On Thursday, Protestant Christians all over the world commemorated the beginning of the Reformation in 1517. This year, ecumenism was the focus in many places. Anna-Nicole Heinrich, President of the Synod of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), called for a committed Christianity that takes responsibility in society and the world.
On Reformation Day, Protestants all over the world commemorate the beginning of the Reformation with the publication of Martin Luther’s 95 theses on October 31, 1517. With his criticism of the church of his time, Luther initiated changes that later led to the emergence of the Protestant Church . While the day of remembrance was previously used to differentiate Protestants from Catholic Christians, it is now celebrated in the spirit of ecumenism.
“Luther’s merciful God does not invite you to look away! I don’t care, it’s not an option given the need in this world,” says President Heinrich in a speech manuscript published in advance on Wednesday. According to the EKD, the theme of “grace” was the focus of Heinrich’s sermon on Thursday in the castle church in Wittenberg. Shaped by the experiences of a trip to the EU’s external border, Heinrich said: “Why do people drown in the Mediterranean? Why do we leave people to this cruel fate? I am at a loss. I want to be ungracious. With this world, with those in charge, with me himself.”
Sometimes she has the feeling that a clear edge, even disgrace, is the only honest reaction, Heinrich added: “When I feel injustice, yes, when injustice becomes tangible, then my faith calls on me to be ungracious – not out anger, but out of love for the truth.” A disgrace driven by faith is not “retaliation, not hate, not anger. It is an inner clarity that something is wrong and I am called to repent.”
On Reformation Day, Catholic ecumenical bishop Gerhard Feige called for greater cooperation between the Catholic and Protestant churches. “Our churches are in the midst of great challenges and are often busy with themselves,” said Feige on Thursday in his sermon in Hamburg’s St. Petri Church. Loss of trust and faith have increased dramatically. It is undeniable that the churches would be better perceived in society if they spoke with one voice, said the Magdeburg bishop.
Nevertheless, it should not be forgotten that the churches have long been uniting more than they are separating, “whether in the area of worship and pastoral care, the transmission of Christian values or in the commitment to peace, justice and the preservation of creation,” said Feige in the ecumenical service.
The former council chairman of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), Wolfgang Huber, expressed his confidence that the memory of Martin Luther’s posting of his theses in 1517 will not disappear in the future. The Protestant Church is doing the right thing by holding on to the meaning of this day, he told the Evangelical Press Service. Many communities also include the remembrance of the Reformation on the Sundays surrounding the holiday. “That’s why I’m confident that the memory of the Reformation and its contemporary significance will not be lost,” said the former Berlin bishop.
According to the speech manuscript, the leading bishop of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany (VELKD), Ralf Meister, recalled the “Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification,” which was signed by Protestants and Catholics in Augsburg 25 years ago. This declaration was a breakthrough in ecumenism because it lifted centuries-old mutual doctrinal condemnations. Feige also described it as a “groundbreaking ecumenical event” in his sermon.
To date, the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification is considered the only ecumenical consensus document in the Western Church that has been officially recognized and confirmed. However, there are currently no practical effects in church life.
Theologian Körtner promotes a culture of forgiveness
In view of a world that is increasingly characterized by mercilessness, the Viennese theologian Ulrich Körtner promotes a culture of mercy and forgiveness. In the modern world court, “everyone is prosecutor, judge and defendant at the same time,” says a guest article by the university professor at the University of Vienna for the Austrian daily newspaper “Die Presse” (Thursday) on Reformation Day: “The court shows and public confessions on private TV are the ones Farce on the modern merciless world court.”
With the religious concept of sin, the modern world has also lost the dimension of grace: “Man, as the ultimate responsible and accused, cannot hope for any authority to acquit him.” Seen in this way, the question of the merciful God that moved Martin Luther and his time was by no means resolved, Körtner added: “The Reformation message of justification is aimed at people who, in modern terms, are fighting for their recognition.”
“Now man himself is judge and defendant at the same time,” said the theologian. “Because God is missing, human justification is replaced by a culture of being right,” he takes up an idea by the writer Martin Walser (1927-2023).
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