June 30, 2005

AUGSBURG, Germany/GENEVA – The General Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko, has urged facing up to the ecumenical challenges consequential to Christians' shared common faith. "Through faith we are the undisputed recipients of God's promise to Abraham," he said in his sermon during the celebration of the 475th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession (Confessio Augustana), which took place on Sunday June 26 in the Evangelical Lutheran Holy Cross Church in Augsburg, Germany.

"God's promise to Abraham is the promise to the world," Noko said. "The nations of the world are the addressees of Divine Love. We stand justified before God like our parent Abraham, not because we deserve it. Not because of ethnic ancestry but only on the basis of faith that trusts in the Triune God," he continued in his interpretation of Romans 4:13-17. Consequently, he stressed, "We are challenged to find ways of living a shared faith and life in the proclamation of the gospel and worship life that is expressed in the common celebration of the Lord's table."

In 1999, after countless wars, tensions, and 470 years of separation of the two faiths, Lutherans and Roman Catholics together confessed in the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ) "that God forgives sin by grace and at the same time frees human beings from sin's enslaving power and imparts the gift of new life in Christ." This joint confession can only be best described as a gift from God, Noko stated. "May the gracious God of Abraham give us courage and faith to be a Church for others for the healing of the world."

Noko said it was a "joy and honor" for him to be in the historic city of Augsburg on the occasion of the anniversary celebration of the Confessio Augustana, which had been "officially and publicly read before the dignitaries and leading theological minds of the Church and before the representatives of the Holy Roman Empire and regional and municipal authorities in the year 1530." He said that one could sense or imagine the level of anxiety that must have accompanied the participants. The Emperor Charles V, wanting to keep the empire united, Noko said, had taken charge of the deliberations. Theologians on both sides of the argument had sought to overcome the pending rift within the church.

The city of Augsburg was remembered not only in connection with that event, but also for numerous other historic events, Noko said, such as the peace of Augsburg in 1555 and the ecumenical event of 31 October 1999, when the LWF and the Roman Catholic Church signed the JDDJ. "The action of confirming the Joint Declaration has put in place an ecumenical bridge enabling God's people to walk with confidence toward new ecumenical possibilities," he noted.

The LWF general secretary stated that the signing of the JDDJ had confirmed agreement between Lutherans and Roman Catholics with respect to a central issue, "that Lutheran churches and the Roman Catholic Church have listened together to the gospel proclaimed in the Holy Scripture." Listening together had led to a shared understanding of justification, he said.

A small church convention to celebrate the 475th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession took place at the Annahof, in Augsburg, 25-26 June. Approximately 100 guests from eight central and east European countries participated in the events. The spiritual highlight was a festive worship service on Sunday June 26. The modern-day significance of the Augsburg Confession for Christianity as a whole was discussed at a June 24 symposium.

The Augsburg Confession, written primarily by Philipp Melanchthon, was unveiled at the Reichstag in Augsburg on 25 June 1530, and presented to the Emperor in Latin and German. The Confessio Augustana contains 28 articles and is divided into two parts. The first 21 sections relate to fundamental issues of faith according to Protestant understanding. The last seven articles address abuses within the church in need of remedy. The Reformers originally attempted to use the articles of the Augsburg Confession to recover commonalties with the Roman Catholic Church. Only in the last articles did the authors see true differences with respect to the Roman Catholic Church, and therefore they hoped to find an understanding. Thereafter, the Augsburg Confession became the central document for the faith of the churches of the Reformation in the Lutheran tradition.

The complete text of the sermon by LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko is available on the LWF Web site at: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/475_Years_AC_Sermon-Noko.pdf .

Lutheran World Information