By Nicholas Jesson This homily was presented on Sunday, October 31, 1999 during Mass at St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto. “How are we saved?” This was the central question of the Protestant Reformation. Or, as Martin Luther phrased it: “How are we, as sinners, found righteous in the sight of a just God?” This … Read more »… À suivre »
Future of Ecumenical Assemblies Is of Crucial Importance for Conciliar Ecumenism in the 21st century [CHAVANNES-DE-BOGIS, Switzerland | LWI] The Officers of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) and the Executive Committee of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), holding their meetings in the course of overlapping days, met for the first time in joint … Read more »… À suivre »
After eight years of preparation, the Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), meeting in Lund, Sweden, from 20 to 27 March, adopted a historic statement on the episcopal ministry.
• LWF Council Approves Preparation of a Lutheran Statement to Ask Forgiveness for Anabaptists Persecutions
• Council Actions Affirm Ecumenical Dialogues and Conversations
[Arusha, Tanzania • LWI] The Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) voted to provide for preparation of a statement that will, on behalf of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), ask for forgiveness for Lutheran persecutions of “Anabaptists,” in which many died as this violence was justified by appeal to the Lutheran Reformers’ theological statements.
Receiving recommendations from its Program Committee for Ecumenical Affairs, the Council also acknowledged with appreciation the communiqués from the Lutheran-Mennonite International Study Commission in 2007 and 2008, and commended the study commission for its thorough and important work. It encouraged the Commission to publish the final report of its work in 2009.
The committee, chaired by Prof. Joachim Track, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria, Germany, had discussed the outcome of the Lutheran-Mennonite study commission, and focusing on the 11th Assembly in July 2010, elaborated possible Assembly actions with regard to weighing the language of regret and asking for forgiveness.
The Council endorsed the committee’s recommendation that Rev. Dr Theodor Dieter, Institute for Ecumenical Research, Strasbourg, France; Rev. Dr Donald McCoid, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; and Archbishop Nemuel A. Babba, Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria, prepare a draft of such a statement.
Lutheran – Roman Catholic Commission on Unity
Based on recommendations from the ecumenical affairs program committee on a fifth phase of the discussions on the Lutheran – Roman Catholic Commission on Unity, the LWF Council received with appreciation the report from the 2007 preparatory meeting, and noted it was looking forward “with hope” to the beginning of a fifth round of the Lutheran – Roman Catholic Commission on Unity.
The LWF governing body also approved the preparation of a “Text on the Anniversary of the Reformation in 2017”, and approved the theme of the Commission’s work, “Baptism and Growth in Communion.”
The Council approved the appointment of Lutheran members to the dialogue, taking into account gender and regional balances. They include co-chair Bishop Dr Eero Huovinen (Finland); Rev. Dr Wanda Deifelt (Brazil); Prof. Turid Karlsen Seim (Norway); Dr Fidon Mwombeki (Tanzania); Prof. Friedericke Nüssel; (Germany); Prof. Michael Root, USA; Prof. Hiroshi Augustin Suzuki, Japan; Rev. Dr Theodor Dieter as a consultant; and an additional woman from Eastern Europe.
Lutheran – Orthodox Relations
The Council received the Common Statement from the 2008 plenary of the Lutheran – Orthodox Joint Commission. It requested the General Secretary and the Office for Ecumenical Affairs to identify one or two additional members for the Commission in order to allow academic specialties necessary for its examination of ministry to be present on the Commission, and to strengthen its gender and regional balance.
The Council also received with appreciation the report from the 2008 conversations with the Oriental Orthodox churches.
Lutheran – Anglican
The Council received the 2007 and 2008 communiqués from the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission.
It also received the communiqué from the 2007 All Africa Anglican-Lutheran Commission (AAALC), and affirmed it would support efforts toward the goal of a full communion relationship among LWF members and those belonging to the Anglican Communion in Africa.
Lutheran – Reformed
The LWF Council received the communiqué from the Lutheran-Reformed Joint Commission 2007 with appreciation. It affirmed the continuation of the common efforts of cooperation between the LWF and its Reformed partners during the time of transition to the World Communion of Reformed Churches, which will unite the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the Reformed Ecumenical Council.
International Lutheran Council
The Council received for information the communiqué from the 2008 contact meeting between the LWF and International Lutheran Council (ILC). It expressed appreciation for the continued consultative process between both global Lutheran bodies.
It affirmed the importance of the communication between the two Lutheran families on issues that are important to both of them and to their respective member churches.
Global Christian Forum
The Council received with appreciation the Final Message from the November 2007 gathering of the Global Christian Forum (GCF). It also received the report of the first subsequent meeting of the GCF committee, and expressed hope for the new expression of Christian unity, and encouragement for its ongoing structure.
Ecumenical Assemblies
The possibility for the Lutheran communion to find room to gather in the context of the “expanded space” foreseen for future assemblies of the World Council of Churches (WCC) was discussed by the program committee. The Council asked the general secretary to establish an ad-hoc group of about four people to assist in developing and articulating the LWF‘s position in preparation for meetings of the WCC Discernment Committee and other discussions on the relation of LWF Assemblies to other ecumenical gatherings. (781 words)
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Around 170 participants attended this year’s Council meeting including church leaders, officials from LWF partner organizations, invited guests, stewards, interpreters and translators, LWF staff and co-opted staff and accredited media.
The Council is the LWF‘s governing body meeting between Assemblies held every six years. The current Council was appointed at the July 2003 Tenth Assembly in Winnipeg, Canada. It comprises the President, Treasurer and 48 persons elected by the Assembly. Other members include advisors, lay and ordained persons, representing the different LWF regions. … Read more »… À suivre »
Lutherans adopt atatement asking forgiveness from Mennonites
LWF Council Unanimously Adopts Statement Asking Forgiveness from Mennonites
Mennonites Welcome Move Toward Reconciliation, says MWC General Secretary Miller
The Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has approved a statement that prepares for a significant action of reconciliation with churches of the Anabaptist family.
With this endorsement, the statement “Action on the Legacy of Lutheran Persecution of ‘Anabaptists'” is recommended for adoption at the July 2010 LWF Eleventh Assembly in Stuttgart, Germany. The statement expresses “deep regret and sorrow” for the legacy of violent persecution of Anabaptists, and especially for the ways in which Lutheran reformers supported this persecution with theological arguments. It asks forgiveness, “from God and from our Mennonite sisters and brothers,” for these past wrongs and also for the ways in which later Lutherans have forgotten or ignored this persecution and have continued to describe Anabaptists in misleading and damaging ways.
The statement then makes commitments with respect to how the violent history of persecution by Lutherans will be remembered, and how the Lutheran confessional legacy will be interpreted from now on in light of this action.
by Byron Rempel-Burkholder, Mennonite World Conference news service [Strasbourg, France • MWC] When Lutherans from around the world gather in July, they will seek a historic reconciliation with Mennonites and other Christians of the Anabaptist tradition. On July 22, the third day of the eleventh assembly of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) to be held … Read more »… À suivre »
STUTTGART, Germany (ELCA) — The Lutheran commitment to ecumenism will not end until members can share the Eucharist with other churches, said the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, according to a news release from Lutheran World Information (LWI). The … Read more »… À suivre »
Bishop Munib A. Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) has been elected President of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) by the Eleventh Assembly in Suttgart, a gathering of 418 delegates and others from the LWF member churches. … Read more »… À suivre »
A recent meeting of the executive committee of the Mennonite World Conference (MWC) was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from July 28 to August 4, 2010. Among other topics on the agenda for the meeting were proposals for two ecumenical dialogues, one with Seventh Day Adventists, and the other with Lutherans and Catholics. … Read more »… À suivre »
The joint commemoration of the Reformation by Catholics and Lutherans could begin with an admission of guilt by both sides, the president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Cardinal Kurt Koch, said in an interview last week. The Vatican and the Lutheran World Federation are planning a joint declaration on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017. “Without joint recollection, joint purification and without an admission of guilt on both sides, an honest commemoration will not be possible,” Cardinal Koch told the Austrian Catholic Press Agency. … Read more »… À suivre »
An international trilateral dialogue between Mennonites, Catholics and Lutherans began in Rome, 9-13 December 2012.
According to a joint release issued after the Rome meeting, the overall theme of the five-year process is “Baptism and Incorporation into the Body of Christ, the Church.” The release further stated: “This innovative trilateral forum will allow the dialogue to take up questions surrounding the theology and practice of baptism in the respective communions.”
The three international communions came to the inaugural meeting with a history of bilateral dialogues with each other. They mutually agreed to hold three-way talks on baptism, a topic that had surfaced in earlier exchanges. … Read more »… À suivre »
À la suite des remarques formulées par l’archevêque Gerhard Ludwig Müller, préfet de la Congrégation pour la doctrine de la foi, à l’occasion du lancement d’un livre le 11 janvier 2013 à Rome, indiquant que le Vatican pourrait envisager de créer un ordinariat pour les luthériens au sein de l’Église catholique romaine, Lutheran World Information … Read more »… À suivre »
Following remarks by Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, at an 11 January 2013 book launch in Rome that the Vatican might consider an ordinariate for Lutherans within the Roman Catholic Church, Lutheran World Information asked LWF General Secretary Rev. Martin Junge to reflect on the implications … Read more »… À suivre »
For the first time, Lutherans and Roman Catholics at the global level have worked together to tell the story of the Reformation as part of their commitment to deepen Christian unity.
LWF Assistant General Secretary for Ecumenical Relations Rev. Dr Kaisamari Hintikka said the publication From Conflict to Communion: Lutheran–Roman Catholic Common Commemoration of the Reformation in 2017 contributes to strengthening the commitment to work for the visible unity of the Church. It will be presented to the LWF Council at its meeting this June. … Read more »… À suivre »
Events in Christianity that led to the Reformation nearly half a millennium ago split the Roman Catholic Church, ushering the advent of Protestant churches.
When the 500th anniversary is commemorated in 2017, Lutherans and Catholics hope to be drawn closer in the quest for church unity.
Catholic and Lutherans announced a special joint publication Monday entitled From Conflict to Communion for this that helps bury many past differences and brings Catholics and Lutherans closer together.
“The awareness is dawning on Lutherans and Catholics that the struggle of the 16th century is over,” the report said. “The reasons for mutually condemning each other’s faith have fallen by the wayside.” … Read more »… À suivre »
The Secretary General today announced the names of Anglican members who have agreed to serve on one of two international co-ordinating bodies.
Both the Anglican-Lutheran International Co-ordinating Committee (ALICC) and the Anglican-Old Catholic International Co-ordinating Council (AOCICC) reported to the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Auckland, New Zealand in November 2012 and the ACC renewed their mandates. … Read more »… À suivre »
The Lutheran World Federation has lauded the full communion of Canada’s Lutheran and Anglican churches, marked in an unprecedented Joint Assembly as a key development that can help global church unity.
The churches entered into a relationship of full communion, called the Waterloo Declaration in 2001, which means they work closely together in all respects, exchanging clergy and establishing joint congregations, while remaining separate church bodies.
“You have refused to say ‘I have no need of you’ [1 Corinthians 12:21] but rather have said that with the other you can better live out your calling as churches here in Canada and the world,” said Tveit, a Norwegian theologian.
“You do this in the context of belonging to a much bigger Christian family, therefore the efforts you make have the potential to transform beyond yourselves.” … Read more »… À suivre »
The Anglican-Lutheran International Co-ordinating Committee (ALICC) held its first meeting in the Cultural Centre Sofia, Helsinki, Finland from 19 to 25 September 2013, under the leadership of the Most Reverend Maurício Andrade, Primate of Brazil, and of Bishop Michael Pryse of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. The meeting was hosted by the Lutheran World Federation with the generous assistance of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland.
The Co-ordinating Committee studied the mandate given by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Anglican Communion. The focus of this work is to monitor and encourage existing Anglican-Lutheran relations, as well as to advance co-operation between the two Churches in areas where there are not yet any formal agreements. To enable the Committee to function as an encourager as well as a catalyst, the Committee has begun a process of mapping agreements, initiatives and projects in different regions. This mapping project is an ongoing task for the Committee and we urge Churches, in both communions, to provide information to further this task. … Read more »… À suivre »
During an audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican earlier today, leaders from The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) expressed gratitude for the partnership with the Roman Catholic Church that makes it possible for churches to strengthen their commitment to the poor and vulnerable.
“As people who have been encountered by Christ, we are called to accompany the poor and vulnerable. The message of reconciliation entrusted to us turns into the hope for our fragmented world and its yearning for peace with justice,” LWF President Bishop Dr Munib A. Younan said in LWF’s greeting to the pope.
Younan expressed gratitude for the ecumenical milestones of the partnership with Catholics, including the recent publication of the report “From Conflict to Communion: Lutheran-Catholic Common Commemoration in 2017.”
By jointly approaching a shared history which includes elements of pain “the promise of healing appears on the horizon,” Younan said of the publication that outlines the mutual responsibility by Lutherans and Catholics for a common approach to the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017.
The June 2013 report by the Lutheran–Roman Catholic Commission on Unity marked the first time that both partners have worked together at the global level to tell the history of the Reformation as part of their commitment to deepen Christian unity. Baptism is the focus of ongoing dialogue by the commission, which will mark its 50th anniversary in 2017. … Read more »… À suivre »
Read the 2015 joint statement of the Evangelical-Roman Catholic dialogue in Saskatoon, Called to Common Witness
On Baptism
Permanent link: https://ecumenism.net/?p=6258
An international trilateral dialogue between Mennonites, Catholics and Lutherans began in Rome, 9-13 December 2012.
Events in Christianity that led to the Reformation nearly half a millennium ago split the Roman Catholic Church, ushering the advent of Protestant churches.
The Anglican-Lutheran International Co-ordinating Committee (ALICC) held its first meeting in the Cultural Centre Sofia, Helsinki, Finland from 19 to 25 September 2013, under the leadership of the Most Reverend Maurício Andrade, Primate of Brazil, and of Bishop Michael Pryse of the 
During an audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican earlier today, leaders from