Dietrich Brauer

Dietrich Brauer was born in Vladivostok in 1983. When he was only a year and a half his family moved to Moscow. During his school years Dietrich managed also to finish a musical school. He likes to draw and is very interested in the history of his people – German-Russians, in their traditions, culture and religion. He likes to travel; during his school years he visited Germany and Switzerland several times. There he attended the Roman Catholic, Reformed and Lutheran worship services, was able to speak with pastors and priests, and simply to meet people who believe in God. These visits as well as the conversations with his relatives and friends of German-Russian origin had great influence on him, and unarticulated religious feeling gave birth to faith. Then came the decision to be baptised in the Moscow Lutheran congregation of Sts. Peter and Paul Church. At the same time Dietrich started to sing in the church choir, and then to work as a lector and help the pastor. But he was not satisfied with the role of congregation member and decided to continue his Christian growth at the Seminary.

Dmitri Chizh

Dmitri Chizh was born in 1972. He is a representative of the German Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Ukraine. Dmitri came to Novosaratovka from St. Catherine’s church in the city of Dnepropetrovsk. He came to the Church, as he says “through the Holy Spirit, who acted upon me through my mother.” For 6 years he fulfilled various function in his home congregation in Dnepropetrovsk. He is one of the few predikants in the Ukraine to whom the bishop gave the right to distribute, that is, to help the pastor pass out Holy Communion. He really likes serving God in the Church.

Tatiana Petrenko

Tatiana Petrenko was born in Kant, (now a part of the Kyrgyz Republic), in 1981. There she spent her childhood and school years. During that time she also attended various circles and a dancing school. In the mid-90’s Tatiana went to Germany and for some time studied in Europe. After graduating she studied religions at a local liberal arts college. Step-by-step her interest in religion brought her to the Lutheran faith. Since 1999 Tatiana worked with children and youth in her congregation. In her free time she gathers information about various heresies and non-traditional cults.

Natalie Saripova

After a few years working as the administrative assistant and translator for the pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran congregation of St. Anna and St. Peter, in 2002 I was happy to be given the chance to study in a Lutheran Seminary of the ELCA in Berkeley, CA. Three semesters and three sessions in this educational institution brought about big changes in my life and lit up new goals and dreams, dreams about serving people and about life in the spirit of the Gospel. The next step on my path toward pastoral service was studies at the ELCROS Seminary in Novosaratovka, where I began studies in September 2003 as a 3rd year student. I am thankful to God for all those who have made it possible for me to be closer to the fulfillment of my dreams.