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Under the theme “Living Together in the Household of God,” some 440 representatives of member churches and partner bodies from 28 countries gathered on Thursday 21 May in Jakarta, Indonesia, for the opening of the Christian Conference of Asia’s (CCA) 14th General Assembly.
The six-day assembly will review the work of CCA, determine programme directions, amend its constitution and elect new members to assembly committees. It will also be a venue for “Sarasehan,” an Indonesian word for dialogue, to engage the participants in discussions on emerging Asian issues relevant to the witness of the church.
Outgoing general secretary Rev. Dr Henriette Hutabarat Lebang enthusiastically welcomed participants to a celebration of the love of God. She urged the audience to find ways for Christians in Asia to become a driving force in living together in the household of God.
Her successor, Dr Mathews George Chunakara, expressed high expectations for the assembly: “I expect participants to reflect seriously through the deliberations of the assembly about the theme ‘living together in the household of God,’ ... when Asian countries are faced with many pertinent issues,” the newly elected general secretary said.
The opening service, a colourful and festive arrangement of performances by choirs and different constellations of musicians, added an unmistakably Indonesian flavour.
A previously unannounced guest speaker was the Indonesian Minister of Religion Lukman Hakim Saefudin, who expressed high hopes for the role of religions in growing tolerance.
“We need dialogue in order to reduce tensions and social gaps between communities everywhere,” the minister said, wishing all the gathered representatives a successful assembly and God’s grace.
The opening service was held the evening before the scheduled opening of the conference, which took place on 22 May. CCA president Fr Rex Reyes formally declared the 14th CCA Assembly open.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) associate general secretary Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri briefly addressed the assembly at the formal opening ceremony and expressed her gratitude to all member churches and partners. In her official speech later in the afternoon, she will reflect more deeply into the theme of the conference.
The Conference of European Churches was represented by its general secretary Dr Guy Liagre, who concluded in his opening address to the CCA: “Our preoccupations are similar to yours. We both are confronted with religious extremism, refugees, climate change, human rights, etc. All over the world we are rethinking our national presence. We hope that we will continue to be the lights of the world.”
