23 April 2023 | Zagred, Croatia [Marigold Klačmer and Ian Sweeny with tedNEWS)
On the bright sunny Sunday morning of 23 April in Zagreb, Croatia at Rakovčeva 26, (the headquarters of the Adriatic Union Confrence (AUC), Adriatic Union members gathered togther for their sixth Union Session. Called together to hear an overview of the activities of the Adventist Church in Albania, Croatia and Slovenia, the business session opened with 86 of the 88 delegates in attendance. The purpose was to hear reports from the outgoing administration and elect committees to propose names for the new administration, consider strategic emphases and review the operation of the Adriatic Union as it goes into the future.
With registration completed, the session begin punctually at 09:00 with a devotion lead by Daniel Duda, TED president, on the theme of The Open Door (Revelation 3:7-8). “The church belongs to Christ, who gives an open door for all churches, not only those in Philadelphia,” highlighted Duda. Helping those present to understand their roles as servant leaders and visionaries, Duda continued “It takes divine anointing to see a door of opportunity that is intentionally, thoughtfully, purposefully, deliberately opened by God himself in front of us. We need to see that door of opportunity in the Adriatic Union, Croatia, Slovenia and Albania.”
The agenda for the session was voted with a somewhat optimistic finishing time of 16:00. Nevertheless, with the organizing committee formed, the 17 delegates met with Daniel Duda (TED president) and Ian Sweeny (TED Field Secretary – who chaired the meeting) to engage the appointed work of recommending a nominating committee, which was successfully completed and voted for the nominating committee to begin its work. The work of the Nominating Committe was to recommend names to serve as officers of the AUC, along with the Executive Committee and the president of the Albania Mission.
The nominating committee report was presented to the delegates by Eleonora Beacovich (secretary of the nominating committee and a pastor serving in Slovenia). The nominations for the new officers of the Adriatic Union were as follows:
President: Pastor Zlatko Musija
Executive Secretary: Svetlana Vebla (re-elected)
Treasurer: Marinko Markek (re-elected)
Also re-elected was pastor Delmar Reis, to continue serving as the Albanian Mission President.
Tributes were paid to outgoing president, Pastor Drago Mojzeš, with thanks for his service over the past seven years serving as president.
“I very much appreciated the positive and constructive spirit in which the delegates conducted the business of their sixth Union session,” said Duda. “Our thankfulness goes to God, the delegates and the people who led the church in the last five years. Besides the thankfulness expressed to pastor Drago Mojzeš by the session, the TED especially appreciates his willingness to step up to a demanding leadership position during challenging times, and fulfilling it with zeal, a pastoral heart and sensitivity. His sacrificial spirit and gentle touch is much valued. We wish him God’s richest blessings as he wraps up his ministry before his retirement in couple of years.” In turn, Mojzeš made an emotional speech to the delegation, thanking them for their support and petitioning them to support the new president and leadership team.
Following that, Musija expressed his gratitude to the delegation for the trust they placed in him to serve once again. “Our prayers for wisdom and blessings go also with Zlatko Musija as he again picks up the mantel of leadership in the Adriatic Union,” Duda remarked. “We ask for the Lord to bless also Svjetlana Veble and Marinko Markek as they continue in their positions, as well as the new Executive Committee. We want to be the church of the open door.”
You can read more about the work of the Adriatic Union Conference, here.
[Photos: Elsie Tjeransen – AME, CC BY 4.0, and tedNEWS]
