The Ecumenical Institute of Strasbourg offers advanced training in ecumenical theology for Lutheran pastors. The next study course will be held online from October 10 to 14, 2022. Learn more here. Apply today. Registration closes August 31, 2022.

The course will be conducted in English and is designed for pastors with parish experience or for students with advanced knowledge of Lutheran theology. It will cover an overview of the most important ecumenical agreements between Lutherans and other Christian communions over the past half century. Additionally, students will examine how churches in different continents put these agreements into practice in their local contexts and how local leaders and communities learn from the ecumenical experiences of those in other parts of the globe.

The objective of this week-long course is to equip participants with knowledge of key ecumenical agreements between the Lutheran World Federation and its dialogue partners, primarily in the Catholic, Mennonite, Orthodox and Pentecostal churches. Students will also be invited to discuss relationships with other Christians in their respective countries with the aim of developing avenues for further rapprochement locally and nationally.

Another aim of the course (open only to a maximum of 20 participants) is to enable students from a wide variety of cultural and religious backgrounds to engage in “intense cross-cultural dialogue on ecumenical theology and practice”. The organizers hope that these in-depth conversations will serve to strengthen and develop the relationship between churches within the Lutheran World Federation (LWF).

LWF Assistant General Secretary for Ecumenical Relations and Acting Director of the Strasbourg Institute, Professor Dirk Lange, said: “The LWF has embarked on the ecumenical path towards church fellowship. To move forward on this journey, it is essential to encourage local ecumenical initiatives and to strengthen the links between these initiatives and global dialogues. This course is an incredible opportunity to go deeper into this dynamic.