Rev. Dr Johannes Zeiler from the Church of Sweden and Jean-Daniel Plüss from the European Pentecostal Charismatic Research Association, co-chairs of the 2nd phase of the Lutheran Pentecostal dialogue. Photos: LWF/A. Hillert
Theologians from LWF and Pentecostal World Fellowship to meet in Brazil to explore ways of worship and formation
(LWI) - Lutherans and Pentecostals will inaugurate a second round of theological dialogue from 21 to 28 February, with participants focusing on worship and Christian formation within the two global communions. Their first meeting will be hosted by the Faculdades EST Lutheran University in São Leopoldo, southern Brazil.
A first round of dialogue between the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Pentecostal World Fellowship took place between 2016 and 2022, culminating in a report entitled ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me’. During their meetings, held in the Philippines, Germany, Chile, Madagascar and the United States, participants explored aspects of Christian identity and ministry, including ways of proclaiming the gospel in word and deed, attention to the poor and marginalized, and the ministries of healing and deliverance.
The overarching theme of that first round of dialogue was Christian identity in light of Luke 4:18-19. Through in-person annual meetings, the partners grew to better understand each other, including at the local level, to appreciate each other’s theological and spiritual traditions and to find ways for common witness.
This is the beauty and the challenge: to be attentive to our different contexts and traditions and, at the same time, to be creative and bold in our theological reflection.
Rev. Dr Johannes Zeiler from the Church of Sweden
The second round hopes to take the dialogue one step further as it reflects upon worship in both communions and how worship shapes Christian formation. “This theme,” said Prof. Dirk Lange, LWF Assistant General Secretary for Ecumenical Relations, “arose thanks to discussions in the Committee for Ecumenical Relations of the LWF Council. It became clear that the dialogue needed to address issues that parishes, both Lutheran and Pentecostal, confronted in their immediate, local, contexts. Two Scripture texts - Acts 2:38, 42-47 and Romans 12:1-2,9-13 – were then chosen to guide this second round.
The Lutheran-Pentecostal dialogue is one of the more recent ecumenical relationships. It began in the early 2000s with a series of preparatory meetings organized by the Institute for Ecumenical Research in Strasbourg, France. This second round will be co-chaired by Rev. Dr Johannes Zeiler from the Church of Sweden, alongside Swiss ecumenist Jean-Daniel Plüss, chair of the European Pentecostal Charismatic Research Association.
Zeiler, who serves as canon chancellor at Linköping Cathedral in southern Sweden, said: “Lutherans and Pentecostals have so much to learn from one another. To participate in a dialogue like this implies a process of joint learning and reflection based on shared experiences from diverse societal and religious contexts across the globe. This is the beauty and the challenge: to be attentive to our different contexts and traditions and, at the same time, to be creative and bold in our theological reflection.”
