The Amman Declaration, 2006 Agreement of Full Mutual Recognition of Lutheran and Reformed Churches In the Middle East and North Africa

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1 The Amman Declaration, 2006 Agreement of Full Mutual Recognition of Lutheran and Reformed Churches In the Middle East and North Africa Preface 1. We the Lutheran and Reformed churches signing this agreement understand ourselves and each other to be churches of the Gospel and the Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion. 2. We see in the Gospel, attested to in the Holy Scriptures, the sole foundation of our life and hope in the Spirit, of our teaching, and of our ministry and worship, since it conveys God s love for us and for humankind in Jesus Christ, the incarnate, crucified and resurrected Lord and Savior. This confession unites us as churches of the Reformation tradition. 3. Our witness is expressed in our call for continuous spiritual renewal and ecclesial reform, in order that the world may know God s saving work in Christ, be reconciled to Him and share the fruits of that work. 4. As Evangelical Churches in the Middle East and North Africa we acknowledge that our different traditions have been in an undeclared communion with one another during the past years and have shared in each others ministry in spite of the diversity of tradition which distinguishes us from one another. 5. It is our hope and fervent prayer, therefore, that by the power of the Holy Spirit our witness shall be united and that God will continually strengthen the bonds of our unity. Historical Background 6. Efforts for unity between the Evangelical churches in our region have grown through various stages. In 1911, in Beirut, Lebanon, an inter-protestant ecumenical initiative was undertaken which led to the founding of the United Missionary Council ( 1920 to 1952). 7. As a parallel development, the International Missionary Conference held in Jerusalem in 1924 led to the formation of the Western Asia and North Africa Council in Helwan, Egypt in These two initiatives converged eventually to form the Near East Council of Churches in 1964, followed by the present Middle East Council of Churches in 1974.

2 9. Efforts of deepening and institutionalizing evangelical unity go back to 1955 when the Arab World Evangelical Churches Leaders Conference was held in Beirut. The host of that Conference identified the following aims: - To acquaint the pastors and intellectual leaders of the Evangelical churches with each other, and to create harmony among them. - To discuss the subject "Christ Calls the Churches in the Arab World to Unite and Evangelize". - To analyze and study the problems and responsibilities that face the Evangelical churches in the Arab world. 10. The second step was the undertaking of the "United Evangelical Church in the Arab World project, which lasted from 1962 to Reformed, Lutheran and Anglican churches in the area took part. 11. These two efforts did not, however, result in any further practical steps, partly due to the constantly changing regional circumstances as well as the lack of an effective mechanism of implementation. 12. In 1974, The Fellowship of Middle East Evangelical Churches (FMEEC) was established. The Fellowship offered an appropriate forum to bring together Evangelical Churches of diverse ethnic, cultural and confessional backgrounds in the Middle East and North Africa. 13. The present agreement is the fruit of a long and careful process of dialogue and deliberation which was initiated by the FMEEC in 1991 and finalized in its present form by representatives of Lutheran and Reformed Churches in Amman, Jordan, on September 13, Our sister Episcopal Churches and any other Evangelical church in our region are welcome to enter into dialogue with us at anytime they choose in the future. The Unity We Seek 14. Our unity is a God-given gift flowing from God's communion with us and our communion with each other. God offers Himself to us in the gift of salvation in Christ Jesus and gives us the grace to be united to Him through Word and Sacrament. It is this Word and these Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion which establish and maintain the believers in Christ and gather the believers in Him together in one visible Church the Body of Christ and the Communion of Saints. We affirm Christ as the one and true head of the Body. 15. Our unity as churches in Christ, therefore, is founded upon the authentic proclamation of the Gospel and the proper Administration of the sacraments. On this foundation our communion as administratively independent churches in the Middle East and North Africa, is realized. 16. Our understanding of church unity asserts that unity and diversity are not opposites. Diversity is part of the richness of our unity in Christ. However, diversity which compromises and threatens the right preaching of the Gospel and the proper administration of the Sacraments makes communion impossible and thus becomes a churchdividing difference and an instance of illegitimate diversity.

3 17. We understand the churches coming together in this present agreement to be an ecumenical communion of churches that are administratively independent. But we commit ourselves to develop cooperation in administrative and organizational matters to the greatest possible extent. 18. In declaring this communion, we the participating churches, do so as part of our responsibility to promote ecumenical communion of all Christian churches throughout the world. Declaration of Faith 19. a) We believe in One God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who reveals Himself in history; who was incarnate in Jesus of Nazareth for the salvation of the world, as the Holy Scriptures testify and as is affirmed by the faith of the Church Universal in the Nicene -Constantinopolitan and Apostles Creeds. b) We believe that Christ comes to us through the Holy Spirit in all ages in the proclamation of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord s Supper, and that we are justified by the grace of God through faith, and not by our own works. Thus we are reconciled to God and called to communion with Him and with one another. c) We affirm that the sacrament of Baptism in our various churches is the baptism of the One Church, the Body of Christ. Therefore, our churches reaffirm that we recognize and accept each other's baptisms. d) We affirm that through the sacrament of Holy Communion, as practiced in each of our churches, Christ gives us, through partaking in His Body and Blood, communion with himself and with each other; and we proclaim His death until He comes again. Therefore, our churches recognize and accept each other's celebration of Holy Communion at which our ordained ministers preside. e) We believe that the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ is realized in our various churches. Therefore, we acknowledge the apostolicity of each of our churches and affirm that, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, each of our churches preaches the Word of God in purity and clarity; and administers the sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion in accordance with the Gospel. f) We affirm that ordination in our churches is a gift from God for the purpose of an orderly receiving and sharing of God s grace in the Christian community and the world. The ordained ministry is founded on the call of God in Jesus Christ, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, through Christ s body, the Church. We also affirm that in our churches the ministry of episkope (oversight) is exercised personally, collegially and communally through our different ecclesial structures, in continuity with the apostolic life, witness, and ministry of the church universal. 20. Therefore, we all acknowledge and accept the ordination to the ministry as practiced in our churches, and we acknowledge and accept the different forms of the ministry of episkope that our churches uphold.

4 Commitment and Pledge 21. Since we, the churches signing this agreement, recognize each other as faithful expressions of the one Church of Christ, and declare ourselves to be in communion with one another, and since our communion of churches is based on our common proclamation of the Word and celebration of the Sacraments, and since this implies mutual recognition of ministry and the ordination of pastors and ministers, We therefore commit ourselves and pledge the following: a) To accept mutual participation in the worship and sacramental celebrations of our churches which are instruments of the holiness that Christ grants to the Church. b) To accept the con-celebration of the Sacraments by ordained ministers of our churches, starting from the day of the signing of this declaration and hence forth. c) To witness together in society, in obedience to Christ s great commission, in order to testify to the fullness of the gospel and faithfully and credibly participate in God s purpose for salvation and the renewal of creation. d) To speak out together with a prophetic voice for social justice, and reconciliation among peoples, and to strive for the promotion of civil society, good governance and a democracy that guarantees human rights. We will network and advocate for the promulgation and preservation of the rights of minorities, women, children, the handicapped and the marginalized; and to address all other issues that threaten human life and dignity such as poverty, use of violence, militarization, environmental pollution, religious extremism, forced emigration, and the like. e) To invite representatives of our Evangelical churches on a regular basis to mutually participate in the synod sessions and general assemblies of each other s churches. f) To encourage the presence or participation of bishops, ministers, pastors and moderators of our churches in the services of consecration of bishops, the ordination of pastors and ministers, and the installation of moderators conducted in each of our churches. g) To organize activities and develop capacity building programs for pastors, lay leaders, youth leaders, Sunday school leaders, women and Christian educators. Furthermore, we will engage in social ministries as well as other activities that increase understanding and love among the members of our churches and strengthen Christian witness in society. This will enable pastors and members of our churches to freely worship in each others churches or exchange pastors between them. h) To actively continue ecumenical dialogue and efforts toward Christian unity with a view to the enlargement of this agreement to include churches that are not party to it today. i) To continue working as an integral part of the ecumenical movement in the Middle East and elsewhere, with strong commitment and firm involvement, in order to develop the movement and achieve the desired Christian unity with other churches in the region and the world.

5 j) To practice interfaith dialogue, promote activities and develop relations with followers of other religions in our region in order to build civil communities that are founded on mutual understanding, equality, respect for human rights and dignity. k) To engage in finding ways to give concrete visibility to our unity and continue in the process of dialogue in order to remove theological, doctrinal, linguistic or other faithrelated obstacles to that unity. l) To declare our openness to the Holy Spirit to guide us, as the Spirit wills, in the process of integrating our Evangelical unity within Christian unity as a whole. Therefore, we commit ourselves to pray without ceasing for each other so that all may be one (John 17:21). Signed in Amman / Jordan on January 26th, 2006 The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan National Evangelical Union of Lebanon Rev. Dr. Habib Badr, President Synod of the Nile, Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Egypt Rev. Dr. Safwat El Bayadi, Moderator Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East Rev. Dr. Paul Haidostian National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon Rev. Joseph Kassab, General Secretary The National Evangelical Church in Kuwait Rev. Ammanuel Ghareeb, President Synod of the Evangelical Church in Iran Rev. Hendrik Shanazari, Executive Secretary