wfn.org | LWI News in brief

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

 * Where to find information on the signing of the Joint Declaration.
The confirmation of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of
Justification on 31 October 1999 by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
and the Roman Catholic Church will be marked by extensive festivities in
Augsburg. In view of this historic event, the LWF will provide an audio
and video transmission of the main highlights via the Internet. Two
hours of live broadcast will be offered daily from 29 to 31 October
1999. A press conference planned for 29 October, the special ceremony at
the Golden Hall of the city of Augsburg on 30 October and the festive
signing on 31 October will also be transmitted live. Subsequently, the
event will be available for four weeks on the video server courtesy of
the Real Video company, which will also accept orders on request. This
offer is open not only to journalists and other communicators but also
to community groups, schools and seminaries among others. The
audio-/video-streaming media is available free of charge for any
Internet user through the RealNetworks World Wide Web page or can be
requested directly from the company itself. The audio/video transmission
can be accessed through the already existing website -
www.rechtfertigung.de (German) or www.justification.org (English). For
the internet user, this site provides information on the text of the
official documents, the program for the festivities in Augsburg as well
as other details on further activities in the future.

 * US television ranks Martin Luther's 95 theses among its top ten. A
public television service in the United States recently ranked Martin
Luther's 95 theses, a key event in the development of Protestantism, on
its list of top ten religious stories in the past 1000 years. On 31
October 1517, Luther then a young Catholic monk, introduced the theses
or points of contention against the Vatican, accusing Catholic leaders
of corruption and false doctrine. This led to the Protestant
Reformation. Among the choices made by "Religion and Ethics Newsweekly"
are the split of Christianity into Eastern and Western branches; the
Crusades; and the 19th century questioning of religious ideas by Charles
Darwin and Karl Marx. Only one 20th century event, the Holocaust, - when
an estimated six million Jews were killed by the Nazis- was selected by
the TV. Kurt Hendel, who teaches historical and systematic theology at
the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago, was quoted by the Ecumenical
News International (ENI) saying that it would be "difficult to argue
with any of the 10 topics that were chosen," though the focus on
Christianity and the West was an "obvious limitation". Several of the
viewers, who posted their suggestions on the series' web site, wished
the list had included mention of other significant religious
developments.

 * Bread for the World to launch "7 Euro" campaign. A unique feature of
the 41 st campaign of German Protestant aid agency, Bread for the World
next November is its "7 Euro" fund raising strategy in cooperation with
the automobile manufacturer Volkswagen (VW). The purpose of the
campaign, which has been established in agreement with VW, is to finance
a project by Bread for the World in which the manufacturer, the dealer
and purchaser of each car sold will all donate seven Euro. Like last
year's, Bread for the World's 1999 nation wide campaign is has the
motto, "Give the Children a Chance". This year focuses on projects for
and with the children - projects which encourage a complete and
sustainable village development, including provision of health services
and the promotion of more justice and better training for children and
young people. The agency supports about 2,000 projects in Third World
countries. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Brunswick will host the
campaign celebrations, scheduled for 27 and 28 November.

 * LWI German assistant editor takes up his post in Geneva. Mr.
Dirk-Michael Grotzsch has joined the Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
Office for Communication Services (OCS) as Assistant Editor -
Information - German. Mr. Grotzsch, a German national, has a degree in
theology from the University of Leipzig. Prior to taking up his new
position in the LWF on 1 October 1999, Grotzsch worked as a free lance
journalist for the ARD broadcasting corporation. He also wrote for
various newspapers and for the Protestant news agency "Evangelischer
Pressedienst-Ost" (epd) among others. Grotzsch is fluent in English,
reads Russian and has a basic knowledge of French.

 * European churches urge political leaders to address new divisions. As
the Conference of European Churches (CEC) celebrated its 40th
anniversary in Nyborg, Denmark, on 25 September 1999, the more than
120-member body called on political leaders in Europe to address new
divisions which threaten the security of the continent, a decade after
the fall of communism in eastern Europe and the Berlin Wall in Germany.
In a statement issued by its central committee, the CEC said these
problems should be addressed before it is too late and before new
divisions become entrenched in Europe." Such divisions would also impose
"lasting poverty and frustration on many of Europe's peoples." Among
CEC's Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox and Old Catholic churches are more
than 30 Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member churches.

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Lutheran World Information
Assistant Editor, English: Pauline Mumia
E-mail: pmu@lutheranworld.org
http://www.lutheranworld.org/