wfn.org | German Protestant Kirchentag Will Not Use Controversial Liturgy

["Frank Imhoff" <FRANKI@elca.org>]

But Freedom to Experiment Remains

FULDA, Germany/GENEVA, 1 June 2001 (LWI/epd) - Weeks before the German
Protestant churches "Kirchentag" (church convention) begins in
Frankfurt/Main, Germany, its organizers have decided not to use a new and
controversial liturgy for Holy Communion, saying they will instead revert to
the liturgy used previously.

The Lord's Supper in the context of a full meal, which had also been
criticized, will be retained, the Fulda Kirchentag office announced May 24.
The "Feierabendmahl," or celebration of the Lord's Supper on Friday evening,
a Kirchentag tradition, will be marked on June 15 in more than 120 local
congregations in Frankfurt. Roman Catholics are invited to participate.

A theological conflict had arisen over a liturgical proposal to "finally"
give up the idea of eating the body of Christ and drinking his blood. The
suggestion which had been made for the Friday evening service of Holy
communion at the Kirchentag, stated: "We are finally abandoning the idea of
eating flesh and drinking blood." The traditional words of institution,
"This is my body" and "This is my blood," would be substituted with "My
life, given for you." The draft liturgy had met with massive criticism from
both the Roman Catholic Church and theologically conservative Protestants.

PrSses Manfred Kock, Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) Council
chairperson, described the alternative wording as a "mishap." He expressed
regret that the Kirchentag had caused annoyance to Roman Catholics. The
Evangelical Church in Hesse and Nassau (regional Protestant church where
Frankfurt is located) also had recommended that local congregations diverge
from the Kirchentag's proposal at that point in the service and use the
customary words of institution instead.

Roman Catholic Bishop Franz Kamphaus, whose diocese includes Frankfurt,
already had urged Catholics in his area not to participate in the Friday
evening Holy Communion service. He said the meal planned to include not only
bread and wine but also fruit and cheese would contradict the "Catholic
understanding of the Eucharist."

The Kirchentag leaders including its president, Mr. Martin Dolde, and
general secretary, Rev. Frederike Woldt, at a Frankfurt meeting on May 23,
had distanced themselves from the controversial text and stated they could
not support the proposed wording. They expressed regret "that this
formulation was offensive." But they stressed that the Kirchentag has been,
and remains a place of freedom to experiment.

Before the recent decision, Dr. Christian Krause, bishop of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Brunswick and president of the Lutheran World Federation,
had criticized the Kirchentag for becoming dependent on the churches'
leadership. Krause, general secretary of the Kirchentag from 1985 to 1994,
stressed that it was "a serious mistake" for the movement to be getting
closer to the established church. This contradicts the original
understanding of the Kirchentag as a free movement, he said.

Criticism of the proposed full meal as part of the Friday evening Lord's
Supper service, was rejected. Celebration of the sacrament in the context of
a full meal goes back to biblical sources and has been revived in recent
Kirchentag tradition, the organizers said in a statement. The agape, or
"love feast," with grapes and bread, unlike the Kirchentag's
"Feierabendmahl" on Friday evening, is not an official Protestant Holy
Communion liturgy. It is therefore open to Catholics, who are normally not
allowed to participate in Protestant Communion services.

The Kirchentag will be held in Frankfurt/Main, Germany, June 13-17, under
the theme "You have set my feet in a broad place" (Ps 31:8). It is expected
to include around 2,000 events, under three sub-themes: "Faith in
Diversity", "Living in Dignity" and "Steadfast in Freedom". According to the
organizers, some 100,000 full-time participants will attend. Seven thousand
have already registered.

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tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now has 131 member
churches in 72 countries representing over 60.2 million of the nearly 64
million Lutherans worldwide. The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches
in areas of common interest such as ecumenical relations, theology,
humanitarian assistance, human rights, communication, and the various
aspects of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva, Switzerland.)

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