Rome (NEV), December 28, 2017 – “Ecclesia semper reformanda est”. This is the title of the document made public on December 19 by the 7 churches and the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy (FCEI) that organized the ecumenical meeting “In the name of the One who reconciles us all in one body”, (Assisi, 22-24 Novembre 2017).
The paper was jointly signed by the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of England, the Orthodox Holy Archdiocese of Italy and Malta, the Romanian Orthodox Diocese in Italy and FCEI, which includes the Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, Waldensian churches and the Salvation Army. The Coptic Orthodox Church and the Italian Union of the Seventh-day Adventist Christian Churches (UICCA) signed as observers.
“All these churches – the text reads – were challenged by the same theme, that is the urgency to give a common Christian witness in order to achieve a full reconciliation of the Christian family, so as to make the announcement of the Word of God in the Italian society more and more effective”.
The ecumenical appeal of Assisi begins with a thought “addressed to the Christians who in the Middle East and in various other places of the world, are persecuted for their inalienable love for God”, their testimony “is for all of us a true preaching of the Gospel that calls for an awakening of our consciences”.
The text then continues by offering 5 hints for reflection which, in the intentions of the writers, should be discussed at “local level to encourage the growth of a daily witness to the ecumenical dimension of the Christian faith”.
In particular, the document reiterates that every church reformation is a work of God; it indicates in the fidelity of God – that is, in his absolute love which is revealed in the Crucified Lord -, “the only way for a world of peace, justice, freedom and solidarity between human beings and peoples”; calls the churches to confront themselves on the multicultural and interreligious reality without fear and without preconceptions, and to “interact with today’s culture while remaining a critical and prophetic voice”; invites everyone to ask him/herself whether the crucified Christ is still today “scandal and folly”, as the Apostle Paul affirmed.
