ELCA NEWS SERVICE
March 23, 2007
Lutheran World Federation 60th Anniversary Celebrations on Web March 25
07-40-LWI*/JB
CHICAGO (ELCA) - A live transmission of the celebrations to
mark the 60th anniversary of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
in Lund, Sweden, will be available on the Internet. The
celebrations begin with a festive Eucharistic service at 11 a.m.
local time (5 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time) March 25 in the Lund Cathedral
and continue in the afternoon at the campus of the Lund
University, where the LWF was founded in 1947. A live Web
streaming and later video streaming of the events will be made
available.
The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is a global communion of
Christian churches in the Lutheran tradition. The LWF has 140
member churches in 78 countries throughout the world,
representing nearly 66.7 million Christians.
Karin Achtelstetter, director, LWF Office for Communication
Services, said the live transmission offers people among the 140
LWF member churches an opportunity to participate in the festive
anniversary celebrations.
"There are nearly 66.7 million Christians in the worldwide
communion of LWF churches. Making it possible for them to follow
an important event like the LWF's 60th anniversary celebrations
is a way of living out communion," she said.
An estimated 500 people are attending the LWF events,
including more than 100 church leaders participating in the
Church Leadership Consultation and the anniversary celebrations
taking place in conjunction with the regular LWF Council meeting.
The Rev. Ishmael Noko, LWF general secretary, emphasized the
significance of a symbolic ceremony at the March 25 festivities,
during which the leadership from the elders who were present 60
years ago in Lund will be passed on to the youth representatives
at the council events. This will be an important ritual in
recognizing the role of the young generation in the leadership of
the Lutheran communion, he said.
A multi-media presentation on the LWF Web site --
http://www.lutheranworld.org/Welcome.EN.html -- includes
discussions from the church leadership consultation and council
meeting in Lund. Also available are news releases in English and
German, photos, audio and video feature articles, as well as
links to the live streaming and on-demand video at
http://www.lutheranworld.org/Council/2007/Council-Video-Streaming-
EN.html on the Web.
On March 24, former Finnish President and United Nations
special envoy for Kosovo, Martti Ahtisaari, will address the
participants on the "House of Europe." The March 24 afternoon
plenary session will be video streamed on the LWF Web site.
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*This report on the LWF Council meeting was supplied by
Lutheran World Information, Geneva.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://www.elca.org/news
