25.04.2024

A Welcome and a Farewell

Andar Parlindungan (centre, purple suit) being welcomed by the staff of UEM Asia. Photo by: GKPPD

Petrus Sugito (centre left, wearing a hat) is given farewell by the leaders of UEM member churches in the Asia Region. Photo by: GKPPD

The women and youth delegates of their respective Advisory Groups with UEM coworkers before the start of the Regional Board. Photo by: GKPPD

At the beginning of this April, UEM member church GKPPD* hosted the meeting of UEM’s Asia Regional Board in Sidikalang on Sumatra, Indonesia. The Board is conducting leadership tasks in the Asia Region and connects church leaders from UEM member churches between General and Regional Assemblies.

The most important part of the meeting was the direct and personal exchange between the church leaders. They spoke about current working situations, social politics and church.

At the occasion of this Board Meeting, the Asian Church leaders gave a very warm welcome to Rev Dr Andar Parlindungan Pasaribu. He had just been inducted as UEM General Secretary in Wuppertal and is currently visiting church leaders from the UEM Communion to get in touch. He is the first UEM General Secretary to come from an Asian UEM member church, which is HKBP*.

At the same time, the Regional Board gave a farewell to Rev Petrus Sugito, who will now enter retirement after serving as Deputy Executive Secretary Asia and head of the UEM Asia Regional Office. He was the leader of the Regional Office in Pematang Siantar, Indonesia, for nine years since 2015. Before that he served as General Secretary of his home church, GKJTU*.

Before the start of the Board Meeting, the Women’s Advisory Group and the Youth Advisory Group met to discuss their current topics and present suggestions to the Regional Board as results of their work.

Rev Dr Dyah Ayu Krismawati, Executive Secretary of UEM Asia Region and board member of UEM, said about the event: “The meeting of the Asia Regional Board was really important. This is a place to gather information from the grassroot level, to discuss different issues, including sensitive ones, and to take decisions that are important for the development of the service in the Asia Region and in the entire UEM. Hopefully, the ever stronger collaboration of the UEM member churches in Asia can become a blessing for many parties within the UEM Family, as well as outside of UEM.”

Some of the decisions of the Regional Board were

• Suport for the GKE* church, as it will be affected strongly by the moving of Indonesia’s Capital City from Jakarta to Eastern Kalimantan
• Improving the collaboration among the churches on Sumatra Island in supporting farmers
• A Safer Space, in which the church leaders could talk to each other in a confidential way about topics of the LGBTIQ+-Community

Thank you to Rev Dyah and the entire team in Pematang Siantar, for preparing and facilitating the Asia Regional Board. And a special thank you to UEM member church GKPPD, who generously hosted the meeting in a spirit of friendship and togetherness.

*GKPPD = Gereja Kristen Protestan Pakpak Dairi (Christian Protestant Church of Pakpak Dairi)

*HKBP = Huria Kristen Batak Protestan (Christian-Protestant Church of the Batak)

*GKJTU = Gereja Kristen Jawa Tengah Utara (Christian Church of North Central Java)

*GKE = Gereja Kalimantan Evangelis (Evangelical Church of Kalimantan)