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Calling the Karlsruhe Assembly, a “providential and historical assembly” which took place at a historical turning point with deep and unprecedented challenges, Sauca reiterated some of its major debated topics and achievements and expressed his view on how the paradigm of “pilgrimage of justice, reconciliation and unity” will shape the ecumenical movement in the years to come.
“In the face of global challenges such as climate change, war, racism, and violence, it is necessary to stand together as churches for peace and justice and to discover and implement the biblical call and vocation to be ministers of reconciliation on the way to unity,” Sauca said.
The former WCC leader expressed thanks to EKD, ACK and in particular to the Protestant Church in Baden and the Catholic Archdiocese of Freiburg, the Union of Protestant Churches of Alsace and Loraine and the Protestant Church in Switzerland, as well as to the German Federal Government and to the Foreign Office for their substantial contributions to the success of the Assembly and to the mayor of Karlsruhe for the warm welcome in the city.
Under the theme "Let's move on!" the 2023 edition of the Baden Ökumenetag drew together about 120 people from different churches in the region of Baden. They came together to reflect on the outcomes of the WCC 11th Assembly and to consider how the ecumenical engagement on justice, reconciliation, and unity can take shape in their region.
Resources of the WCC 11th Assembly were incorporated into local materials as well as songbooks or even digital resources in the Evangelical Protestant Church in Baden and other churches in the region.
The meeting also focused on the situations of the churches in Ukraine, Nigeria, Cameroon, as well as ecumenical work in the region, peace work, and joint actions to preserve the climate.
At the end of the day, in a ceremony, the participants bid farewell to the staff of the Karlsruhe Assembly Office, including Rev. Dr Marc Witzenbacher, Nina Schäfer, Petra Schindele, Hans-Georg Ulrichs, und Tobias Tiltscher.
