pojašnjenje i dijalog održat će se na Crkvenom poslovnom sastanku početkom 2025. godine, gdje će sva pitanja i zabrinutosti biti adresirana.
Molimo za vašu podršku, razumijevanje i molitve dok idemo naprijed u vjeri. Neka nam naš zajednički cilj ostane u fokusu: navještanje Radosne vijesti o Isusu Kristu i priprema za Njegov skori dolazak. Ostanimo ujedinjeni, oslanjajući se na Božje vodstvo, Njegovu providnost i Njegove planove za našu crkvu i njezino djelovanje.
S Božjim blagoslovom,
Crkveni odbor
Hrvatska Adventistička crkva St Albans