Conference of European Churches

The Conference of European Churches (CEC) is a fellowship of 126 Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican and Old Catholic Churches along with 43 associated organisations from all countries on the European continent. CEC was founded in 1959 and has offices in Geneva, Brussels and Strasbourg.

Christians from different confessions are committed to live and witness together in a spirit of ecumenism, sharing, understanding and mutual respect. All are committed in spite of the historic divides, the many languages and the geographical and economic barriers which exist on the European continent. Together, the churches work to promote the unity of the church and to present a common Christian witness to the people and institutions of Europe. The common desire to live in peace and to promote justice and reconciliation has enabled the churches to maintain their fellowship for the 45 years of the CEC's existence.

History

Born in the 1950s in the era of the "cold war";, CEC emerged into a fragmented and divided continent. Out of this experience, the churches of eastern and western Europe felt that one priority of their work would be to promote international understanding - to build bridges. CEC has consistently tried to do this over the years, insisting that no "iron curtain" exist among the churches. This insistence led to the holding of CEC's 4th Assembly, in 1964, on board a ship in the Baltic Sea in order to overcome visa problems and ensure that all churches enjoyed representation.

CEC has also tried to build bridges between minority and majority churches, between the generations, between women and men, and between Christians of different confessions. Although the Roman Catholic Church is not a member, it has a close relationship with CEC. A number of ecumenical encounters have taken place in Europe jointly arranged by CEC and the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE). The most significant events were the European Ecumenical Assemblies; "Peace with Justice", Basel, Switzerland, 1989, and "Reconciliation, Gift of God and Source of New Life", Graz, Austria, 1997, which the two organisations co-sponsored.

Current concerns

CEC is called upon to consider and act on many concerns in contemporary Europe. Principal among these, naturally, is ecumenism in Europe. In 2001, CEC and CCEE signed the "Charta Oecumenica - Guidelines for the Growing Cooperation among the Churches in Europe." Churches throughout Europe are asked to implement the "Charta Oecumenica", adapting it to their local situations.

CEC is dealing with theological dialogue through its "Churches in Dialogue" Commission. With the opening up of the continent's political barriers after 1989, the issue of common mission has been added to ecclesiology for ongoing study.

Due to the European developments after 1989, and in order to reflect the changing situation with regard to the European Institutions and organisations, the 11th Assembly approved the integration of CEC and the European Ecumenical Commission on Church and Society (EECCS). After approval from the EECCS General Assembly, the integration became fully effective in 1999. The new CEC Church and Society Commission, with offices in Brussels, Belgium, and Strasbourg, France, examines social, economic and environmental issues with a European dimension. The commission has the particular task of involving the churches in the European integration process, monitoring political institutions and organisations (European Union, Council of Europe, Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, United Nations) and maintaining regular contacts with them on behalf of CEC and its member churches. The quest for peace and the defence of human rights, in a continent which has been the source of two world wars in the 20th century, are also concerns for the CEC Church and Society work.

When CEC began Europe was a broken, fragmented and devastated continent. It was in the midst of this that the concept of "inter-church aid" took root. In 1992, CEC established its Women's Desk, thus responding to challenges raised within the Ecumenical Decade of the Churches in Solidarity with Women. CEC took up the specific European challenges, organised team visits and, together with partner organisations, followed up the main issues raised: to promote the status and equality of women in all fields, including decision-making processes, to empower women through networking, education and training. CEC drew special attention to the deep problem of violence against women in society and in church, and to the alarming growth, since the 90s, of trafficking in women in Europe into slave-like conditions, mainly into forced prostitution.

The social and political women's agenda in Europe, as well as the changing identity of women as self-responsible for their lives and as professional partners in church and society, leads CEC's work on to focus on theologically challenges from women's and gender perspectives.

Europe's post second world war refugee problem and thousands of people seeking asylum were two other concerns which engaged the churches' attention. Today, similar activities continue in the context of yet further crises, including those on the new poverty, asylum seeking, migration and the uprooted people in Europe. A special cooperation in this field exists between CEC and the Brussels-based Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe (CCME).

Another area of work which reflects the concern of Europe's churches is that which is carried out jointly with the Roman Catholic Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE) on relations with Islam in Europe. This programme looks at attitudes and relationships between the two great religions Christianity and Islam.

Further contemporary concerns of CEC include the challenge of churches in the new information society, and how to ensure the participation of youth in active ecumenical work.