“A strong prophetic voice for peace and justice”
LWF president attends the inauguration of Bishop Ulrich in Northern Germany
02.09.2013. Bishop Gerhard Ulrich has strongly emphasized that listening to diverse opinions in the church and respect for dialogue in ecumenical relations are necessary in order to strengthen unity in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern Germany, where he serves as bishop.
Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan, president of the LWF, made these remarks on August 25 at Ulrich’s installation as the first bishop of the recently established Church in Northern Germany.
In his words of greeting, Younan, who is the bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, said: “I would like to see close relationships between the Church in Northern Germany, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, and the churches of the South. In addition, I wish him (Bishop Ulrich) to be a strong and prophetic voice for peace and justice in the world.”
The members of the first leadership of the Church in Northern Germany were also inaugurated into their offices at this worship service, in which several of the church’s ecumenical partners took part. The LWF vice-president for Africa, Bishop Alex G. Malasusa of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, also took part in the ceremony.
In his sermon, Bishop Ulrich emphasized the church’s function of service. “The church is only the church when it serves others.” These prophetic words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer have been an active element in the history of the churches of Pomerania and Mecklenburg, and now also of the North Elbian churches. It remains the responsibility of us all: “The Church in Northern Germany is a church for others. A church of service, a diaconal church,” he emphasized.
Half of the planned 1,500 attendees of the inauguration followed the ceremony on a large screen outside the nearby Old Town market square. At the end of the worship service, the church invited the participants to a reception, which was attended by around 1,800 guests.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern Germany was established at Pentecost 2012, following the merger of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Mecklenburg, the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church, and the Pomeranian Evangelical Lutheran Church. With more than 2.2 million members, it is the third-largest LWF member church in Germany, with a territory that stretches from the Danish border to the Polish borders.
Ulrich is the chair of the LWF German National Committee and the presiding bishop of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany (VELKD).