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Lutheran World Information Lutheran World Information The Lutheran World Federation LWI – A Communion of Churches FEATURE: “Don’t Worry, 150, route de Ferney P.O. Box 2100 I Was a Beggar Once” CH-1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland Telephone +41/22-791 61 11 Fax +41/22-791 66 30 E-mail: [email protected] www.lutheranworld.org Editor-in-Chief Karin Achtelstetter [email protected] English Editor Pauline Mumia [email protected] German Editor Dirk-Michael Grötzsch [email protected] Layout Stéphane Gallay [email protected] Circulation/Subscription The Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS), one of Bangladesh’s longest-serv- Janet Bond-Nash ing NGOs and a lead actor in rural development, is an associate program of [email protected] the LWF Department for World Service (DWS). The RDRS supports a tiered The Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the network of federations, local groups, group member households and individu- information service of the Lutheran World als in capacity building and empowerment. (Above) A trained group member Federation (LWF). vaccinates poultry. © LWF/RDRS Bangladesh/B. Ahmed (See page 11) Unless specifically noted, material presented does not represent positions or opinions of Highlights the LWF or of its various units. Where the dateline of an article contains the notation Historic Visit of Greek Orthodox Christian Bodies Look at New (LWI), the material may be freely reproduced Archbishop Affirms Dedication to UN Human Rights Council with with acknowledgement. Lutheran-Orthodox Dialogue ..........4 Cautious Optimism ...........................7 The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) considers Five international Christian bodies expect the first-ever visit to the LWF Secretariat by the that the newly elected UN Human Rights head of the Orthodox Church of Greece as a Council will grant a “truly open space” for significant affirmation of the churches’ “dedicated non-governmental organization participation contribution” to the Lutheran-Orthodox dialogue on behalf of victims of human rights at regional and international level. violations. Lutheran Churches in Mecklenburg- Maintaining Churches’ Western Pomerania Plan Merger ...5 Multidimensional Ministries Is a If all goes as planned, the synods of the Major Challenge .................................7 Evangelical Lutheran Church of Mecklenburg The leader of the Evangelical Lutheran and the Evangelical Church of Pomerania Church of Cameroon says the greatest will come together in late August for a first challenge for the Cameroonian church is how common assembly to sign a framework to support its multidimensional ministries in agreement to merge the two churches. a sustainable way. 200605 Contents Communio 3........ LWF.Mourns.Head.of.Estonian.Lutheran.Church.Abroad 3........ Helsinki.Bishop.Hails.Historical.Value.of.Finland’s.Porvoo.Cathedral. 4......... Historic.Visit.of.Greek.Orthodox.Archbishop.Affirms.Dedication.to.Lutheran-Orthodox.Dialogue 5........ Lutheran.Churches.in.Mecklenburg-Western.Pomerania.Plan.Merger LWF Secretariat 7........ Christian.Bodies.Look.at.New.UN.Human.Rights.Council.with.Cautious.Optimism. 7........ Maintaining.Churches’.Multidimensional.Ministries.Is.a.Major.Challenge Features & Themes 10....... FEATURE:.Confirmation.Training.Is.Central.to.the.Culture.of.Finnish.Youth. 11....... FEATURE:.“Don’t.Worry,.I.Was.a.Beggar.Once” News in Brief 2........ Tamás.Fabiny.Becomes.Bishop.of.Northern.District.of.Hungary’s.Lutheran.Church. 6........ Lutheran.Paul.Johnson.to.Serve.as.a.Vice.President.of.Canadian.Council.of.Churches 6........ Errol.Inshanally.Elected.President.of.Evangelical.Lutheran.Church.in.Guyana 9........ André.Golike.Is.President.of.Lutheran.Church.in.the.Central.African.Republic 9........ Church.of.Sweden.Ordains.First.Deaf.Pastor 10....... Bishop.Andreas.Stökl.of.Evangelical.Lutheran.Church.in.Georgia.Dies 12....... Canadian.Lutheran.World.Relief.Appoints.Daranne.Mills.as.Communications.Director Tamás Fabiny Becomes Bishop of Northern District of Hungary’s Lutheran Church Rev..Dr.Tamás.Fabiny, a professor for New Testament theol- ogy at the Evangelical Lutheran Theological University in Budapest, is the new bishop of the Northern District of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hungary. He was installed at Miskolc, Hungary, on 25 March, succeeding Imre Szebik, who retired on 1 March. Fabiny, 46, was a student at Budapest’s Evangelical Lutheran Theological Academy from 1977 to 1982, and ordained as a pastor in 1982. While assistant pastor in Siófok, Hungary, from 1982 to 1986, he also studied abroad, in Germany from 1984 to 1985, and in the United States of America from 1985 to 1986. Following his second theologi- Lutheran World Information World Lutheran cal examination in 1987, he worked as a parish pastor in Budapest-Köbánya from 1987 to 1999. Fabiny received his doctorate from the Friedrich Alex- ander University in Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, for his Leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hungary at the installation dissertation on “Dramaturgy and Communications in Jesus’ of Bishop Tamás Fabiny in Miskolc, northern Hungary: from left to right, retired Presiding Bishop D. Imre Szebik; Bishop Dr Tamás Fabiny, Northern Parables.” He was appointed lecturer at Budapest’s Evangeli- Diocese; and Bishop Peter Gáncs, Southern Diocese. © Kiss-Kuntler Árpád cal Lutheran Theological University in 1999, and following his “Habilitation” (post-doctoral degree) from the Reformed topics including church and society, Christians and Jews, the Theological University of Debrecen, Hungary, he was again Bible, and congregational life. He has also chaired the media named professor for New Testament theology at the Evan- committee of Hungary’s Lutheran church since 1997. gelical Lutheran Theological University in Budapest. Bishop Fabiny is married with three children. Since 1996, Fabiny has been active as a producer of reli- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hungary, with gious programming for Hungary’s Duna Televízió television some 305,000 members, has been an LWF member church network, producing some 100 reports and documentaries on since 1947. 2 No. 05/2006 LWF Mourns Head of Estonian Lutheran Information World Lutheran Church Abroad Archbishop Petersoo “Brought a Strong Sense of Tradition” GENEVA, 26 May 2006 (LWI) – The “As a leader in the Estonian Evan- Lutheran World Federation (LWF) gelical Lutheran Church Abroad, he has sent a message of condolence to exhibited a strong faith and a love the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran of God’s people. Many have been Church (EELC) Abroad following the blessed by his service,” the LWF death of Archbishop Udo Petersoo general secretary noted. in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. He Petersoo was born in 1934 in Tal- died on 14 May, aged 72. linn, Estonia. A graduate of the Water- In a letter addressed to the Toronto- loo Lutheran Seminary in Waterloo, based EELC Abroad, LWF General Sec- Ontario, Canada, he was ordained retary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko described in 1975. Prior to his September 1990 Petersoo as a partner in the joint LWF election as EELC-Abroad Archbishop, work, who understood the depth of the he was dean of Canada and pastor of meaning of a communion of churches Toronto’s St Andrew’s congregation. in view of the church’s close working Archbishop Udo Petersoo, Estonian Evangelical Archbishop Udo Petersoo is Lutheran Church Abroad, 1934-2006. © Private relationship with sister churches in survived by his wife, Reet Petersoo, Europe. “Working with the community of believers in three children and one grandchild. The funeral North America as archbishop, he brought a strong sense service was held at St Andrew’s Estonian Lutheran of history and tradition to the culture,” he said. Church in Toronto. Noko paid tribute to Petersoo’s strong commit- The EELC Abroad currently has around 6,600 ment to the gospel during his tenure as archbishop. members. It joined the LWF in 1947. Helsinki Bishop Hails Historical Value of Finland’s Porvoo Cathedral Despite Fire Damage, Its Ecumenical Force Will Remain Intact HELSINKI, Finland/GENEVA, 2 June 2006 (LWI) – Bish- op Dr Eero Huovinen, vice-president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Nordic region, says the medi- eval Porvoo Cathedral, partially destroyed in a recent fire, is a significant historical marker. Its importance is not only in relation to local congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (ELCF) and the country but also to global ecumenism. The cathedral in Porvoo, 50 km east of the capital Helsinki, was damaged by fire early in the morning of 29 May. Reports from the Finnish media said police had questioned three suspects—two young men and one young woman, who had given themselves up claiming re- sponsibility for the fire that burned the cathedral’s roof. In a recent interview with Lutheran World Informa- The top half of the Porvoo Cathedral was destroyed by fire on 29 May 2006. tion (LWI), Huovinen, bishop of the ELCF Diocese of © Sirpa Päivinen/KuvaKotimaa Helsinki, which covers Porvoo’s Finnish-speaking con- Huovinen said he had joined Bishop Erik Vikström gregations, said Finland’s history was directly linked of the Swedish-speaking Diocese of Porvoo in a well-at- to the cathedral. In 1809, it was where Tsar Alexander tended prayer service for the cathedral, held in the city’s I had declared Finland, then under the Swedish crown, market square in the afternoon after the incident. an autonomous territory of the Russian empire. This Huovinen, a member of the LWF Council’s Program opened the way to the country’s independence more Committee
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