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Towards the 3d European Ecumenical Assembly |
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Published by Interfax (Russian)
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Friday, 20 April 2007 |
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Towards the 3d European Ecumenical Assembly “The 3d European Ecumenical Assembly will take place from September 4 to 9, 2007, in Sibiu, Romania. It is organized jointly by the Conference of European Churches (CEC) and the Catholic Council of Bishops' Conferences in Europe (CCEE). … The Catholic priest was supported by Latvian Lutherans, who believe that democracy is experiencing a systemic crisis and therefore needs Christianity since its main problem is godlessness. Especially strong was the statement made by Rev. Indulis PaiÄs who compared Europe to a ship that has moved through centuries thanks to its engine, which is Christian culture. But Europe, having formed human rights system, which has proved logical and self-sufficient, has voluntarily switched this engine off and thus found itself on the verge of wreckage. … Participants repeatedly addressed the problem of conflict between the Islamic faith and culture and the modern European values and agreed that Muslims are much more effective than Christians in defending their worldviews. On the other hand, a point was expressed whereby it is the departure of Europe from Christianity that encourages the manifestations of Islamic extremism and its escalation. In response to these statements, Metropolitan Kirill suggested that the Assembly in Sibiu should hold an open discussion on the Christian-Islamic relations in Europe in spite of the fact that the European rules of political correctness do not allow even hinting at relationships with Muslims. Russian Protestants were also active in the discussion. Vladimir Samoilov of the Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in Russia (UECBR) supported the position held by the Russian Orthodox Church on the Ecumenical Charter. The UECBR, which pulled out of all the international ecumenical organizations immediately after the Perestroika, now considers seriously coming back to the CEC and sending a delegation to Sibiu….”
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