wfn.org | News in brief

[FRANK_IMHOFF.parti@ecunet.org (FRANK IMHOFF)]

 ... Gunnar St†lsett consecrated Bishop of Oslo. Gunnar St†lsett, a former
LWF general secretary, 1985-1995, was consecrated Bishop of the Diocese of
Oslo, May 24, in Norway in the presence of King Harald V, Queen Sonja, and
members of the Norwegian government. Lutheran bishops from Norway, Denmark,
Finland, El Salvador and South Africa, as well as a bishop from the Church
of England   which is in communion with the Nordic Lutheran churches   took
part in the consecration in Oslo's Lutheran cathedral. St†lsett's successor
at the LWF, General Secretary Ishmael Noko attended the event, together
with leading church officials from throughout northern Europe, and beyond,
including representatives of Orthodox, Methodist and Reformed churches in
India, Namibia, South Africa, Switzerland and Norway. Bishop St†lsett, 63,
who will take office Aug. 1, was consecrated by his predecessor Andreas
Aarflot who is retiring aged 69, after more than 20 years in the post.

 ... Wesley Kigasung installed as bishop in Papua New Guinea. Theologian
Wesley Kigasung was officially installed as bishop of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (ELC-PNG) May 3, in Lae, Papua New
Guinea. The Rev. Kiage Motoro was installed as his deputy. The presiding
ministers at the installation were German Bishop Hermann von Loewenich,
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria, and Bishop Anonga Pingina from the
ELC-PNG Papua district. Representatives from partner churches in the United
States, Australia and Germany, other churches in Papua New Guinea, and
local dignitaries also were present. Kigasung succeeds Getake S. Gam (see
LWI 3/98 for Feb. 5, p. 9).

 ... Tanzanian Lutherans will hold 15th General Assembly in July. About 200
people are expected to attend the three-day meeting of the 15th General
Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) scheduled to
open at the Lutheran Junior Seminary in Morogoro, July 6. LWF General
Secretary Ishmael Noko will present a paper at the gathering titled "Role
of the Church in the Changing African Society." He will be accompanied by
the LWF Area Secretary for Africa, Vivian Msomi, and the LWF Study
Secretary for Church and People of Other Faiths, Hance Mwakabana. Prior to
the assembly, Noko will attend celebrations to mark the "Ecumenical Decade
of Churches in Solidarity with Women" on July 5, also in Morogoro. The
assembly takes place every four years.

 ... Lutheran Church in Guyana re-elects its president. The Rev. Roy
Thakurdyal was re-elected president of the Lutheran Church in Guyana for a
second two-year term at the church's 55th Annual Convention held May 13-15.

 ... Brazilian Lutheran church helps poor children, adolescents. A seminar
held in Rodeo 12, Timbo, Santa Catarina, Brazil, May 17-21, gathered 48
representatives from 16 of the 18 Evangelical Church of the Lutheran
Confession in Brazil (IECLB) synods under the theme "Children: Let Us Seek
a Place Together", reports the Latin American and Caribbean Communication
Agency. The event brought the church communities and institutions together
to participate in actions and policies aimed at meeting the needs of
underprivileged children and adolescents. The IECLB has been involved in
this work for seven years.

 ... New president for Lutherans of the Central African Republic. The Rev.
Zoule Andre was elected president of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the
Central African Republic at its 14th General Synod meeting. He succeeds the
Rev. Joel Bobo.

 ... Canadian Anglicans and Lutherans may be in full communion by year
2001. Canadian Anglicans and Lutherans are deepening their links and may be
in full communion by the year 2001. The Anglican Church in Canada (ACC)
general council gave overwhelming approval in principle to a declaration
intended to lead to closer ties with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Canada (ELCIC), on May 25. The ELCIC approved a document "Called to Full
Communion" at its convention last year, and the church already is preparing
to make the necessary changes to its constitution. A study guide, which
includes a draft declaration which would bring the churches into full
communion, has been prepared by a joint working group of the two churches.
The ACC's general synod and ELCIC's national convention will meet in
Waterloo, Ontario, in July 2001 to vote on the declaration.

 ... WCC, LWF, WARC publish new booklet on landmines. A 20-page
action-oriented booklet "The Landmines Campaign Still Needs the Churches"
which includes an update on the post-Ottawa process, information on the
International Campaign to Ban Landmines, statistics, strategy suggestions
for ratification, tips for advocacy campaigns, theological reflection, and
website information has been jointly published by the LWF, World Council of
Churches, and World Alliance of Reformed Churches. For copies in either
English, French, Russian, German, Spanish or Portuguese please contact: The
Lutheran World Federation, Rebecca Larson, P.O. Box 2100, 1211 Geneva 2,
Switzerland. Tel.: +41/22-791 64 28 - Fax: +41/22-791 05 28 - E-Mail:
rl@lutheranworld.org

 ... Lutherans send food to those affected by drought in northeastern
Brazil. The Vale do Itajai Synod of the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran
Confession in Brazil has collected 14,890 kilos (32,758 pounds) of
non-perishable food to be sent to those affected by the drought in
northeastern Brazil. In a May 16-24 campaign, the Latin American and
Caribbean Communication Agency reports, Lutheran communities in the State
of Santa Catarina, supported by the Southern Brazilian Communications
Network of daily newspapers, radio and television, received donations from
the community at large. The synod's 98 parishes and communities group
together some 20,000 Lutheran families.

 ... Africans in diaspora. More than 300 participants are expected to
attend a consultation on Africans living in diaspora. Hosting the event,
scheduled for June 4-7 in Tuskegee, Alabama, USA, is the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). According to Eric T. Campbell, ELCA
Director for Afro-American Services, the consultation is intended to bring
Africans as well as people of African descent together. He said that the
purpose of the event, intentionally being held in the so-called "black
belt" of the USA, is, among other things, to highlight the region's
economic imbalance and to identify common features of the struggles of
black populations worldwide.

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Lutheran World Information
Editorial Assistant: Janet Bond-Nash
E-mail: jbn@lutheranworld.org
http://www.lutheranworld.org/