EKD no longer participates in Week for Life
A protestor holds a placard reading 'One of us' during a 'March for Life' demonstration in Berlin. Photo EPA, Felipe Trueba
Central Europe
The Protestant Church of Germany (EKD) says to withdraw itself from the Week for Life.
Since 1994, the EKD and the German Bishops’ Conference worked together in organising the Week for Life. However, on Friday, the EKD Council informed the Conference that it would no longer participate in this. That is reported by Die Tagespost.
The press spokesman of the EKD, Carsten Splitt, told the Weser-Kurier that the EKD is now talking about the further organisation “of the theme week and speaking to its Catholic partners.”
Dignity
Matthias Kopp, the spokesperson for the German Bishops’ Conference, told the Tagespost that the Conference regrets the withdrawal of the EKD. “We are sad that one of the oldest ecumenical initiatives in Germany, which has been making an important contribution to raising awareness of the value and dignity of human life for almost 30 years, is no longer relevant for the EKD”, he said.
The Week for Life, organised annually, is about topics ranging from suicide prevention to dying with dignity in old age, Kopp says. He adds that he does not understand why the EKD is leaving and points out that the German Bishops’ Conference will discuss how to continue at its next general assembly.
Positions
The Action for the Right to Life Movement tells Die Tagespost that it is regrettable that “two major Christian Churches will no longer appear together in public on questions of life protection in the future.” On the other hand, chair Cornelia Kaminski sees possibilities because the Catholic Church in Germany has more opportunities to present its positions in a “more profiled manner again.”
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