March 4, 2003

MEDAN, Indonesia/GENEVA - Delegates from the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member churches in Asia, were reminded that the church is blessed with the "incredible greatness of God's power" to embark on the huge and challenging mission to heal the world.

Delivering the sermon during the opening worship service of the Asia Pre-Assembly Consultation and Asia Church Leadership Conference, Bishop Dr. Wesley Kigasung, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (ELC-PNG), challenged the churches on their calling to be the full expression of Christ as the ultimate healer of the world.

"In our attempt to bring healing to others we must be encouraged by our own experience of being saved, redeemed, forgiven and given new life through God's amazing grace," Kigasung told representatives of LWF member churches in the region, during the worship at the Protestant Christian Batak Church (HKBP) cathedral in Medan. His reflections, based on Ephesians 1: 3-23, focused on how the Asian churches understand the task of healing in their own context, as expressed in the LWF Tenth Assembly theme, "For the Healing of the World." The Assembly, the LWF's highest decision-making body will take place in Winnipeg, Canada next July.

Kigasung noted that the Assembly theme certainly brings to mind many frightening and sickening images of the pain and suffering caused by HIV/AIDS, terrorism, all forms of violence, environmental degradation, war, corruption among a host of other problems in the world. But, he stressed, the churches "must never be discouraged and become weak," for God has empowered them to embark on the mission of healing.

The ELC-PNG head noted that often when reflecting on the Assembly theme, he asked himself whether it was really the world or the people in it that needed healing. He pointed out that human beings have become too wise, knowledgeable, powerful and proud that "so often we tend to forget about God and to take God's place." The evil, pain and suffering inflicted upon the world "is our own making," according to Kigasung. When human beings attempt to recreate the world with their knowledge and wisdom "we only cause destruction to God's original creation and the world groans in pain." The church, he told Lutheran church representatives from Asia, must be filled with the spiritual wisdom and understanding for the healing of the world.

The LWF-Asia region is divided into three sub-regions - North East Asian Lutheran Communion - NEALUC, South East Asian Lutheran Communion - SEALUC and West South Asian Lutheran Communion - WeSALUC - with 46 LWF member churches, two of which are associate members . It has a combined membership of 7 million people.

Greeting the congregation, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko stressed the importance of "bearing one another's burden" as members of one communion. Basing his reflections on Galatians 6: 2, he said carrying each other's burdens calls for trust and openness to each other. He noted that the Asia pre-Assembly was taking place during a very difficult global context in which openness and trust become very vital.

The head of the 3 million-member HKPB, Bishop Dr Jubil R. Hutauruk also greeted the congregation and welcomed the regional pre-Assembly participants to Indonesia.

Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan, gave the benediction in Arabic.

The Asia pre-Assembly s the third such consultation before the July 2003 LWF Tenth Assembly that will take place in Winnipeg, Canada. A pre-Assembly for North America took place in Denver, Colorado in the USA, January 23-26 while Europe's was held February 23-26 in Vienna, Austria. Representatives from the Africa region will meet March 23-26 in Nairobi, Kenya, while the Latin America and Caribbean consultation will be held April 7-10 in San Salvador, El Salvador. An international Women's Pre-Assembly Gathering took place 14-17 November 2002 in Montreux, Switzerland, and a global youth conference will be held prior to the Assembly.

Lutheran World Information