Council members engage in discussion during the 2024 meeting. Photo: LWF/Albin Hillert
Council members gather in Addis Ababa from 11-16 June to decide venue for next Assembly and discuss work of global communion
(LWI) - ‘Be my witnesses’ is the theme of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Council meeting which will take place in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, from 11 to 16 June. At the top of the agenda will be a decision regarding the venue for the Fourteenth LWF Assembly, the highest decision-making body of the global communion of churches, which is scheduled to be held in 2030.
The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY) is hosting this year’s Council meeting which will feature an address from LWF President Bishop Henrik Stubkjær, a report from the General Secretary Rev. Dr Anne Burghardt on the work of the global communion and a keynote presentation by the Program Director of the All Africa Council of Churches, Rev. Dr Lesmore Ezekiel from Nigeria.
I believe it is important for representatives from other countries to get to know member churches in different parts of the globe.
LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Anne Burghardt
“In a time when fear is weaponized, when walls go up instead of bridges being built, and when power is used to silence the vulnerable, we gather as witnesses to a different story,” said General Secretary Burghardt. “A story of grace over merit, love of neighbor that knows no borders, and hope breaking through even in the world’s most broken places.”
“We are deeply grateful to the church in Ethiopia for hosting this year’s Council meeting,” she added. “It is important that our Council members, coming from all regions of the world, get to know this vibrant church and see how it offers a strong and faithful gospel witness in its own context.”
Opening worship will take place in the Addis Ababa, Mekane Yesus church, which is home to its first congregation. EECMY President Rev. Dr Yonas Yigezu, who also serves as LWF Vice President for Africa, will preach at that service. Several other local congregations will welcome Council members for worship on the morning of Sunday 15 June.
The LWF Council consists of 48 members, plus the president and the chairperson of the finance committee. Members were elected at the last Assembly to ensure balanced representation of churches in all regions, as well as lay and ordained, men, women and young leaders.
The Council meets once a year to oversee the running of the Communion Office, including a review of financial statements, approval of the budget, and overseeing implementation of decisions taken by the Assembly. Participants will hear reports on the work of the different departments, updates on study processes and policies called for by the Thirteenth Assembly. The LWF Executive Committee will meet one day before the Council and Pre-Council meetings of youth, women, and men.
Serving the whole person
The EECMY is currently the largest member church of the LWF, growing from some 20,000 members when it was officially established in 1959 to over 12 million members today. The Church understands itself as a “missionally vibrant church, taking missiological and theological reflections seriously.” Mission and theology, resource development and stewardship, institutional growth and development, climate resilience, and unity are among the key pillars of its work, which is guided by a vision of “serving the whole person.” In addition to regional Bible Schools and seminaries, the church runs a national theological seminary with over 1000 in-persons students 4000 who are studying remotely. Women make up half up of the student body.
Alongside the work of the church and its Development and Social Services Commission (DASSC), the LWF World Service program in Ethiopia has been providing vital humanitarian and development support to the most vulnerable communities for over half a century. Established in response to the widespread famine of the early 1970s, the program currently focuses on support and resilience building among people affected by conflicts in the north and west of the country.
The 2025 LWF Council meeting takes place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 12 to 16 June on the theme “Be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8)
