wfn.org | North American Lutherans to Host LWF Assembly Visitation Program

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

October 17, 2002

NORTH AMERICAN LUTHERANS TO HOST LWF ASSEMBLY VISITATION PROGRAM
02-244-DM*

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- North American Lutheran Churches will be heavily
involved in the 10th Assembly of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), in
Winnipeg, Canada, July 21-31, 2003.  The Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Canada (ELCIC) will host the assembly.
     Prior to and after the assembly, the ELCIC and the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will also host visitors and delegates
as part of the LWF 2003 Pre/Post Assembly Visitation Program.
     ELCIC will be responsible for the pre-visitation program, taking
place in Canada July 14-20, 2003, and the ELCA will host the post-
visitation program Aug. 1-10, 2003.
     Speaking at the ELCA Conference of Bishops, which met here Oct. 3-
8, the regional officer for LWF North America, Kathy J. Magnus, asked
the bishops to fully support the LWF Assembly, the visitation program
and the ELCIC.	The ELCA Conference of Bishops is an advisory body to
the church, consisting of the church's 65 synod bishops, presiding
bishop and secretary.
     "This is a rare opportunity for North American Lutherans to
connect with their global brothers and sisters. It will no doubt be
decades before the assembly is once again held in North America," said
Magnus.
     This is the second time that an LWF assembly is being held on
North American soil. The first was in 1957 in Minneapolis.  Nearly 500
international delegates are expected to attend the 2003 Assembly.  The
LWF Assembly enables churches to worship, witness, confer and speak
together on matters common to the whole church and to express their
unity as part of the one, universal, new community in Christ, said
Magnus.
     The visitation program will run under the assembly theme "For the
Healing of the World."
     "The program is aimed at giving international guests to Canada and
the United States an opportunity to link with a ministry organization
and gives Lutherans in North America a chance to learn about LWF through
interacting, engaging and sharing experiences of life and ministry,"
said the Rev. Kevin L. Jacobson, associate director for global
education, ELCA Division for Global Mission, in an interview.
     For the pre-assembly visitation program in Canada, 11 sites have
been chosen and for the post-assembly visitation program in the United
States, 36 sites have been identified. "We expect close to 400 people to
visit the sites," said Jacobson.
     Before the Assembly, pre-assembly regional consultations will take
place throughout the five regions of the LWF, namely Africa, Asia,
Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and North America.  Each region
will discuss crucial issues related to its situation, future witness and
work. The pre-assembly consultation for North America will take place
Jan. 23-26, 2003, in Denver.
     The international pre-assembly youth consultation is scheduled for
July 12-18, 2003, in Canada, and a women's consultation will take place
in Montreux, Switzerland Nov. 14-17, 2002.
-- -- --
Information about the LWF Assembly in Winnepeg can be found at
http://www.lwf-assembly.org on the LWF Web site.

*Diana Mavunduse is a communicator with the World Council of
Churches, Geneva, Switzerland. This fall she is serving as a volunteer
with the ELCA News Service.

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