wfn.org | LWF Welcomes Merger Agreement between Dutch Lutherans and

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

LWF Welcomes Merger Agreement between Dutch Lutherans and Reformed 
An Important Decision for Both Confessional Families Worldwide 

UTRECHT, The Netherlands/GENEVA, 19 December 2003 (LWI) - The
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) described the recent agreement on
a merger between the Lutheran church and two Reformed churches in
the Netherlands as "a far-reaching and important decision, not
only for the churches in the Netherlands, but also for the
relationship of the Lutheran and Reformed families worldwide." 

The nearly 15,000-member Evangelical Lutheran Church in the
Kingdom of the Netherlands will merge with the countrys two
largest Reformed churches - the 1.9 million-member Netherlands
Reformed Church (NRC) and the 660,000-member Reformed Churches in
the Netherlands (RCN). The Protestant Church in the Netherlands
(PCN), with over 2.5 million members, officially comes into being
on 1 May 2004.

The synods of the three churches each approved the merger at
separate meetings in the city of Utrecht on December 12. The
synod presidents then signed the formal union agreement during a
worship service that was attended by among others Queen Beatrix
and the head of the Roman Catholic Church in the Netherlands,
Cardinal Adrianus Simonis. 

The merger go-ahead ends the "Together on the Way" - "Samen op
Weg" union process that began with an appeal for the reunion of
the two Reformed churches in 1961. The Lutheran church joined in
1990, at which point the reunion effort became a union effort.
The Dutch Lutheran church and the NRC both date from the
16th-century Reformation movement, while the RCN was formed from
19th-century schisms in the NRC.

Rev. Dr Bas Plaisier, general secretary of the current federation
of the three churches spoke of the historic significance of the
union. "For the first time in the history of the Netherlands, the
two most important traditions in Protestantism are joining
together." 

In total, 147 synod members voted for the merger and 36 against.
The Lutheran and RCN synods each voted with clear majorities of
over 80 percent in favor. In the 75-member NRC synod, the vote
was 51 in favor out of the 75 votes that were cast. At its synod,
the Lutheran church approved the merger with 30 votes in favor
and six against. A minimum of 27 votes, representing a three
quarters' majority was required. 

Hailing the Lutheran vote a "historic decision," synod president
Ilona Fritz assured the synod members that "we are not closing
down the [Dutch] Lutheran church. Merging means continuing, with
the other churches. We hope, pray and expect that we will find a
home in the new church and that we support each other on the
way."

During the days discussions, synod members asked for assurances
that the Dutch Lutheran churchs current membership in the LWF
will be continued through the PCN.  Synod president Fritz and LWF
Europe Area Secretary Rev. Dr Andreas Woehle, gave the assurances
that the world body will welcome an application for membership in
the LWF, which the new Dutch church has agreed to apply for.

"The LWF congratulates the three churches in the Netherlands 
and is also aware of the intention of the new church body to seek
membership in the LWF as well as in the World Alliance of
Reformed Churches (WARC)," said the statement signed by Rev. Sven
Oppegaard, LWF Assistant General Secretary for Ecumenical
Affairs. 

There are currently four Lutheran-reformed union churches with
membership in both the LWF and WARC, namely the Ethiopian
Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus; Evangelical Church of the River
Plate, in Argentina; the Church of Lippe, in Germany; and the
Malagasy Protestant Church in France.

The PCN is set to be the second largest church in the
Netherlands, after the 5-million-member Roman Catholic Church.
Many of the countrys smaller Protestant churches, including
several Reformed churches, will remain separate from the new
church. Some 40 percent of the Dutch population do not belong to
any organized religious group. (645 words)

(By LWI correspondent Andreas Havinga, Netherlands) 

(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 inter-faith 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 LWF' information service.
Unless specifically noted, material presented does not represent
positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various units. Where
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