Some of the Working Group in the Vatican Gardens
Rome is a busy place at the moment with many pilgrims marking the holy year of Jubilee. I was there 5-6 November for the signing of a significant ecumenical document for the churches in Europe. It all began in September 2022, when I was invited to be one of six members of a working group tasked with revising the Charta Oecumenica, which was originally written in 2001.
The Charta Oecumenica is an ecumenical charter for Churches in Europe and was published in April 2001 in its final form by the Conference of European Churches (CEC) and the Roman Catholic Council of European Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE). It marked the beginning of the century by calling the churches in Europe to dialogue, unity and action, and particularly to their common responsibility in facing issues of peace and justice in Europe.
Obviously, Europe and the churches have changed in the interim period, and this is reflected in new or updated sections such as Engaging with New Technologies, Journeying with Migrants, Refugees and Displaced People, and Youth in Churches and Ecumenism.
The other members of the group were: Ms Lea Schlenker (Evangelical Lutheran Church, Germany), Sr Estelle M. Sogbou (Chemin Neuf Community, France), Cardinal Grzegorz Rys (Poland), Fr Luis Okulik (Trieste), Fr Oecumenius Amanatidis (Orthodox Patriarchate, Istanbul). Later, we were joined by Dr Nikos Kouremenos (Greek Orthodox Church) and Rev Canon Prof Charlotte (Scottish Episcopal Church). The day after the signing, the working group and representatives of the churches across Europe were received in audience by Pope Leo.
ECI members may be interested in section 12, ‘Safeguarding Creation’:
Believing in God who loves all creatures, we gratefully acknowledge the gift of creation, the value and beauty of nature, and our utter dependence on creation for our entire existence. We deplore the overexploitation of the goods of the earth, leading to the ecological crisis, without recognition of their limited nature and the needs of future generations.
The ecological crisis manifests a spiritual and ethical failure to fulfil our Christian vocation in relation to the natural world, including our fellow human beings. It demands a response rooted in our liturgy, our worship, and our discipleship. Believing in the life-giving and redemptive presence of the Holy Spirit in creation, we recognise the need of ecological conversion in order to repair our relationship with the whole of creation, remembering also that Christ is “the firstborn of all creation” (Col 1:15).
We call on one another to work to create sustainable living conditions for all. Accountable before God, we must develop and apply common criteria to discern what is ethically desirable for present and future generations, without over-reliance on technological solutions. We urge all Christians to care for the communities and environment in which they live, and in that way protecting our common home. To mark our reverence and gratitude for the action of the Creator, we encourage the Churches to treasure creation liturgically together throughout the year round, especially on the Feast of Creation (1 September) and during the associated Season of Creation.
We commit ourselves
• to change our understanding of creation, passing from possessiveness to contemplation and recognising our utter dependence on the created world;
• to act for a conversion of behaviours at the personal, ecclesial, social, community, and political levels in order to safeguard and cultivate creation;
• to act together towards a more fair and sustainable way of living, changing our style of life, favouring abstemiousness and restraint when using resources that are God’s gift to us and to future generations;
• to support church organisations and ecumenical networks working to deepen our knowledge and understanding of Creation and how to protect it;
• to support communities affected by the impact of climate change, biodiversity loss, and by other effects of environmental transition.
You can find the whole document here: A4-Charta-2-guideline-online.pdf