wfn.org | US Lutheran bishop says Joint Declaration has stirred new

[FRANK.IMHOFF@ecunet.org]

understanding

CHICAGO, USA/GENEVA, 31 October 2000 (LWI) - Rev. H. George Anderson,
presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) said
the signing of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JD),
a year ago, has stimulated new efforts for understanding between Lutherans
and Roman Catholics in the United States.

In a statement written for Lutheran World Information on the first
anniversary of the signing of the JD, Bishop Anderson also said the
ratification on 31 October 1999 in Augsburg, Germany, by representatives of
the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is seen as
a beginning and not a destination.

"Worship services in many areas celebrated the consensus reached thus far,"
the ELCA bishop stated. He also pointed out that theological consultations
have explored the declaration's implications for future dialogue.

Bishop Anderson noted that the U.S.A. Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue
Commission is encouraged by the Joint Declaration and will build upon it.
Study resources are also being developed for use at the congregational level
and in theological seminaries, he added.

The bishop of the 5.2-million member church, who is also one of the
vice-presidents of the LWF, was among six other LWF regional representatives
who also took part in the solemn signing of the JD during the historic
worship service at St. Anna's Church in Augsburg.

Key signatories of the JD by means of the Official Common Statement included
the LWF president and general secretary, Bishop Dr. Christian Krause and
Rev. Dr. Ishmael Noko respectively, and the president and secretary of the
Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU), Edward Idris
Cardinal Cassidy and Bishop Walter Kasper respectively.

In a press statement prior to the signing ceremony then, Bishop Anderson
said "by acknowledging that there is agreement on this crucial article of
the Christian faith, our two churches have bridged a theological divide that
has separated us for nearly 500 years."  It was the hope of the ELCA bishop
that the theological breakthrough would lead to other agreements in the
future.

(The LWF is a global communion of 131 member churches in 72 countries
representing over 59 million of the world's 63 million Lutherans. Its
highest decision making body is the Assembly, normally held every six years.
Between Assemblies, the LWF is governed by a 49-member Council which meets
annually, and its Executive Committee. 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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