Hanover, Germany/GENEVA 26.02.2018.
Women in Western Europe discuss gender inequality and “Me Too”
Better conditions for women in leadership positions in the church, participation in decision-making in the churches, just living and working conditions for women, and the “Me Too” movement were among the main topics discussed at the LWF’s annual regional network meeting Women in Church and Society (WICAS) in Hanover, Germany.
Following the 2017 commemoration of the Reformation and the Twelfth Assembly, which took place in Windhoek, Namibia, a review and evaluation of these events was included on the agenda. However, the main focus of the regional network meeting was the planning of the coming years. The WICAS meeting took place in Hanover from 14 to 16 February.
“Over the past few years, we have managed to ensure that almost all the churches in our region – large or small – have delegated a representative, and we are proud of that,” stated pastor Ulrike Hansen, who has been the WICAS regional coordinator since 2011 (https://wicas.lutheranworld.org/).
“The diversity and variety of women and their churches is a source of enormous riches in our regional network.”
For this reason, over the past few years the annual “Women in Church and Society” regional meetings have been held in various churches. “Visiting one another helps us to take into account different situations and ways of working. Moreover, the majority of church leaders from the host churches pay particular attention to WICAS and its concerns,” Hansen said.
This time, the agenda included conversations with Ralf Meister, Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hanover, and Norbert Denecke, Executive Secretary of the German National Committee of the LWF.
Listening to the voice of women
The women said that the preparatory work for the Twelfth Assembly turned out to be especially successful, and equally successful was the “strong voice of women” that subsequently rang out in the Assembly’s decisions. “And there is still much to be done,” Hansen said, “the 40:40:20 proportions of the LWF should simply be implemented in our local churches – 40 percent women, 40 percent men, and 20 percent young people under 30 years of age.”
The LWF Gender Justice Policy guides the work of the LWF.
It should not be taken for granted that a woman works part-time, or that a leadership position is incompatible with family responsibilities – on these matters we still need greater understanding – participants of the WICAS meeting.
The participants pointed out that gender equality is an interdisciplinary issue and not merely a “women’s problem”. It calls on everyone to participate actively and to reflect repeatedly – the participants noted. For example, greater attention must be paid to the interests of women when planning the positions to be filled and setting the job requirements.
Taking on responsibility in the church and in society
Approximately 82 percent of the 145 churches belonging to the LWF ordain women. Although the Lutheran churches in the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and Austria do not yet have women bishops, in Iceland two of the three Lutheran bishops are women.
In order to encourage women to take on such leadership roles, the WICAS network in Western Europe plans to launch coaching (mentoring) programmes called “Woman to Woman”, through which women with experience in leadership positions can pass on their knowledge to younger women. Much greater attention will also be paid to theological work on improving gender equality.
Linked to one of the three sub-themes of the Assembly, “Human Beings – Not for Sale”, a further priority for the coming years will be the following – to promote fair living and working conditions for women. In many areas, it is difficult or impossible for a woman to earn an adequate and decent wage to live on, such as in domestic work or in taking on care for her relatives. The WICAS delegates believe that the churches have the potential to call various members of society to come together to discuss these issues.
Creating space for the “Me Too” movement
The women also discussed the “Me Too” movement against sexism and sexual violence. “Women now have the courage to speak about it,” said Katharina Wollrabe, gender equality officer from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saxony. In this way, women have made offenders ashamed of their crime, she added, and the injured victim need not bear a sense of guilt. “The silence must be broken,” said Hella Mahler, gender equality officer in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hanover. The churches now have several protection policies and support programmes, she said.
Pastor Mahler also acts in her congregation as a point of contact for preventing sexual violence. But victims still suffer from a sense of guilt, she pointed out. “It is such a deeply rooted issue that it will take us years to learn how to deal with it.”
Hansen’s term of office ended with this meeting, and at it a new WICAS regional coordinator for Central and Western Europe was appointed. Katharina Wollrabe will now be responsible for the operation of the office for the next three years. “I look forward to the upcoming collaboration in this international network and to meeting fellow office-holders from other churches belonging to the LWF,” said Wollrabe.
Source: LWF news with the support of the Department of Environmental Protection.