wfn.org | World Council of Churches Delegation Visits ELCA, Other Churches

[News News <NEWS@ELCA.ORG>]

ELCA NEWS SERVICE

November 14, 2001

WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES DELEGATION VISITS ELCA, OTHER CHURCHES
01-292-JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A seven-member delegation of international
church leaders from the World Council of Churches (WCC) met with
United States church leaders at the churchwide offices of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) here Nov. 9-10.  The
WCC delegation was sent as a "living letter" of compassion to the
churches and people of the United States in response to the terrorist
attacks of Sept. 11.
     The WCC is a fellowship of 342 Christian churches in 120
countries, with offices in Geneva, Switzerland.  The ELCA is a member
of the WCC.
     During meetings at the ELCA churchwide offices, members of the
WCC delegation met with and addressed the ELCA Church Council, which
was meeting simultaneously in the same building.  The council is the
ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of
the church between its churchwide assemblies.  Assemblies are held
every other year; the next is Aug. 11-17, 2003, in Milwaukee.
     "We are not here about ecumenical policies," said Bishop Mvume
Dandala, presiding bishop of the Methodist Church of South Africa, in
an address to the ELCA council.  "We are here to speak from our
hearts."  Dandala, who is also moderator of the WCC Advisory Group on
Regional Relations, led the delegation.
     The WCC delegation highlighted the WCC's international emphasis
on the "Decade to Overcome Violence: Churches Seeking Reconciliation
and Peace." The WCC launched the Decade to Overcome Violence earlier
this year in Berlin.
     "I am conscious of the hundreds of thousands of South Africans
who went to church Sept. 11 to weep for the people who perished at
the Twin Towers and to express outrage at the violence of this
callous act," he said.  "My participation is a living symbol of those
South Africans.  I bring you the greetings of Christians who have
been deeply, deeply touched and moved by what happened on Sept. 11."
     When the WCC delegation visited New York, its members felt the
pain of other Christians who openly shared their grief, he said.
     "None of us were left dry-eyed when we stood with our heads
bowed at 'Ground Zero' in New York," Dandala said.  "Our prayer is
that this nation ...will experience a therapy that can come only from
Christ."
     The WCC delegation has also heard from other Christians who are
concerned about how the U.S. government is responding to the attacks
with a bombing campaign in Afghanistan, Dandala said.
     "America is a great country.  Many nations take their cues from
you," he said.  "How you address this tragedy influences the rest of
the world.  Together our prayer is for a better world, where no one
should feel unsafe, a world where children can grow up safe."
     At a dinner recognizing the WCC delegation, the Rev. Mark S.
Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, said the ELCA and other churches
appreciated the delegation's visit, which he termed "a living
embodiment of hope."
     "What an age in which we live that we would receive a 'living
letter,'" he said.  "The living Body of Christ is stronger than the
forces of evil."
     The WCC considers the ELCA to be a significant partner and that
is one reason why the group came to the churchwide offices here, said
the Rev. Jon S. Enslin, interim director of the ELCA Department for
Ecumenical Affairs.  The dialogue between the WCC members and U.S.
church leaders was "fascinating, gracious and healing on one hand,
and challenging on the other hand," Enslin said.   The WCC
representatives, many from nations impacted by violence, asked many
questions about the Sept. 11 attacks and the response of the U.S.
government, he said.
     "They were quite clear in expressing to us that nothing
justifies what happened," Enslin said. "They also challenged us to
think about why (the Sept. 11 attacks) happened."
     The delegation's visit was an important Christian witness, he
added.  "It is a powerful thing to have people from around the world
stand with us in a moment of vulnerability," Enslin said.
     Members of the WCC delegation were Dandala; Metropolitan Elias
Audi, Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East,
Beirut, Lebanon; Bishop Samuel Azariah, former moderator of the
Church of Pakistan and currently diocesan Bishop of the Raiwand
Diocese; the Rev. Fr. Vsevolod Chaplin, department of external
affairs, Moscow Patriarchate, Russian Orthodox Church, and member of
the WCC Commission on International Affairs; the Rev. Jean-Arnold de
Clermont, president of the French Protestant Federation, Reformed
Church of France; the Rev. Septemmy Lakawa, teacher at Jakarta
Theological Seminary, Indonesia, and a member of the WCC Executive
and Central Committees; and Jean Zaru, presiding clerk, Religious
Society of Friends, Ramallah, The West Bank (Palestine).
     Accompanying the delegation was the Rev. Kathryn Bannister,
Bison, Kan., moderator of the WCC U.S. Conference and WCC President;
Georges Lemopoulos, Geneva, WCC deputy general secretary; and Jean
Stromberg, director of the U.S. office of the WCC, New York.
     After the Chicago visit, the delegation traveled to Washington,
D.C., and to Oakland, Calif., for the general assembly of the
National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.  The delegation
began its U.S. visit by meeting with church leaders in New York and
traveled to the World Trade Center site.
---
     Information about the World Council of Churches is at
http://www.wcc-coe.org on the Web.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html