WCC NEWS: Pope Benedict XVI and WCC general secretary Tveit to meet in Rome

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World Council of Churches - News

WCC GENERAL SECRETARY LOOKS FORWARD TO MEETING WITH POPE BENEDICT XVI

For immediate release: 02 December 2010

Pope Benedict XVI will welcome the Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general
secretary of the World Council of Churches since January of this 
year, to
a private audience at the Vatican on Saturday 4 December.

This will be the first meeting of the two church leaders. In an 
interview
several days prior to his visit to Rome, Tveit indicated the key 
topics he
hopes they will discuss, which include the search for church unity,
support of Christian communities in the Middle East and renewal of
ecumenical commitment to common action in the world.

First on his agenda is a reaffirmation on behalf of the WCC to seek 
visible
unity in Jesus Christ. “The calling that is the starting point of the
World Council of Churches is also what is driving us today,” said 
Tveit.

This calling is the vision for Christians found in John 17:21, “the
prayer of Jesus Christ that they all may be one”. He added, “What
encourages us is that this calling is something that many share as a 
high
priority, and I know that this is the case with Pope Benedict.”

“It is important that we speak honestly in this meeting about the
challenges we have,” Tveit continued. “There are expectations for the
ecumenical movement that have not been fulfilled, and there are 
tensions
arising in and between churches. Therefore, it is even more important 
now
to stay with our commitment and to reflect what this call implies in 
our
daily life as Christians all over the world.”

Even so, Tveit hopes “to focus on our common calling to mission and 
unity
and on what it is possible for us to do together”. This is 
particularly
appropriate at the close of a year during which Christians have 
celebrated
the 100th anniversary of the origin of the modern ecumenical movement 
at
the 1910 World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh, as well as the 50th
anniversary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
(PCPCU).

The call to be one in Christ, he explained, “is about everything we 
do as
church, as members of the church or leadership in the church. It is
definitely about how we work theologically on what the church is, how 
we
understand the basic ecclesiological questions that are still an 
obstacle
for visible unity – like the issues of the eucharist and ordained
ministry.”

“However,” Tveit continued, “it is important for me as the leader of
the WCC to point to the fact that we as a fellowship of churches in 
the
WCC are addressing this call every day in many ways and that we do it 
on
the ground in many parts of the world together with the Roman Catholic
Church. I very much appreciate what Pope Benedict has said on many
occasions: how he is committed to the work of unity, how he is 
committed
to the mission of the church, to work for justice and peace and to the
sharing of the church with new generations.”

Tveit also plans to discuss the situation of Christians in the Middle 
East
during his audience with Benedict XVI. He notes that Pope Benedict has
stressed the need for a strong Christological emphasis in the work of
unity, and the WCC general secretary has spoken of an “ecumenical
movement of the cross". Tveit sees Jerusalem, site of the teaching,
crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, as the “source and matrix” of
Christianity.

“Our witness to the gospel, our support for justice and peace, 
solidarity
with the oppressed, initiatives for Jewish-Christian and 
Muslim-Christian
dialogue and cooperation, all of this comes together in the Middle 
East,
and especially in Jerusalem,” he said. He will appeal to Pope Benedict
to continue to engage in common action and advocacy to support 
Christian
communities of the Middle East as part of the continuing ecumenical
movement of the cross.

Media contact: Mark Beach +41.79.507.6363

More information on cooperation between the WCC and the Vatican
(Link: http://www.oikoumene.org/index.php?RDCT=2cd5523446ff7266a901 )

Prayers and information on Christians in Jerusalem prepared by WCC and
PCPCU (Link:
http://www.oikoumene.org/index.php?RDCT=ac1f5a55db0c3c94adf4
)


The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, 
witness 
and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship 
of 
churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 349 
Protestant, 
Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 560 
million 
Christians in over 110 countries, and works cooperatively with the 
Roman 
Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Dr Olav Fykse 
Tveit, 
from the [Lutheran] Church of Norway. Headquarters: Geneva, 
Switzerland.



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