wfn.org | (LWF) LWF President: Peace between World Religions a

["Frank Imhoff" <FRANKI@elca.org>]

LWF Tenth Assembly, Winnipeg, Canada, 21-31 July 2003

PRESS RELEASE NO. 04

LWF President: Peace between World Religions a Priority for Christians
Poverty, HIV/AIDS, Major Global Challenges for World Community

WINNIPEG, Canada, 22 July 2003 (LWI) * Peace between the world's religions
and a common front against terrorism are among the top challenges facing
Christians in the 21st century, the president of the Lutheran World
Federation (LWF), Bishop emeritus Dr Christian Krause, said here today in his
address to the LWF Tenth Assembly.

Krause was addressing some 800 participants, including over 400 delegates
from member churches, in the first plenary session of the July 21-31
Assembly.

It is no longer enough that states commit themselves to ending their
conflicts by peaceful means, the LWF's chief officer said. They need to form
global alliances "in order to combat terrorism together and to guarantee
their citizens civilized life in society." The fight against terrorism cannot
be separated from the struggle for justice and human dignity, LWF's chief
officer said.

Krause expressed concern that the United States, the only remaining world
superpower, is now militarily so superior that it does not need to fear any
military opponent in the world. "It has resolved to use war as a political
means when that serves its own interests," he said. He noted that the war
against Iraq was waged in spite of the United Nations own opposition and the
anti-war demonstrations by millions of people worldwide. International law
cannot safeguard peace if the USA do not respect this international law and
prefer to replace it by the right of the mighty one," he noted.

Islm or other religions should not be equated with terrorism, Krause warned.
While fundamentalism attracts very few supporters, the phenomenon is also
present among Christians and among Jews. Some 1.2 billion people in the world
are Muslims and only a very small number of them sympathize with terrorism,
he said. The fight against terrorism must include as many states worldwide as
possible, especially those with majority Muslim populations. "But it must
never become a clash of civilizations or even of religions." What is
imperative for the 21st century is not a crusade against Islam, said Krause,
but peace between the religions and their common struggle against terrorism
and its contempt for human beings.

The aim is to find common ground between the two world faiths, as with
similar efforts in ecumenical dialogues between Christians. The concept of
"reconciled diversity," developed for relations between churches, may also be
a useful goal for relations between Christians and Muslims.

Poverty and the HIV/AIDS pandemic are two other top challenges facing the
world community, Krause said. He pointed out that the call for communio,
which has been discussed with growing intensity in recent years, is not
primarily a call for humanitarian aid in view of poverty and HIV/AIDS, much
as that is also important, but a call to a worldwide community of trust and
hope in discipleship of Jesus Christ. "Are we ready for this * the rich with
the poor? Krause asked the Assembly participants?

The call While the East-West conflict can be consigned to history, the
conflict between North and South is getting worse, Krause stressed.

Krause declared the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification to be
the most significant theological achievement since the previous LWF Assembly
held in 1997. The landmark declaration was signed by representatives of the
LWF and the Roman Catholic Church in 1999.

The number of member churches has nearly tripled to 136 since the LWF was
founded in 1947, Krause noted. The expansion of th Federation mainly involved
churches in the South becoming members. While the churches in the North are
faced with shrinking memberships, churches in the South are growing
significantly, mainly among charismatic, spirit-filled congregations and
communities. According to the LWF president, the future of Christianity will
mainly depend on whether it is possible to gather together the historical
confessional churches and the charismatic congregations and movements.

He said there is need for new ecumenical models in order to meet one another
also across internal barriers, and deal constructively with the existing
controversies and be able to celebrate worship together. 

Krause expressed his deep sense of gratitude "for the gift of communion in
Christ which transcends all borders and divisions." He paid tribute to the
hospitality of the many people who have received him together with his wife
Gertrud during visits to member churches of the global Lutheran communion. "I
then had the strength to persevere even when the strain was great. That gave
me the resolve to stand up for our cause also before the governments and the
powerful of this world," he noted. 

He thanked the Assembly host the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and
its National Bishop Raymond Schultz, the LWF Geneva staff and the many other
people who prepared the Assembly. 

Krause was appointed as LWF President at the 1997 Ninth Assembly in Hong
Kong China. 

The Tenth Assembly of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is taking place
21-31 July 2003 in Winnipeg, Canada, under the theme "For the Healing of the
World." It is being hosted by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
(ELCIC).

There are almost 700 men, women and youth participants in the Tenth Assembly
including 356 delegates from the 133 churches with full membership and three
associate members. The Assembly is the highest decision-making body of the
LWF, and meets normally every six years. Between Assemblies, the LWF is
governed by its Council that meets annually, an by its Executive Committee. 

Further information including photos, video and audio news, is posted on the
Assembly Web site www.lwf-assembly.org 

To order photographs, please contact LWF-Photo@lutheranworld.org 

*	*	*

The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now has 136 member
churches in 76 countries representing over 61.7 million of the 65.4 million
Lutherans worldwide. 

The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest
such as ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian
assistance, human rights, communication, and the various aspects of mission
and development work. Its secretariat is located in Geneva, Switzerland.