wfn.org | LWI News in Brief for Sept. 2002 (1)

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

Tanzanian Church Re-elects Mushemba as Presiding Bishop

The 16th General Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Tanzania (ELCT), at its 9-12 July 2002 meeting in Morogoro,
eastern Tanzania, unanimously re-elected Rev. Dr. Samson Mushemba
to the office of ELCT Presiding Bishop for another four-year term.
Mushemba, 67, has served in the same position since 1992. Ordained
in 1961, Mushemba was consecrated bishop in 1984. He is the
Chancellor of Tumaini University, founded by the ELCT in 1996.
Mushemba is a member of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
Executive Committee, and as an LWF Council member, chairs the
Program Committee for World Service. The 2.5-million member ELCT
joined the LWF in 1964.

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Meeting between LWF and ILC Representatives

A meeting between representatives of the Lutheran World Federation
(LWF) and International Lutheran Council (ILC) took place 30
July-1 August 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. It was the first of its
kind since 1988. The meeting was a follow up to a 2001 Council
resolution requesting the LWF General Secretary to enter into
conversations with the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS),
seek cooperation agreements between both organizations and explore
relationship with the ILC. Officially formed in 1993, the ILC is a
worldwide association of 29 confessional Lutheran church bodies
including the LCMS. A few of the ILC members also belong to the
LWF.

The Geneva meeting co-chaired by LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr.
Ishmael Noko and Rev. Dr. Samuel Nafzeger, ILC Executive
Secretary, took place in a very cordial and constructive
atmosphere. Information shared about the history,
confessional/doctrinal basis, self-understanding, organizational
structure, types of membership, and the nature, functions and
objectives of the two organization considerably improved the
knowledge about each other. Common ground as well as differences
were identified in the area of theology, with particular reference
to confessional and ecumenical issues. The meeting emphasized the
importance of better coordination, communication, and theological
discussion, with a view to improving relations in the future. The
next meeting of ILC and LWF representatives is planned for 29-31
October 2003.

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A Special Gift on the Mount of Olives

Each year, Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH), located on the Mount
of Olives, East Jerusalem, receives a special gift. Oil pressed
from fruits of the 800 olive trees on the property is used on
patients or as income to offset AVH's operational costs.

The AVH is operated by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) through
its Department for World Service (DWS) program in Jerusalem. In
2000 LWF/DWS-Jerusalem began a project to produce bottled olive
oil for sale to AVH visitors. The bottles are made from hand-blown
glass in Hebron, and the olive oil is produced in a press in Beit
Jala near Bethlehem. The income from some 130 bottles of olive oil
sold in the first year was enough to cover expenses and make a
small donation to the LWF for the hospital.

A second project started in 2001 focuses on the need to continue
planting new olive trees on the property. For a specific donation,
individuals, churches or organizations could have a tree planted
on the Mount of Olives, with a commemorative plaque stating the
donor's wishes.

A third project launched in 2002 provides individuals, churches or
organizations with an opportunity to donate a gallon of olive oil
toward AVH patients' needs. The hospital primarily uses the oil on
many local dishes served to patients. In Palestine olive oil is a
gift of life and health.

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A Cross Made from Bullets - A Symbol of Suffering, Resistance and
Peace from Liberia

The biblical vision of changing swords into plowshares (Isaiah 2,
Micah 4) is an inspiration for peace efforts. In Liberia, this
vision has found new meaning.

Through assistance provided by the Lutheran World Federation
Department for World Service Liberia program, George Togba and 30
compatriots are producing crosses in various sizes from spent
bullets or shells. "In a dream, I had the idea of turning spent
bullets and rocket shells into symbols of peace," says Togba, who
was a car mechanic before the civil war.

The marketing of thousands of these peace symbols to Europe and
America has turned the project into a source of moderate income.

Togba, who joined rebel forces during the conflict to protect his
family, is now a Christian peace activist and supports his family
by peaceful means.

Postcards on these projects can be ordered from the LWF at a price
of CHF 2.60, EUR 1.75 or USD 1.75 each. Bulk orders can be made at
a discount. For further information please contact the LWF Office
for Communication Services, 150 route de Ferney, P. O. Box 2100,
CH-1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland. Tel. +41-22-791 61 11, Fax
+41-22-791 66 30, E-mail: info@lutheranworld.org

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Bishop Samuel Vrbovsky Installed as Head of Yugoslav Church

On September 1, recently-elected Bishop Samuel Vrbovsky was
installed as head of the Slovak Evangelical Church of the Augsburg
Confession in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. He succeeds
Bishop Jan Valent. The festive ceremony in Bacsky Petrovec was
presided over by General Bishop Dr. Julius Filo, of the
Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Slovak
Republic. Filo is a vice-president of the Lutheran World
Federation (LWF). The new bishop's installation was witnessed by
around 1,200 people including representatives of churches in
Croatia, Hungary, Slavonia, United States of America and Germany.
Also present were ecumenical guests from the Roman Catholic,
Greek-Catholic, Orthodox, Reformed and Methodist churches.
Vrbovsky expressed his willingness to work together with Christian
organizations from other countries as well as with Protestant
partner churches. At the installation, Heiner Keuenzlen,
Oberkirchenrat, Evangelical Church in Wuerttemberg, Germany,
offered the new bishop possibilities for collaboration in three
partnerships-Thuringia, Wuerttemberg and Slovakia. The
50,000-member Slovak Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession
in the FR Yugoslavia joined the LWF in 1952.

*    *	  *

Papua New Guinea Church Re-elects Bishop Piso

The 32nd biannual General Conference of the Gutnius Lutheran
Church - Papua New Guinea re-elected Bishop David P. Piso to lead
the church for another four year-term. He was first elected to
head the church in 1982. One significant resolution passed at the
June 4-9 convention was to extend the GLC-PNG mission work in
Irian Jaya province of the Republic of Indonesia as well as to
open congregations and new preaching stations. The 95,000-member
GLC-PNG joined the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in 1979. Piso
is a member of the LWF Council, serving on the Standing Committee
for International Affairs and Human Rights.

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Lutheran-Roman Catholic Commission on Unity Discusses Apostolicity
of the Church

The eighth meeting of the fourth phase of the Lutheran - Romanvnate a gallon
of olive oi
Catholic Commission on Unity took place 30 August - 6 September
2002 in Wuerzburg, Germany. The dialogue is sponsored by the
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Pontifical Council for
Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU). The 18-member Commission is
co-chaired by Rt. Rev. Dr. Bela Harmati, Evangelical Lutheran
Church in Hungary and Roman Catholic Archbishop Alfons Nossol of
Opole, Poland. From the beginning, the goal of the Lutheran -
Roman Catholic dialogue has been the visible unity of the church.
The first phase of the dialogue (1967-1971) focussed on the Gospel
and the Church. The second period (1973-1984) concentrated on the
Eucharist and Ministry in the Church, which was followed by Church
and Justification (1986-1993). The 1999 signing of the Joint
Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification by the LWF and
Vatican, was also based on findings in this dialogue.

The current stage focuses on the "Apostolicity of the Church." At
this year's meeting the Commission proceeded with its work on
biblical, historical and theological aspects of the theme. The
Commission carried out its work on the basis of revised drafts
received from the drafting group, which had met in Speyer,
Germany, in spring 2002. In detail, the Commission discussed a
revised chapter on New Testament foundations; interim conclusions
regarding the Apostolic Gospel and the Apostolicity of the Church;
the Ordained Ministry from the Lutheran Perspective and Interim
Conclusions regarding Apostolic Succession and the Ordained
Ministry. Also discussed was Scripture and church teaching in a
Reformation perspective, as well as the concept and understanding
of the magisterium in Catholic theology from the Council of Trent
to the Second Vatican Council. The group also discussed the
ministry of apostolic teaching from the Lutheran perspective,
including attempts at ecumenical consensus regarding church
teaching. The next meeting of the dialogue Commission will take
place in the United States of America, 23-30 August 2003, upon
invitation by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and LWF.

*    *	  *

Australia: Cardinal Cassidy on Lutherans and Roman Catholics in
Dialogue

"Older people can remember a time when Reformation Day sermons
roundly condemned the Church of Rome, and when Catholics were told
by their priests no to go inside a Lutheran church, even for the
funeral of a friend. The term 'separated brethren' was used, and
the emphasis was more on being separated than on being sisters and
brothers. But times have changed. We can both truly say that 'the
Lutheran churches and the Roman Catholic Church have together
listened to the good news proclaimed in Holy Scripture.' But more:
'This common listening, together with the theological
conversations of recent years, has led to a shared understanding
on justification.'"

Those words were echoed by Edward Cardinal Cassidy, former
President of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Promoting
Christian Unity, when he recently delivered a talk at St.
Stephen's Lutheran Church, Adelaide in his home country,
Australia. He was referring to the document, the Joint Declaration
on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ) signed by representatives
of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and Roman Catholic Church
on 31 October 1999 in Augsburg, Germany. Cassidy, one of the JDDJ
signatories, and since retired, spoke to a group of Catholics and
Lutherans invited by Australia's Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue
to worship together in a simple vespers led by Rev. Michael
Semmler, President of the Lutheran Church of Australia (LCA) and
Archbishop Philip Wilson of Adelaide. With 85,000 members, the LCA
has been an associate LWF member church since 1994. (The Lutheran
[Australia])

*    *	  *

Kenyan Lutheran Woman to Head World Christian Communication Body

Kenyan Lutheran Dr. Musimbi Kanyoro is the first woman to be
elected president of the London-based World Association for
Christian Communication (WACC). A member of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Kenya, she was elected to the volunteer
position in July. Prior to her current position as General
Secretary of the World Young Women's Christian Association,
Kanyoro was Executive Secretary for Women in Church and Society in
the LWF Department for Mission and Development for nearly 10
years. The WACC is a non-governmental organization supporting the
democratization of communications, communication for human dignity
and the right to communicate in situations of censorship and
oppression.

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New Leaders for LWF Churches in Eritrea, Kenya and Senegal

The Rev. Asfaha Mehari is the new President of the Evangelical
Church of Eritrea (ECE). He succeeds Rev. Ogbarebi Hibtes. The ECE
has 12,000 members, and joined the LWF in 1963.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya (ELCK) recently elected
Rev. Walter Obare as its new bishop. He will take over from Bishop
Francis Nyamwaro Onderi. The 55,000-member ELCK joined the LWF in
1970.

The Rev. Pierre Shne is the new President of the Lutheran Church
of Senegal (LCS), succeeding Rev. Ndeb Diouf. The LCS has 3,100
members. It joined the LWF in 1992.

*    *	  *

LWF German Language Web Site Now Online

With a new layout and structure, the Lutheran World Federation
(LWF) German language web site went online on September 6.
Information on the LWF, its member churches as well as partner
organizations can now be found at
www.lutheranworld.org/welcome.de.html. The newly structured
English language web site www.lutheranworld.org went online in
spring 2002. "The web site offers an attractive and modern
platform for information exchange between the LWF member churches,
with the Geneva secretariat and worldwide," says Ms. Karin
Achtelstetter, Director, LWF Office for Communication Services
(OCS). With the extensive information it provides, the new web
site increases the LWF's presence on the Internet. Over 1,000
pages offer news about the LWF, information on ecumenical
dialogue, human rights initiatives, emergency and development
programs and projects, and on the LWF structure - departments and
offices. The site was prepared by the OCS in collaboration with a
Geneva-based firm.

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now
has 136 member churches in 76 countries representing over 61.7
million of the 65.4 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.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the information service of
the Lutheran World Federation (LWF). Unless specifically noted,
material presented does not represent positions or opinions of the
LWF or of its various units. Where the dateline of an article
contains the notation (LWI), the material may be freely reproduced
with acknowledgment.]

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