Canterbury

By Randall R. Lee
Section Communicator

More than 50 people attended a reception and program Thursday night (July 23) to welcome the three Lutheran bishops from Scandinavia who for the first time are members of the Lambeth Conference.

"There are many things we have learned we can do more effectively together than separately," said Oslo's Bishop Andreas Aarflot (Norway), at the reception hosted by Bishop John Neill of Cashel & Ossory Diocese in Ireland.

The Porvoo Declaration was signed in 1996 and established communion between the Anglican Churches of the British Isles and the Lutheran Churches of Scandinavia and the Baltic States.

"The establishment of the Porvoo Communion is one of the most important ecumenical steps of this century," said Archbishop John Vikström, of Turku and Finland. "We believe it is a gift to the whole Church."

Commenting on the important dimensions of the Porvoo Declaration, Bishop John Hind (Gibraltar) said it did not represent a theological breakthrough as much as a "hermeneutical breakthrough of an enormous kind."

Bishop Hind argued the Porvoo Declaration forced the ecumenical community to think seriously about apostolic succession, and the "degree of risk worth taking when you agree on the ultimate goal."

Several bishops pointed to the twinnings of dioceses that have characterized Anglican-Lutheran cooperation since the declaration was signed.

Bishop Ian Harland of Carlisle, whose English diocese is paired with the Diocese of Stavanger in Norway: "Because of Porvoo we share Eucharistic hospitality as those who belong to one another, not simply out of politeness."

Although none of the bishops of the Baltic nations are present at Lambeth '98, Bishop Jonas Jonson of Strängnäs (Sweden) asserted: "We must not forget the inclusion of the Baltic Churches, which have been so isolated through the Cold War. Porvoo lends a dynamic of great significance in our own relationships," he said.

Bishop Jonson went on to say that the future importance of the Porvoo Declaration will be lived out in places such as Tanzania and Zimbabwe where the Lutheran churches have a Swedish character. "The question now," he said, "is how these churches will relate to the provinces of the Anglican communion."

But Porvoo breaks new ground that can serve as a catalyst for ecumenical relations worldwide, according to Archbishop Vikström. "I hope it will inspire and encourage the whole ecumenical movement at the end of this century when it faces such serious threat," he said.

Bishop Neill pointed to the importance the Conference is placing on the participation of the Lutheran bishops by holding aloft a copy of Lambeth Praise, the song book of the Conference. The flags of Sweden and Finland are prominently displayed in the center of the cover.