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* 'Joint Declaration' celebrations in New Zealand. "I never thought I would
see the day when the Lutheran President preached in a Roman Catholic
Cathedral. *. It was good. " These remarks from New Zealander, 91-year-old
life-long Lutheran Oscar Burmeister, probably best describe the significance
of the confirmation of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification
by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Roman Catholic Church on 31
October 1999 in Augsburg, Germany. Burmeister was among worshippers attending
a thanksgiving service at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, Broadway,
Palmerston North, New Zealand, on 31 October. Bishop Peter Cullianne,
President of the New Zealand Catholic Bishops' Conference and Bishop of
Palmerston North and Dr Steen Olsen, President of the Lutheran Church of New
Zealand jointly presided and preached at the service. The message from Bishop
Cullianne and Dr Olsen was: "We rejoice in the completion of this Joint
Declaration. This is a significant step in the relationship between Catholics
and Lutherans around the world." The Lutheran Church of New Zealand is a
district of the LWF associate member church, Lutheran Church of Australia. 
 
* University of Natal hosts thanksgiving service for 'one step in
reconciliation'. At the University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa,
nearly 200 people came to witness on 13 November a joint celebration in
recognition of the 31 October 1999 signing of the "Joint Declaration" in
Augsburg, Germany. The event organized by the Catholic church's St Joseph's
Seminary and the Lutheran House of Studies (LUTHOS) at the university was an
occasion to thank "God for one area of reconciliation between Lutherans and
Roman Catholics," according to the LUTHOS director, Rev. Georg Scriba and
colleague Maxi Nrnberger. During the celebration worship, two students, one
from St Joseph's the other from the LUTHOS, read selected texts from the Joint
Declaration and the congregation responded with the confession: "By grace
alone, in faith in Christ's saving work and not because of any merit on our
part, we are accepted by God and receive the Holy Spirit who renews our hearts
while equipping and calling us to good works." They also prayed jointly a
liturgy of repentance in which representatives of each denomination confessed
the shortcomings of each in their relationship to one another. This prayer
concluded with a confession together that as Christians, "we have gone our
separate ways in callous disregard of our Lord's prayer for his followers:
'That they may be one'. Our witness and Christ's work has suffered badly as a
result." 
 
* Special events in London mark the signing of the "Joint Declaration". A
panel discussion at the Lutheran Council of Great Britain on 30 October 1999
presented the broader ecumenical significance of the Joint Declaration on the
Doctrine of Justification, recently confirmed by the Lutheran World Federation
(LWF) and the Roman Catholic Church in Augsburg, Germany. The Rev. Dr Paul
Avis, General Secretary, Church of England Council for Christian Unity,
described the declaration as a 'major ecumenical breakthrough' and expressed
hope that it would give an impetus to the reception of documents agreed by the
Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC). The Rev. Geoffrey
Roper, General Secretary of the Free Church Federal Council and a Reformed
minister said he believed that the Reformed would be influenced by the
declaration, though "what is said about grace coming through baptism would
have to be looked at very carefully by the Reformed." Mrs Gillian Crow,
Secretary of the Diocese of Sourozh of the Orthodox Church noted that it is
sometimes said that Catholics and Protestants have different answers to
theological questions. The Orthodox, she added, do not even have the same
questions. Meanwhile the Lutheran Council of Great Britain and the Catholic
Bishops' Conferences in England & Wales and Scotland organized a joint service
at the Swedish Church in London on Sunday, 31 October, which was attended by
various church leaders including Bishop Phillip Pargeter from the Bishops'
Conference and Dean Lennart Sj”str”m, chairperson of the Lutheran Council of
Great Britain. The Swedish ambassador to the United Kingdom attended the
worship and welcomed guests at a reception after the service. 
 
* Bishop of Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria retires. A special worship
service was held at Munich's St. Matthew's church on October 31, 1999, to bid
farewell to Bishop D. Hermann von Loewenich of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in Bavaria, Germany. During a state reception in Munich following the service,
Bavaria's Premier Edmund Stoiber, from the Christian Socialist Union, thanked
the bishop who "always spoke up for the Church". Von Loewenich headed the 2.7
million member Bavarian church since 1994. In his last report as bishop, von
Loewenich listed the following issues as priorities of his work: being present
in ecumenism and in the congregations; promoting equal rights and equal
presence of women in the Church; as well as promoting the Protestant presence
in the context of the government, society and media. During the celebration
worship, Friedrich Cardinal Wetter, Catholic Archbishop of Munich and
Freising, thanked von Loewenich for his "openness in the ecumenical dialogue"
and his active support for the development of the Joint Declaration on the
Doctrine of Justification. Johannes Friedrich, von Loewenich's successor, was
installed into office on November 21 in Nuremberg's St. Lawrence church. 
 
* New office bearers for the German Luther Association. Prof. Dr. Johannes
Schilling, who has been pro-vice chancellor of Kiel University since 1999, is
the new First President of the German Luther Association .This was announced
at the association's general meeting in Torgau last September. Others elected
as members of the new managing committee include Oberkirchenrat Dr. Reinhard
Brandt of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany (VELKD) who
becomes the Second President and Dr. Andreas Pawlas, a minister of a
congregation in Klein-Offenseth-Sparrieshoop, who was reelected Secretary.  
 
* Focussing 50 years after the signing in Augsburg. For two youth members of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), witnessing the confirmation
of the Joint Declaration in Augsburg was one way of saying: "We are ready, our
generation wants to take part in the work of the church. We love the church,
and want to be a part of the church, just invite us." Melanie Zentner from
Minneapolis and Meredith Lovell from Pennsylvania, both 19 year-old university
students and members of the Board of the Lutheran Youth Organization (BLYO) in
the ELCA, said they were excited to have participated in the history making
event of the signing of the Joint Declaration in Augsburg. The history and
German language student, Zentner, emphasized that it is important for her that
in 50 years to come, "I can look back and say 'I was there' (in Augsburg)."
Lovell a religion and elementary education undergraduate emphasized that her
role as a young church member in Augsburg was significantly to say "we are
ready." 
 
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The LWF is a global communion of 128 member churches in 70 countries
representing 58 million of the world's 61.5 million Lutherans. Its highest
decision making body is the Assembly, held every six or seven years. Between
Assemblies, the LWF is governed by a 49-member Council which meets annually,
and its Executive Committee. The LWF secretariat is located in Geneva,
Switzerland. 
 
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Lutheran World Information 
Assistant Editor, English: Pauline Mumia 
E-mail: pmu@lutheranworld.org 
http://www.lutheranworld.org/