NEW YORK, NY—As the Chairman of the World Council of Churches
(WCC) for two unprecedented terms, Catholicos Aram I of the
Great House of Cilicia, presided over a gathering of Christian
church leaders at the Interchurch Center in New York. The World
Council of Churches comprises some 550 million Christians within
347 churches in 100 countries.
The Symposium, whose general theme was “Challenges Facing
the Ecumenical Movement in the 21st Century,” was sponsored
by the Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America,
the United States Conference of the World Council of Churches;
and the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA.
The impressive event began on Saturday morning, October 22,
with a moving Arevakal (Sunrise) services led by His Holiness,
the two Prelates of the Eastern and Western United States, Archbishop
Oshagan Choloyan and Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, and the
Vicar General of the Eastern Prelacy the Very Rev. Fr. Anoushavan
Tanielian. The Sunrise service was followed by a Meditation
based on passages from the Epistle to the Ephesians, and the
Gospel of St. John, offered by Rev. Professor Robert Wright,
of the General Theological Seminary.
Archbishop Oshagan, in a thoughtful introduction to the all-day
symposium, sounded the clarion call of the group. “We
are sent by God to be peacemakers,” he declared. “There
are ethical and moral issues today which we are losing because
of material humanism, secularism, widespread poverty, disease,
and violence within families and in different countries. These
are the challenges of the ecumenical movement. What will be
our legacy to humankind?”
Addressing the question of violence, The Rev. Deborah DeWinter,
Program Executive of the WCC, as Master of Ceremonies, stated
that the WCC is united in fighting against violence and war,
and revealed that throughout the world, 20 percent of people
die from war and terrorism, 30 percent from relational and domestic
violence, and a whopping 50 percent from suicide. “These
are startling facts which must be dealt with,” she said.
Rev. Dr. Robert W. Edgar, General Secretary of the National
Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, urged “each
person in his or her way to do something to heal the brokenness
of the planet.” He quoted a memorable phrase of the late
Pope John Paul II: “I dream of a world where no one will
be so poor that they have nothing to give, and no one will be
so rich that there is nothing they can receive.”
The Rev. Dr. Samuel Kobia, General Secretary of the WCC, tackled
the thorny “Challenges Facing the Ecumenical Movement.”
Born and raised in a remote area of Kenya, Dr. Kobia has been
described by Dr. DeWinter as a “humble pastor to his people,
and a brilliant, distinguished diplomat.” Opening his
profound message, he described five aspects to be faced in order
to shift from stumbles to stepping stones—distinguishing
between faith and institutions; taking note of the shifting
center of Christian populations from the Middle East to Western
Europe, Eastern Europe and presently to Africa, Asia and Latin
America; linking with unfamiliar groups such as the Evangelicals;
and the changing balance of global Christianity with its shifting
economic, social and military resources.
LEARN TO LISTEN WITH CARE
He called for “more dialogue as a way of addressing issues.
In order to have shared understanding in areas of change, authentic
voices speaking to the issues unknown to others should be encouraged,”
he stressed. “It is imperative to learn to listen. This
is essential to interchurch understanding, and in missionary
and social work. We must listen to other’s burdens with
a capacity to care. Listen to care with whom you disagree. If
you listen, you can care. Then respond with faith, hope and
love. This is essential for peacemaking,” he stated with
emphasis.
“The Gospel in an age of pluralism should be achieved
ecumenically, rather than from church to church. It is important
to relate to those of other non-Christian faiths for mutual
understanding and the defusing of tensions,” he continued.
“Why is it that we fail to provide, so that the youth
go and look elsewhere,” he asked. “The emphasis
should be on spirituality, not organized religion. To avoid
inward, egoistic spirituality, we should encourage spirituality
of engagement – moving from the self to the community
to overcome violence, and build a more just and caring world.”
The Rev. Dr. Wesley Granberg-Michaelson, General Secretary of
the Reformed Church in America, in addressing the central theme
from the perspective of a U.S. church leader, listed the need
for several “fresh” forms of expression. “We
must face whether the ecumenical movement will be inclusive
or protective; visionary or organization dominated; and involved
with incremental or profound changes.” He pointed out
that women, youth, Pentecostals, Evangelicals, African instituted
churches, and partly Catholics have been excluded from the ecumenical
movement.
The speaker revealed that 25 percent of Christians throughout
the world are Pentecostal, with an astonishing 19 million being
added every year, and predicted that in 50 years, there will
be one billion Pentecostals. Decrying media reports that all
Evangelicals are “right-wing,” he said that this
extreme group is only 30 percent of this religion. The reason
that these churches are growing at such a dramatic rate is that
they provide a sense of cohesion, economic and social assistance
to the poor and empowerment, he pointed out. “They are
the church of the poor. We need relationships with these churches.”
In conclusion, he urged that “deep” change is needed,
which entails “new ways of thinking and behavior. We must
discontinue the past, and take risks. We need spiritual vision,
not institutional momentum. Of the world’s 2.1 billion
Christians, only 25 percent are in the WCC. The daunting problem
of the ecumenical movement is communication.”
PANEL
DISCUSSION
A panel discussion on the topic convened after the lunch break
under the guidance of the moderator, The Very Rev. Leonid Kishkovsky,
Moderator, U.S. Conference for the World Council of Churches
and Ecumenical Officer of the Orthodox Church in America. Joining
in the discussion were Bishop Thomas Hoyt, President, National
Council of Churches of Christ in the USA; Fr. Arthur L. Kennedy,
Executive Director, Secretariat for Ecumenical and Inter-religious
Affairs, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; and The Rev. Dr.
Diane Kessler, Executive Director, Massachusetts Council of
Churches.
Thoughtful, and at times provocative, questions from the audience
added to the extended discussion that dominated the second half
of the Symposium.
ECUMENISM
MUST BE INCLUSIVE
In his eloquent address to the august assemblage, Catholicos
Aram I stated, “The ecumenical commitment is essential
for our Christian existence. We cannot live without challenges.
Christendom today is in radical change, and we are part of that
change. Without challenge, there is no ecumenical movement.”
In covering some of the crucial challenges at the present juncture
of the ecumenical movement, His Holiness said, “Ecumenism
is in search of new identity, self-understanding. We are living
in a broken world. Healing is needed. The church through the
ecumenical movement must involve itself in healing, recovering,
and discovering. Institutional ecumenism is stagnation. How
can we go beyond this and make it a people-centered reality?”
he asked.
“We have to think of those outside the group,” he
responded. “These groups are developing their own practice
of ecumenism. And this has different faces, articulations, expectations.
Today ecumenism has gone beyond individuals and churches. We
need mutual listening, understanding and growth.” Confessing
that he had “some hesitation,” about this process
at first, he said he now realizes the “legitimacy”
of such concepts.
“We have to go beyond interfaith dialogue. This is already
happening,” he asserted. “Our Christian way of life
must be responsive to the concrete realities of our life. We
need to elaborate an inclusive ecumenical vision where churches
will deepen their particularities, but always with interaction
of others. Inclusive doesn’t mean you lose your identity.
We are an integral part of a broader reality. We must come together
in spite of our differences. This is the goal of the ecumenical
movement,” he concluded to a standing ovation.
A final blessing by His Holiness concluded an informative and
intellectually stimulating day of hope and prayer. |
