October 28, 2007

Be grateful to God by living lives of justice, Reformed leaders from around the world and Presbyterians from Trinidad and Tobago were urged Sunday at the closing worship of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) Executive Committee meeting.

"Our gratitude to God has implications for our lifestyles, for how we pray, for our attitudes, for our actions and commitment to justice, and for our relationships, especially with those who are normally thought of as outside the group," said WARC general secretary Setri Nyomi,

"Our gratitude for the grace of God should be such that we will seek for our actions to be consistent with God's work of transformation."

He added, "Our knowing that we are who we are by God's grace leads us to a life of gratitude in which we seek to make a difference in the world so that many more can be grateful to God."

Nyomi expressed gratitude for the love of the people of Trinidad and Tobago but said that WARC leaders had also learned during their time in the country of how society here continues to disadvantage many people."

He pointed to coming elections in Trinidad and Tobago as an opportunity for the people here to be about the work of justice. "Even next week's elections can be seen as an opportunity to exercise our responsibility to vote for those who will lead this country in a manner that brings justice to all."

The theme of the meeting was "Called to communion: from Elmina to Port of Spain" and it focused largely on justice issues and the unity of the church at large and within the Reformed family. WARC agreed at the meeting to merge with the Reformed Ecumenical Council, creating a body tentatively called the World Communion of Reformed Churches.

The WARC Executive Committee joined with theirs hosts Sunday at the Aramalaya Presbyterian Church in Tunapuna for the Reformation Sunday Service that included singing in Hindi, French and Spanish; scripture reading in Indonesian and a blessing in Taiwanese.

As the invitation prayer declared, "We come from different places around this world to be one. We come from different contexts to listen and to be compassionate to each other… We come together because we care for each others as sisters and brothers."

At the communion service, the Reformed leaders and worshippers from the local congregation joined hands to form a circle around the exterior of the church sanctuary before receiving the bread and wine.

"Our hearts in some way will always be in Trinidad and Tobago," WARC president Clifton Kirkpatrick said at the end of the service. "You have offered us a new sense of being communion in one another. It has given us a marvellous sense of being part of the body of Christ."

His words were echoed by Elvis Elahie, moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Trinidad and Tobago, who noted the Reformed leaders had for the past 10 days grappled with the concept of communion.

"We hope we have provided the environment that made the move from an alliance to a communion possible," Elahie said.

The World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) brings together 75 million Reformed Christians in 214 churches in 107 countries – united in their commitment to making a difference in a troubled world. The WARC general secretary is Rev. Dr. Setri Nyomi of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana. WARC's secretariat is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

World Alliance of Reformed Churches