Introduction

The Conference of European Churches (CEC) is the regional ecumenical organisation of the Orthodox, Anglican, Old Catholic and Protestant churches of Europe. It is one of the eight regional ecumenical organisations which together cover practically the whole world. Although an autonomous body, CEC cooperates with the World Council of Churches (WCC).

History

The movement which led to the creation of the Conference of European Churches dates back to the period of the cold war. The fragmented and divided Europe of the 1940s and 1950s needed to surmount political divisions to devote itself anew to the peoples torn apart by the Second World War.

At this time a small group of church leaders in East and West Europe began to consider together the possibility of bringing into conversation churches in European countries separated by different political, economic and social systems. Their aim was to enable the churches of Europe to become instruments of peace and understanding.

Exploratory and preparatory meetings took place in 1953 and 1957. In January 1959 representatives of more than 40 churches met in Nyborg Strand, Denmark for the first Assembly of CEC. A second Assembly was held in 1960 and a third in 1962, both in Nyborg.

At first the organisation represented a loose association of churches, but with the adoption of a Constitution at the 1964 Assembly a significant step was taken towards forming a regional conference of churches. This Assembly was held at sea, aboard the m.v. Bornholm, in order to overcome last-minute visa difficulties.

The fifth Assembly in 1967, held in Pörtschach, Austria, created a full-time secretariat as from April 1968. Subsequent Assemblies were held in Nyborg Strand (1971), Engelberg, Switzerland (1974), Chania, Crete (1979), Stirling, Scotland (1986), Prague, former CSFR (1992) when a radically revised Constitution was adopted, and Graz, Austria (1997). The next Assembly will be in Trondheim, Norway, from 25 June to 2 July, 2003.

Since its beginning CEC has seen as one of its principal tasks the building of bridges between Eastern and Western Europe. This bridge-building has also been between minority and majority churches and between Christians of different confessional traditions. CEC meetings are important points of encounter for church leaders and church members, where theological and social reflection is encouraged. These meetings also provide a spur to constructive activity, especially in the field of peace, justice and reconciliation.

Membership

Today, CEC has some 125 member churches in all the countries of Europe, nearly half in the central and eastern area. Almost 30 of the CEC member churches are not members of the WCC. All the main confessional families are represented: Orthodox, Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican, Methodist, Baptist, Old Catholics and Pentecostals. A number of ethnic minority churches are also members. Member churches must adhere to the following: "The Conference of European Churches is an ecumenical fellowship of churches in Europe which confess the Lord Jesus Christ as God and Saviour according to the Scriptures, and therefore seek to fulfil together their common callng, to the glory of the one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit."

Since 1992 church-related groups have been able to become Associated Organizations of CEC. To date 40 such organizations have taken advantage of this way of being in close touch with the activities and programmes of CEC. These organizations include national councils of churches and groupings of laity, women and youth whose programmes are run parallel to and often in cooperation with CEC.

Cooperation with the Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church is not a member of CEC, but there is close cooperation with the Council of European Bishops Conferences (CCEE). One result of this has been the holding of five European Ecumenical Encounters between CEC and CCEE. These took place in Chantilly, France (1978); Logumkloster, Denmark (1981); Riva del Garda, Italy (1984); Erfurt, former GDR (1988); Santiago de Compostela, Spain (1991); amd Strasbourg, France (2001), where the "Charta Oecumenica - Guidelines for the Growing Cooperation among the Churches in Europe."was adopted.

CEC and CCEE have also jointly organised two European Ecumenical Assemblies, in Basel, Switzerland (1989) on the theme "Peace with Justice, and Graz, Austria (1997) on "Reconciliation-Gift of God and Source of New Life".

Developments

Over the years, developments in structure have followed the diversification of activities and the increase in membership. After a first stage which relied on frequent assemblies, the mid-60s saw assemblies spaced further apart. Contact between assemblies was kept alive by an increasing number of consultations on specific themes, usually with 40-50 participants each. Some 10 years later actual programmes were established. One on theological studies was followed by another on inter-church service and, later still, by a human rights programme, set within the framework of the Helsinki Final Act of the then Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE; now OSCE), and co-sponsored with the Canadian Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA. Other areas of work now include "Islam in Europe" (in cooperation with CCEE), women's issues, refugees and asylum seekers, and communications.

CEC has had to face a number of situations peculiar to Europe. Among these are the long history of separation and enmity between the churches; the relationship between church and state; church and culture; the situation of majority and minority churches, and of ancient and comparatively new churches; and the divisions and tensions of the international situation as it has changed over the years. In order to meet more fully the demands of the continent at the level of church and society concerns, the 1997 Assembly approved the integration of CEC with the European Ecumenical Commission on Church and Society, with offices in Brussels and Strasbourg. This move is seen as facilitating church action particularly with European political institutions. The integration became fully effective on 1 January, 1999.

Cooperation exists with the World Council of Churches, especially in concerns such as faith and order, world mission and evangelism, inter-church aid, refugees and asylum seekers, and human rights. In some cases a division of labour is operating. A close working relationship also exists with European National Councils of Churches (NCCs). An annual meeting of their General Secretaries, facilitated by CEC, has proved to be an extremely worthwhile undertaking.

Staff

CEC maintains a staff of some 12 persons in Geneva, (General Secretariat), six in Brussels and two in Strasbourg (Church and Society Commission). The Assembly is the official governing body, but between Assemblies the work is overseen by a 40-person Central Committee. The General Secretary is the Rev. Dr. Keith Clements. The Associate General Secretary and Director of the Church and Society Commission is the Rev. Rüdiger Noll.

Finance

The 11th Assembly in 1997 accepted a budget frame of CHF 2,150,000. A key for the calculation of member church contributions has been agreed which tries to share the burden justly. As a result of this it is expected that member churches will increase their contributions by the next Assembly to cover 75% of the costs. The remainder will have to be raised by extraordinary donations. As a result of the integration of the European Ecumenical Commission on Church and Society (EECCS) with CEC, the budget frame will be increased from 1999 to CHF 2,870,000.

As in the past, so in the next period CEC will need to count on the solidarity of its member churches for supplementary giving through its Development and Compensation Fund. Similarly, funding from church related agencies and other organisations will be needed to implement its inter-church service work and its other agreed programmes and activities.

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CEC Assemblies