EUROPE/GERMANY - On the way to 3rd European Ecumenical Assembly, third stop at the town where Luther started the Reformation

Tuesday, 13 February 2007

Wittenberg (Agenzia Fides) - One hundred and fifty delegates from churches, Bishops’ conferences, ecumenical organisations, communities and movements will meet from 15-18 February 2007 in the city of Wittenberg (Germany, also referred to as the ‘city of Luther’) for the third stage of the Third European Ecumenical Assembly (EEA3). The EEA3 is being organised by the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE) and the Conference of European Churches (CEC) on the theme The light of Christ shines upon all - Hope for renewal and unity in Europe. Along new lines, the EEA3 follows the tradition of the European Ecumenical Assemblies held at Basel (1989) and Graz (1997). It differs from the previous Assemblies in that it is not a one-off event but a process in four stages, a sort of “symbolic pilgrimage” through the different confessional traditions of our continent.
The first stage was held from 24-27 January 2006 in Rome, the centre of Catholicism, with the participation of 150 delegates from churches, Bishops’ conferences, ecumenical organisations, communities and movements. The second stage, still ongoing, consists of national and/or regional meeting on the Assembly theme. For the third stage in Wittenberg, where the Reformation started, 150 delegates will again gather from all European countries. Finally, the fourth stage will be the Assembly itself in Sibiu, Romania, from 4-9 September 2007, with the participation of 2500 delegates, meeting for the first time in an Orthodox country.
The Wittenberg encounter, on the theme Rediscovering the gift of light that the Gospel of Christ represents for Europe today, will open with an ecumenical service in the Protestant “Stadtkirche”. The preacher will be Bishop Axel Noack from the Protestant Church in Saxony (Kirchenprovinz Sachsen). An opening session will follow in the Leucorea University, with speeches by H.E. Cardinal Péter Erdö, President of CCEE; the Rev. Jean-Arnold de Clermont, President of CEC; the Lutheran Bishop Wolfgang Huber, President of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD); the Methodist Bishop Walter Klaiber, President of the German council of churches (ACK); and the Roman Catholic Bishop Gerhard Feige, delegate of the German Bishops’ Conference.
A series of thematic sessions will define the work of the encounter: Secularisation as a challenge for Europe Ecumenical experiences and concerns of today; What vision for Europe today? Preparations for Sibiu Reconciliation in Europe, European launch of the Decade to Overcome Violence
A special event will be the meeting with the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Horst Köhler. The programme also includes prayer services, meeting with the local Christian congregations and an historic tour of Reformation sites The third stage of the EEA3 will conclude on Sunday 18 January with an ecumenical sending prayer in the Schlosskirche. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 13/2/2007, righe 29, parole 384)


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