Why We Wrote an Open Letter to the EKD and WCC on the War of Aggression Against Ukraine

“War shall not be according to God\u27s will. This simple sentence was agreed upon by the World Council of Churches (WCC) when it was founded in 1948. The start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, broke with this principle of the Ecumenical Movement. We were sure that the churches of all confessions, especially our own church, the Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD) and all other member churches of the WCC, would immediately and unanimously position themselves against the Russian war of aggression. But the clear word, which we had hoped for, did not come

Open Letter to the Synod of the Evangelical Church in Germany and the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches

Excerpt: We are troubled by the prospect that the ROC, as a member of the World Council of Churches (WCC), might spread its war propaganda on German soil and falsely portray itself as a victim when the WCC Assem bly convenes in Karlsruhe, Germany, from August 31 to September 8, 2022. Despite your dedicated efforts, General Secretary Sauca, there are no indi cations of change in the ideological positions of the Moscow Patriarchate. On the contrary, your offer of a fraternal bridge was rejected by Patriarch Kirill with an incongruent reference to the Toronto Declaration of 1950 and followed up with renewed war propaganda and lies. We read this answer as an anti-ecumenical statement and question the ecumenical commitment of the ROC. There has been no sign of a change of heart, nor is there any willingness to engage in genuine dialogue. Such a break with the Christian tradition of reconciliation and peace must not go unanswered. Since the founding assembly in Amsterdam in 1948, the ecumenical move ment has been guided by the idea that “war is contrary to the will of God“. Is the ROC still rooted in the ecumenical movement in this situation when it justifies the Russian attack as a holy war? The presence of senior representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate in Karlsruhe would not only mean a public loss of trust for the churches in Germany–it would be a disaster in ecumenical, church policy and human terms

Warum wir einen Offenen Brief an die Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD) und den Ökumenischen Rat der Kirchen (ÖRK) zum Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine geschrieben haben

Non peer reviewe

Open Letter to the Synod of the Evangelical Church in Germany and the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches

Non peer reviewe