The Gospel must not remain "a message of private salvation but has to be translated into acts of justice and peace,affirming human dignity and offering reconciliation and fullness of life for all" said the Rev Dr. Konrad Raiser, addressing the founding meeting of the proposed Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance in Geneva, Switzerland, on Thursday (December 7, 2000.)
Dr Raiser - General Secretary of the World Council of Churches - told representatives from Churches throughout the world, that the time had come for " a courageous new step" to promote together, justice, peace and the integrity of creation, strengthening a commitment whose roots went back to the very beginning of the ecumenical movement.
"Ten years have passed since the Seoul Convocation," he said, " and during these years, we have not only witnessed the dismantling of the communists system and the end of the Cold War but have also become aware of the rapid expansion of globalisation, particularly in the southern regions.
"The gulf between rich and poor is continuously widening both within and between countries," he added. "There is an ever increasing number of conflicts and we witness the spread of a genuine culture of violence. The number of refugees has increased dramatically and the prospects for containing or even reversing ecological degradation are vanishing."
Addressing "the root causes" of poverty, conflict and injustice was the specific focus of the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance - a new form of witness on political, economic, cultural and social issues by churches and church-related agencies and others, to influence governments, international institutions and the corporate sector to being about a more just, peaceful and sustainable world.
Advocacy was still a relatively new term for what in former generations would have been called the prophetic ministry of the Churches proclaiming the Gospel to all realms of life.
The potential "partners" in the proposed Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance resolved to "strengthen the prophetic voice and the impact of ecumenical witness" on crucial issues of the day, by pooling the resources and experiences of the partners.
None of those participating, however, would need to change their mandate or style nor would the Alliance "add yet another ecumenical structure" and the participation of Roman Catholic organisations offered "new and exciting opportunities to work together on some of the most pressing issues of the day."
He expressed the hope that the Alliance might provide a model that goes beyond any established institutional frameworks and become "the source of new inspiration and encouragement."