The 13th General Assembly of the Conference of European Churches (KEK) is opening in Lyon, France, tomorrow. 750 representatives of the Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican and Vetero-Catholic Churches are expected to take part in it. Apart from the delegates of the 120 churches which are part of KEK, the representatives of 40 associated organizations, observers and guests will participate. The Assembly is officially opening at 2:30 p.m., at the historical church of St. Bonaventure, in Lyon. The delegates of the European Churches will be welcomed by Card. Philippe Barbarin, Catholic archbishop of Lyon, and Father Athanase Iskos, representative of the Council of local Churches. The sermon will be delivered by Archbishop Anastasios, leader of the Orthodox Church of Albania. After the service, the participants will go to the Congress Centre in the International City of Lyon, where the Assembly will take place until July 21st. The programme of the meeting, whose theme is “Called to a sole hope for Christ" is based on plenary sessions alternating with times for group work. They will talk about the path covered by KEK, the “future of the ecumenical movement in Europe”, and the “priorities for the next 6 years”. They are celebrating the 50th anniversary of KEK foundation on Sunday 19th. Romanian Patriarch Daniel, Bartholomew I, and Evangelic Bishop Wolfgang Huber are expected to speak during the works.
© SIR 14 july 2009