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The Lutheran World Federation
Lutheran World Information |
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| 10.09.2002 |
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| Council Press Release No. 6 - German President Johannes Rau Greets LWF Council Meeting |
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Martin Luther Would be Surprised to See the Countries with Churches Bearing His Name
WITTENBERG, Germany/GENEVA, 10 September 2002 (LWI) – The President of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), Bishop emeritus Dr. Christian Krause today described Johannes Rau, President of the Federal Republic of Germany, as “a strong advocate for worldwide ecumenism as well as for a distinct common witness.”
Welcoming Rau to greet LWF Council members meeting September 10-17 in the Luther city of Wittenberg, Krause said the ecumenical and the global belong together for the 133 LWF member churches in their continued struggle for a shared and at the same time global Lutheran confession. Churches could engage themselves in the globalization process by taking global action for justice all over the world.
In his address to the Council, Rau said he was happy that the LWF governing body could once again take place in Germany. [Reformer] Martin Luther would be astonished if he looked around and saw the countries in which his name bears meaning.
Rau recalled the beginnings of the LWF through its Lutheran World Service assistance to refugees who included among others, German refugees in the United States of America, Canada and Australia. As an international humanitarian organization, the LWF has over 5,000 staff persons in the field dealing with refugees and responding to emergencies. The state president particularly thanked the LWF for standing in solidarity with Christians in central eastern Europe during the Cold War period and making them feel that they were part of a global community.
Rau also spoke of the relevance of the LWF Tenth Assembly theme, “For the Healing of the World,” particularly in the context of the recent flooding around Wittenberg. “The recent flood waters showed us what can happen when the world is not healed,” Rau said. The flooding caused serious suffering. He also recognized that LWF Council members were coming from other countries that frequently experience flooding, as happened in Europe when the river Elbe burst it banks.
In a vote of thanks to the state President, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr. Ishmael Noko noted that Wittenberg’s global links go back to Luther’s own time. He recalled that Wittenberg already had students from Africa at the time of the Reformation. Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon were not well traveled, Noko said, but history records that they received delegations from different parts of the world. As Lutherans, we understand ourselves as a reform within the church that should never be transformed into a museum where sculptures and quotations replace the living Word of God.
Prof. Dr. Jan-Hendrik Olbertz, Saxony-Anhalt culture minister, also welcomed the LWF Council to Lutherstadt Wittenberg, a town that “represents a culture and spirit which extends far beyond the borders of Germany.” He said the theme of the LWF Assembly next year in Canada, “For the Healing of World,” held special meaning for him.
Considering that the venue of the Council meeting was moved from Jerusalem, Olbertz said the conflict in the Middle East is proof of how much healing the world needs. Meeting one year after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States is another sign of that need, he said.
Staff of the LWF Office for Communication Services at the Council meeting can be contacted at German mobile telephone No., +49-(0) 170-8345 177.
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