11.05.2005
A Challenge to "Stay Together In Spite of All Differences"
North American Regional Consultation Reflects on Issues Facing LWF Churches WorldwideCHICAGO, United States of America/GENEVA, 11 May 2005 (LWI/ELCA News) - “Deepening the Bonds of Communion,” was the title of a Lutheran World Federation (LWF) consultation for its member churches in North America, March 31-April 2 in Chicago, hosted by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Using the churches’ current discussion on matters of human sexuality, 35 participants discussed how Lutheran churches worldwide are interrelated around issues of God’s mission and justice. The consultation’s objectives were “to engage church leaders in dialogue that encourages interdependence and sharing of gifts between and among the LWF member churches in North America, while understanding themselves to be accountable within the worldwide Lutheran communion.” The forum also sought “to provide an opportunity for conversation around the topic of human sexuality and gain understanding of how issues can be addressed in the global communion.”
In his keynote address titled “Committed to Walking Together: The LWF as a Communion of Churches,” LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko spoke of the many “streams”—theological, liturgical and cultural—that come together in the LWF, endowed with spiritual and material resources, to embody God’s grace, gospel and mission in the world. “There are moments in our life when we must stand up with and for one another,” he said.
Out of the 138 LWF member churches worldwide, four are in North America. They include (in Canada) the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church Abroad and Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC); (in the USA) the ELCA and Lithuanian Evangelical Lutheran Church in Diaspora.
Bishop Hans G. Dumpys, head of the Lithuanian church, described the flight of Baltic Lutherans to North America after World War II to avoid communist rule in their homelands. The Lithuanian church is “an ethnic enclave” in the United States, he said. Worship is distinctively Lithuanian in language and tradition, but pride in its culture also isolates it from other Lutherans in North America, he noted.
ELCA Presiding Bishop, Mark S. Hanson said in the United States “walking together” implied agreement in pursuit of power, but a communion of churches walks together by the grace of God and the Holy Spirit has the power. “Accompaniment” has redefined the way the ELCA relates to Lutherans in other churches and cultures—listening, giving and receiving, he said. Hanson is president of the LWF.
ELCIC National Bishop, Raymond L. Schultz said his church was an immigrant church, struggling to know itself as a church in mission for others not just for its own. While churches talk about communion and being interrelated, they are being drawn into the North American culture of individualism, he said.
Archbishop Udo Petersoo, head of the Estonian church was not able to attend the consultation.
The Rev. James M. Childs Jr., director of the ELCA Studies on Sexuality, and Bishop Margaret G. Payne (New England Synod), chairperson of the 14-member Studies on Sexuality task force, spoke about the work of the task force, including its recommendations on blessing same-sex relationships, and allowing people in such relationships to serve the church as ministers.
Schultz made a similar presentation about decisions the ELCIC is to make in July about blessing same-sex relationships. A panel of five international guests responded to the reports and discussed issues facing their churches.
The Rev. Alan Eldrid, president of Argentina’s United Evangelical Lutheran Church (IELU) said it seemed that Argentineans who were more exposed to media were more accepting of homosexuality. The churches were more concerned with human rights, he said. “Free trade is unjust trade for us,” he said. “We will be receiving companies that will be using our people.” American corporations have a history of pushing Argentineans off their farms to exploit the land, Eldrid noted.
Japanese culture was not inhibited about discussing matters of sexuality until Christian missionaries arrived, Dr Naozumi Eto, president of the Japan Lutheran Theological Seminary said. The church was working to help society accept minorities, including sexual minorities, he said. He pointed out that the Japanese society was aging rapidly, and the Lutheran church there was challenged to reach out to young people, not only to preserve the church but also because the younger generations were suffering with isolation, withdrawal, violence and general lack of spiritual guidance.
Namibian theologian Prof. Paul J. Isaak, head of the Department of Religion and Theology, University of Namibia, said Luther abandoned celibacy but did not address homosexuality. The church in Namibia was developing a “theology of coffins” from its history of death—slavery, colonialism, wars and AIDS, he said. The question for Isaak’s church and society was: “What should we do to preserve life and prevent unnecessary death?”
Margaret Obaga, women’s coordinator, Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church (KELC) said homosexuality was a relatively new topic for Kenyans, centered mainly on the condemnations spoken by the Anglican church there. Talking about sex in public was still considered offensive in Kenyan society, she said. Obaga described KELC’s work in helping women learn various skills to earn a living, speaking out against domestic violence and caring for AIDS orphans.
“Good people don’t talk about sex” in India, remarked Dr Sheila Shyamprasad, HIV/AIDS program coordinator, United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India (UELCI). She said it was difficult to convince the average Indian that sex was not “dirty,” and difficult for Indian churches to participate in the conversations about sexuality that seem to be consuming other churches in the North. The UELCI, a body of 11 Lutheran churches, was active in an HIV/AIDS education program to address the crisis in India. The church was teaching the ABCs of prevention—Abstain, Be faithful and use a Condom—while caring for AIDS widows and orphans.
The Rev. Bonnie L. Jensen, former executive director, ELCA Division for Global Mission, summarized what she heard from the international guests. “They asked us to be more sensitive to those in more conservative settings,” she said. Matters of economic greed and militarism may be more important to churches in other parts of the world than addressing issues of sexuality, Jensen said, but they are committed to walking together in addressing all issues.
“There are other priorities that our churches are facing than the sexuality debate, and discussion that is occurring in the ELCA and in the ELCIC is not necessarily the driving priority or the main challenge in the other churches,” Rev. Dr Karen L. Bloomquist, director of the LWF Department for Theology and Studies, said after the consultation. “Yet I think there was a remarkable spirit of openness from those other voices to say: ‘We understand that struggle’ and a sense of willingness to accompany the churches in that struggle,” she said.
“As a communion of churches coming from various parts of the world, we are aware that walking together should not be taken for granted and therefore we have made a commitment that in spite of all the difficulties that we can anticipate and some which we cannot anticipate, we are prepared to stay together. This is very important,” Noko said after the consultation.
Kathy J. Magnus, LWF Regional Officer for North America, who coordinated the consultation commented on its planning process and outcome: “The conversation was richer and deeper than any of us had even hoped.” Magnus said she was impressed by “the ability of our international participants to challenge us, to be honest about their situations, and not only tell us what we wanted to hear but to challenge us.”
“We made some major steps toward understanding what we are called to be here in North America and how we will go about that,” she added. (1,279 words)
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