Church Urged to Define Points of Reference and Road Ahead LWF Latin American Church Leadership Conference in San José
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica/GENEVA, 28 April 2006 (LWI) - Over 50 representatives of Lutheran churches tackled questions of viability (viabilidad) and sustainability (sustentabilidad) to start off the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Latin American Church Leadership Conference (Conferencia de Liderazgo - COL) in San José, Costa Rica, 25-28 April.
"In light of global challenges, the Church is called upon to define the road ahead and to establish points of reference in no uncertain terms not only for itself and its members, but for the society as a whole." The Rev. Dr Gottfried Brakemeier, former LWF president, challenged conference participants with these words in his address on the "Viability of the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil (IECLB)." Brakemeier's critical questions, read by the IECLB General Secretary, Rev. Nestor Friedrich, touched on the variety of issues facing the IECLB today: statistical realities, questions of identity, conflicting ecclesiologies, and the challenge of mission.
Friedrich urged the church representatives not to restrict the concept of "sustainability" to fundraising strategies alone, but instead to strive to integrate their efforts into a concept of social development, paying equal heed to Christian witness, service, fellowship, liturgy and economic issues.
"Sustainability can be attained through planning, a task that is not always simple. And planning is of vital importance to our thoughts concerning the development of our churches and congregations," Friedrich added.
The LWF's Latin America and Caribbean region stretches from Mexico in the north to Chile and Argentina in the south, comprising 16 member churches --14 in Latin America and two in the Caribbean -- and nine LWF recognized congregations throughout the region. Some 835,500 Lutherans belong to LWF member churches and recognized congregations in the region. These churches are rooted in a vast variety of backgrounds: While some were the result of immigration from mainly European countries in the eighteenth century, others were started by missionaries from the United States and Europe, with still others emerging locally. (340 words)
Further information and documents on the San José conference can be found in Spanish and Portuguese at: http://conferencialiderazgo2006.blogspot.com
(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 66.2 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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