July 29, 2003

WINNIPEG, Canada - In silent and solemn procession delegates and visitors to the Tenth Assembly of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) walked from the Winnipeg Convention Centre through the streets of Winnipeg to the Oodeena to protest the Canadian government's refusal to grant visas to 53 of their fellow delegates from developing nations.

The Oodeena is located next to Johnston Terminal, the location of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada offices.

The procession which had a police escort was led by the Rev. Raymond Schultz, National Bishop, the Assembly host-church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, LWF President Bishop em. Dr Christian Krause, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko and several clergy.

A single drumbeat greeted the marchers' arrival in the amphitheatre. A fragrant wood fire and torches lit the ancient Ojibway meeting ground, as a liturgy of prayer and chant were punctuated by delegates' personal stories of discrimination and injustice. From Tanzania, Latin America and Greenland, indigenous peoples shared their pain and the church's role in their presence here today. A round in which worshippers chanted the single word "Shalom" in four parts seemed to give voice to the purpose of the event: to show solidarity with brothers and sisters who were not able to be present and to offer them a symbol of hope for peace and justice.

Lutheran World Federation News