LWF General Secretary Anne Burghardt calls us to live out the gospel, working for unity and hope in the coming year
(LWI) - In her New Year message looking forward to 2023, The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) General Secretary, Rev. Anne Burghardt urges Christians “not to be indifferent but to speak and act wherever we see how human brokenness is sowing seeds of hatred, disunity, oppression and disrespect for God’s creation.”
The LWF leader notes that the global communion of churches is preparing to hold its Assembly in Krakow, Poland, in September on the theme of ‘One Body, One Spirit, One Hope’. It is a theme inspired by Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, most probably quoting from a baptismal liturgy celebrated by early Christian communities, she says.
When we put Christ at the center, we will find unity despite all our differences
– LWF General Secretary, Rev. Anne Burghardt
Rev. Burghardt stresses that “our baptismal calling is a calling for unity with Christ, with our sisters and brothers in Christ […] with humanity and with God’s creation.” When we put Christ at the center, she says, “we will find unity despite all our differences. When we, on the contrary, focus on the differences between us, there will be separation.”
She emphasizes that “our calling is not only to proclaim but also to live out the gospel, to let God’s Kingdom break into our reality, to be a ‘yeast’ that brings hope to the world.”
Quoting from the German theologian and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who died in a Nazi prison, the LWF General Secretary urges all people of faith to have “the same steadfastness and hope” as Bonhoeffer. “May we have the same eyesight” as God, who sees the world “with eyes full of mercy and grace,” she concludes.
Read the full message below