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On 21 July, Metropolitan Prof. Dr Gennadios of Sassima from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, co-president of the Lutheran-Orthodox Joint Commission on the Theological Dialogue, brought ecumenical greetings from Bartholomew, archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome and ecumenical patriarch, to the audience that gathered for the LWF Eleventh Assembly, 20-27 July 2010. © LWF/Erick Coll

21.07.2010

Christians to Create “Prophetic Responses to Humanity”

Ecumenical Patriarch Calls Lutherans to Search for a New Vision for the Future

STUTTGART, Germany, 21 July 2010 – The petition of the Lord's Prayer chosen as the theme of the LWF Assembly, “Give Us Today Our Daily Bread, “is exceptionally timely today in view of the tragic situation affecting such a large part of humanity,” said Bartholomew I, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch, in a message delivered on his behalf to the gathering today.

“This is particularly true for so many living in the southern hemisphere of our globe, who face the phenomenon of hunger on a daily basis,” Bartholomew stated, contrasting their situation with the “comfort and prosperity” enjoyed by many in Western societies. For the Ecumenical Patriarch “the respect for human dignity has been lost in people's minds and hearts.”

“This situation is totally inhumane and unacceptable, and constitutes a spiritual and social challenge for all Christians to create prophetic responses to humanity and to the entire world”, said the Ecumenical Patriarch. His message to the LWF Eleventh Assembly was read at the first plenary session by Metropolitan Prof. Dr Gennadios of Sassima, who is co-president of the Lutheran-Orthodox Joint Commission.

The LWF Eleventh Assembly is taking place 20-27 July in Stuttgart, Germany. Over 1,000 participants from all over the world, including 418 delegates from 140 churches in 79 countries are attending the event.

According to Bartholomew, the LWF Assembly marks “the beginning of a new era in the history of [Lutheran] churches and in the ecumenical movement in general.” Lutheran delegates “are called to search for a new vision for the future, for new ways of dialogue with other Christian churches, among them with the Orthodox Church, and for ways of being in cooperation and interaction with the entire ecumenical movement”, said Bartholomew.

Bartholomew offered an assessment of the Orthodox-Lutheran dialogue, which has been going on for 29 years: “We acknowledge with sincerity that the path ahead of us will be long and difficult toward the hoped for and expected unity.”

However, the Ecumenical Patriarch also emphasized the Orthodox understanding that “such a dialogue exists only to reach the goal of communion and that there should be no deviations from this task until the goal is reached.”

(355 words)
 

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