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September 14, 2005
Dear Friends in the Search for Christian Unity,
I send you warm greetings from all members of
the ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations (formerly the
Department for Ecumenical Affairs). At the Churchwide Assembly in
Orlando, Florida this past August, voting members voted overwhelming
(810-169) in favor of the churchwide Restructuring Proposal that will
guide the mission of the churchwide offices for the coming years. Part
of this proposal included not merely a change of name for the Department
for Ecumenical Affairs, but a refinement of focus for both Ecumenical
and Inter-Religious relations in the ELCA. In our relations we are
committed to working with Ecumenical and Inter-Religious partners as
fellow children of God, sustained in who we are by the Holy Spirit, and
by Christ who calls us into the world.
If you have received emails from our office, or
visited our Web site lately, then you will notice the ways in which
Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations has already changed and refined
its work in the past year. New resources on Christian unity, increased
efforts in seminarian ecumenical formation both in the United States and
abroad, an expanded emphasis on interweaving both classical and
contemporary styles of ecumenism, and a new PowerPoint automated film
describing ecumenical life in the ELCA – all of these are examples of
the kind of work that is essential to everyday ecumenical life.
The phrase, “everyday ecumenical life,”
communicates a specific set of truths about the nature of the quest for
Christian unity in both the ELCA and throughout the world. That is,
ecumenical life is vibrant, includes every degree of activity from
grass-roots to international bilateral dialogues, involves both advocacy
and theological reflection, crosses intercultural and
interdenominational parameters, and in all of these things reflects the
single high priestly prayer of our Lord to be unified in a world that is
fractured by hunger, war, disease, and poverty. This Bi-monthly
E-Newsletter, appropriately called Ecumenical Life is an entry-way or
portal, a window, into the life of everyday ecumenical activity in the
world. Ecumenical Life is not a comprehensive picture that dictates a
story for you. Instead, you are encouraged to follow the links and learn
about the narrative that is already transpiring around you. If you have
an interest in Christian unity, give Ecumenical Life a chance to spark
your interest.
Michael Reid Trice
Associate Director ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
8765 West Higgins Road
Chicago, Illinois 60631
1-800-638-3522 ext. 2613
or 773-380-2613
Michael_Trice@elca.org
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