Theology with Meat

[Nov. 30th, 2016, Neu-Ulm, Germany] After a long, prayerful consideration, Beatrice and I have decided to end the (unpaid) Leave of Absence (LOA) from the Albanian Mission. We have opted not to return to denominational employment in Albania at this time, but rather remain in Germany for family reasons as well as professional development and personal fulfilment. While Albania will always be in our hearts, it is time to move on. Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers!  🇦🇱   🇩🇪

It was a privilege to preach this sermon in the largest Adventist church in Croatia! Pastor Dario (my interpreter) is doing a great job as local pastor of this important congregation.

[EN---AL] Dear friends, As we wish you all the best for the New Year, some of you might not be aware that after almost 9 intensive but blessed and rewarding years of service in Albania, Beatrice and I are no longer serving with the Albanian Mission and ADRA Albania since the birth of our daughter Albulena in late Sept 2015. FYI, we are officially on maternity leave (Beatrice) and leave of absence without pay (Julian). As we pray continually for our Church/ADRA family and  friends in Albania, we are living near Neu-Ulm in South Germany and delighted to worship with fellow-Adventist brothers and sisters in the area as well as voluntarily support them in exciting church-planting endeavours. We thank you in anticipation for your prayers. Have a blessed 2016! --- Të dashur miq, ndërsa ju urojmë të gjithëve gjithë të mirat për Vitin e Ri, disa prej jush mund të mos e dinë ende se pas pothuajse 9 vitesh intensivë por bekimsjellës dhe shpërblyes, shërbese në Shqipëri, Triksi dhe unë...

There is a sense of expectation in the air around San Antonio, Texas. For some, it is literally 'in the air' as over the past couple of days 2,566 delegates along with exhibitors, administrative support teams, media, and thousands of interested Seventh-day Adventists have crowded airport terminals, queued for taxis or taken road-trips across the United States to make it to the sixtieth General Conference Session of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Sitting on a delayed flight from Houston to San Antonio I found myself in conversation with Ennedy Muchula, Women's and Children's Ministries director for the Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division. She was nearing the end of almost two days of flying from Johannesburg to Frankfurt, London and Houston before reaching San Antonio. Visas had been complicating her life but, she told me, she was excited, particularly by the women's ordination debate, but also by the music, the worships, the women's meetings, and sim...

17 June 2015  |  Belgrade, Serbia [Sonja Kovačević/ ted NEWS] On Sunday, 7 June 2015, 160 guests from home and abroad attended the opening ceremony of the newly-founded DREAMEDIA studio in Nova Pazova, Serbia. Although dreaming can be difficult and dreams coming true even more so, this event is historical, an accomplished dream. The DREAMEDIA studio truly drove away every doubt in the promise of God: “Keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7 NLT) The South-East European Union’s (SEEUC) idea was to found a media centre that would cooperate with the printing house and be used within the EURODREAM concept; a house that would make a positive spiritual impact, not only on church members, but also non-Adventists whom God wants to reach through this ministry. Through the generosity of brother Kinder from Austria, who donated the building, this dream became a reality. The ‘word’ as the primary means of communication has always been present. ...

A special privilege to be interviewed by the Adventist world Church Director of Adventist Mission, Pr Gary Krause! I had the opportunity to share with him some of the unique history of Adventism in Albania, successes of the present and dreams of the future! 

28 November 2013 | Tirana, Albania [Beatrice C. Kastrati,  ted NEWS]  On Tuesday, November 5 th , ADRA Albania launched the regional project ‘Love Your Heart: Adriatic Cardiovascular Diseases Prevention Network’ with the financial support of IPA (Instruments for Pre-Accession to EU) – Adriatic Cross Border Cooperation Programme. The ‘Love Your Heart’ Centre aims to decrease and to prevent the incidence and prevalence of cardiovascular diseases in Albania.  To achieve this objective, the project aims to develop cardiovascular prevention programmes which are suitable to the local culture of Albania. The activity was hosted by ADRA Albania at the ADRA Health Centre, which was inaugurated in 1997 by the famous British actor, Sir Norman Wisdom, and was re-opened in 2010.  In the upcoming months, the ADRA Albania Health Centre will offer free trainings, seminars and courses for all citizens in Tirana about healthy lifestyle, stress relief, weight reduction, and...

11 October 2013 Tirana, Albania [Julian Kastrati,  ted NEWS]  There was great anticipation in Albania leading up to the weekend of 4-6 October 2013 as many people looked forward to the follow-up of the ‘Connect to Escape’ series, featuring Dr. Miroslav Pujic, Trans-European Division Ministry to Postmoderns Director and the leader of LIFEconnect (LC) Social Media Evangelism. Following its hugely successful  launch back in March 2013  the LC STREAM event had 130 people attend its reprise. Pastors and church members from Central Albania (Tirana, Durrës and Elbasan) invited their unchurched friends, who outnumbered church members in the packed auditorium at Hotel Tirana International. Under the theme ‘Connect to Escape’, the three evenings covered the following topics: “When the world is collapsing, what to do?’ (Faith), ‘How to escape corruption’ (Integrity) and ‘Being wrong isn’t that bad’ (Choices). “I was very impressed by the practicality and usefulness o...

05 March 2013 Tirana, Albania [Julian Kastrati,  ted NEWS]  The weekend of 1-3 March was indeed unique and had an immense impact on the Adventist Church in Albania. For three evenings, "Connect to Escape", a LIFEconnect Stream event featuring Dr Miroslav Pujic, Trans-European Division (TED) Internet Ministries Director, was launched very successfully in downtown Tirana. This type of evangelistic outreach was notably the first of its kind in Albania but also in the TED territory. The format proved very impressive, innovative and engaging, both for the hall audience as well as for online viewers. The three evenings of broadcasts were themed  "Connect to Escape"  ("Is There Any Hope for Us?"). They focused on  Trust  ("Is God Doing His Job?"),  Forgiveness  ("Should I Forgive Someone Who Hurt Me?") and  Hope ("End of the World. Really?") and have since been uploaded on  YouTube . The church in Tirana as well as the LIFEcon...

Church & ADRA Substantial Boost in Albania 12 December 2012 Tirana, Albania [Julian Kastrati,  ted NEWS]  On the Saturday of December 1st, Adventist believers and seekers from all churches and groups throughout Albania convened at the last Festival of Faith for the year, celebrating the wondrous works of the Holy Spirit. Pr. Leo N. España, Albanian Mission (ALM) President, in his year-end report exclaimed: "2012, what a blessed year for the Church in Albania!" He was referring to the highest number of baptisms to be recorded (21) in the last 15 years. "We thank God for His many blessings," said España. "It has been wonderful to see how the Holy Spirit has worked in the hearts of the people through the work of pastors and church members who have been dynamic in their participation of the proclamation of the gospel." The congregation showed solidarity for the illegally imprisoned Adventist pastor and church member in Togo. Pr Espana concluded...

08 October 2012 Fushe-Kruje, Albania [Lydia Weidner,  ted NEWS]  ADRA Albania has successfully launched the "Reflect! Act! Integrate" Training Centre in Fushe-Kruje, 25 km from Albania's capital, Tirana. Kindly sponsored by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) and Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Austria, the projects aims to combat illiteracy among the largely marginalised Roma populations. In the opening ceremony, Dr Beatrice C. Kastrati, ADRA Albania Country Director, welcomed distinguished officials including His Excellency, Mr Florian Raunig, Ambassador of Austria, Mr Erik Tintrup, Vice Ambassador of Germany, Ms Filloreta Kodra, Vice Minister of Labour, Mr Ardian Came, Vice Minister of Education, as well as Ms Wein and Mr Qosja from ADA. Dr Kastrati also welcomed other important stakeholders of the project such as UNDP, Amarodrom, Terre des Hommes, Save the Children. In a strong show of support for ADRA Albania, a delegation from the Adriatic ...

Adventist Church and ADRA Leaders Meet Albania's Prime Minister Dr Berisha meets with  leaders 02 October 2012 Tirana, Albania [Julian Kastrati,  ted NEWS] A delegation from the Adriatic Union Conference headed by its President, Pastor Branko Bistrovic, held a courtesy meeting with Albania's Prime Minister, Prof Dr Sali Berisha. In this visit, Pr. Bistrovic was accompanied by Pr. Sretko Kuburic, AUC Executive Secretary, Dr Dragutin Matak, representing the Religious Liberty Association, Pr. Leo N. España, Albanian Mission (ALM) President, Pr. Julian Kastrati, ALM Executive Secretary, Pr. Sergio N. Borges, ALM Associate Treasurer as well as Dr Beatrice C. Kastrati, ADRA Albania Country Director. In his opening address, Pr. Bistrovic transmitted to Prime Minister Berisha greetings on behalf of Dr Bertil Wiklander, Trans-European Division (TED) President, who visited Albania earlier this year to mark 20 years of officially organised Church presence in the former co...

(c) tedMEDIA 2012, Trans-European Division of Seventh-day Adventists -- TED EPC Plenaries 2012

16 June 2012 Tirana, Albania [Julian Kastrati, ted NEWS] The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Albania celebrated the 20th anniversary of its offical work in the country. Although Adventist presence dates back to the 1930s, the first church was organised in Tirana in the spring of 1992. This was a result of the evangelistic meetings held by Pastor A. David C. Currie from Australia, at that time Ministerial Association Secretary at the Trans-European Division (TED) based in the UK. Pastor Currie was commissioned by the TED to start the church in what previously had been the most atheistic and isolated country in Europe and probably the world. Photos: Branko Bistrovic The special jubilee Sabbath programme will be long remembered as a joyful event where church leaders, distinguished guests as well as lay members took an active part in worship, giving praises and thanks to the Lord for the extension of His kingdom in Albania.  To start off, a video collage depicti...