wfn.org | LWF President Mark Hanson's Statement on Remarks by Iranian President

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

LWF President Mark Hanson's Statement on Remarks by Iranian President 
Emphasis on Lutherans' Commitment to Open, Honest Relationship with
Jewish Community

CHICAGO, United States of America/GENEVA, 20 December 2005 (LWI) * The
president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Bishop Mark S. Hanson,
has condemned recent remarks by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
describing the Holocaust as a "myth" and calling for Israel to be "wiped
off the map."

In a statement dated 19 December 2005, Hanson, presiding bishop of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), affirms the historical
record of the Holocaust under legal and scholarly scrutiny. "We know and
grieve the awful truth of the Shoah. No reasonable person can stand by
while any nation's leader makes such outrageous and unacceptable
claims," he says. 

The LWF president says Ahmadinejad's latest remarks, quoted widely in
international media, represent a sadly different path for Iran, which in
2001 initiated the International Year of Dialogue among Civilizations at
the United Nations.

Hanson states Lutherans' commitment to an open and honest relationship
with the Jewish community. He cites the presence of World Jewish
Congress General Secretary, Gerhard Riegner at the 1984 LWF Seventh
Assembly in Hungary, as a signal to a new start in the dialogue between
Jews and Lutherans at the global level, "addressing the lamentable
reality of Martin Luther's anti-Judaic writings and the tragedy of the
Shoah." 

In a 1994 document, Hanson adds, the ELCA itself acknowledges the pain
caused by Luther's anti-Judaic diatribes and his violent recommendations
against the Jews.

The LWF president stresses Lutherans will continue to work with the
Jewish people, Palestinian people, and all other people of good will in
the Middle East in an ongoing "quest for mutual respect, hope, and peace
for all people in this world." (290 words)

The full text of the statement by Bishop Mark S. Hanson follows:

LWF President Mark Hanson's Statement on Remarks by Iranian President 

In recent days, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, has been
widely quoted as saying the Holocaust is a "myth," and that the State of
Israel should be relocated to Europe, Canada, or Alaska. Earlier, he was
quoted as saying Israel should be "wiped off the map."

I join with other religious leaders in condemning these remarks. The
historical record of the Holocaust is clear and has stood up under legal
and scholarly scrutiny. We have listened carefully to the eyewitnesses,
many of whom have lived among us for the last half century. We know and
grieve the awful truth of the Shoah. No reasonable person can stand by
while any nation's leader makes such outrageous and unacceptable claims.
The remarks represent a sadly different path for Iran, which in 2001
initiated the International Year of Dialogue among Civilizations at the
United Nations.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Lutheran World
Federation have worked tirelessly to promote a just and lasting peace in
the Middle East for all people.  Our efforts have involved conversations
with Israeli and Palestinian leaders as well as with Jewish, Muslim, and
Christian leaders. We shall not cease our work to seek balanced and
reasonable solutions that ensure peace, safety, and security for all
people in that troubled land.

In the United States, I have joined with Christian, Jewish, and Muslim
leaders in a 12-point plan for Middle East Peace.  The plan emphasizes a
two-state solution, and it calls on the government of the United States
to do more to promote a lasting peace in the Middle East. The ELCA
Churchwide Assembly in 2005 implemented a Middle East strategy that
calls for peace with justice between Israelis and Palestinians.

Moreover, we as Lutherans are committed to a relationship with the
Jewish community that is open and honest. At the 1984 Assembly of the
Lutheran World Federation, held in Budapest, the presence of Dr. Gerhard
Riegner, then General Secretary of the World Jewish Congress, signaled a
new start in the dialogue between Jews and Lutherans at the global
level, addressing the lamentable reality of Martin Luther's anti-Judaic
writings and the tragedy of the Shoah. At that time, we jointly affirmed
the integrity and dignity of both faith communities and pledged to work
together against all forms of racial prejudice.

In its 1994 document, "Declaration of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America to the Jewish Community," the ELCA acknowledged the pain
caused by Luther's anti-Judaic diatribes and his violent recommendations
against the Jews.  The ELCA expressed its "deep and abiding sorrow" over
the tragic effects of these writings on subsequent generations.

In the declaration the ELCA said that "we express our urgent desire to
live out our faith in Jesus Christ with love and respect for the Jewish
people. We recognize in anti-Semitism a contradiction and an affront to
the Gospel, a violation of our hope and calling, and we pledge this
church to oppose the deadly working of such bigotry, both within our own
circles and in the society around us.  Finally we pray for the continued
blessing of the Blessed One upon the increasing cooperation and
understanding between Lutheran Christians and the Jewish community."

Nothing can be gained by condemning or showing disrespect for any
person, much less an entire people.  As Lutherans, we will continue to
work with the Jewish people, we will work with the Palestinian people,
and we will work with all other people of good will in the Middle East.
Together we will continue our quest for mutual respect, hope, and peace
for all people in this world.

The Rev. Mark S. Hanson
Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
President, The Lutheran World Federation

*	*	*

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF currently has 140
member churches in 78 countries all over the world, with a total
membership of nearly 66 million. The LWF acts on behalf of its member
churches in areas of common interest such as ecumenical and inter-faith
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 LWF's information service.
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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