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St. Gallen (Switzerland)/Bruxelles (Belgium), 16 February 2017
Issued jointly with the Conference of European Churches
Future perspectives for collaboration between CCEE and CEC
Meeting of the CCEE and CEC Joint Committee
Paris, 20-21 February 2017
From 20-21 February 2017 the French capital will host the next annual meeting of the Joint Committee of the Council of European Episcopal Conferences (CCEE) and the Conference of European Churches (CEC).
Established in 1972, following the birth of CCEE (1971), the Joint Committee meets annually and has the role of defining and supervising the various joint initiatives of CEC and CCEE. Activities undertaken up to now include the three European ecumenical assemblies (Basle, 1989; Graz, 1997 and Sibiu, 2007) and the Charta Oecumenica (2001). Along with the Presidencies and the General Secretaries of the two bodies, the Committee brings together other experts appointed respectively by CEC and CCEE, for a total of seven members in each delegation.
Following the renewal of the CCEE Presidency in 2016, the Presidencies of the two church bodies, which together represent the majority of Christianity in Europe, will look back over the stages that have marked these 45 years of cooperation and examine the possible prospects for future collaboration.
The meeting will be marked by moments of prayer according to the traditions of the different Christian denominations present at the meeting.
The meeting will be behind closed doors. A news Release will be published at the end of the meeting.
Participants:
CEC
Rt Rev. Christopher Hill, DD, KCVO, Bishop of Guildford, Church of England and President of CEC
Very Rev. Karin Burstrand, Church of Sweden, CEC Vice-President
Metropolitan Emmanuel of France, Greek-Orthodox Metropolitan of France (Exarchate of the Ecumenical Patriarchate), CEC Vice-President
Rev. Adriana Florea, Evangelical Church A.B. in Romania
Rev. Silke Tosch, Union of Evangelical Free Churches in Germany
Metropolitan Joseph, Metropolitan Romanian Orthodox Church of Western and Southern Europe
Rev. Archimandrite Ignatios Sotiriadis, Church of Greece
Rev. Fr Heikki Huttunen, Secretary General of CEC
CCEE
Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, Archbishop of Genoa, President of CCEE
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, Vice-President of CCEE
H.E. Mgr Stanisław Gądecki, Archbishop of Poznań, Vice-President of CCEE
H.E. Mgr Youssef Soueif, Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus
H.E. Mgr Anton Cosa, Bishop of Chişinău
H.E. Mgr Thomas Löhr, Auxiliary Bishop of Limburg
Rev. Fr Olivier Poquillon OP, Secretary General of Comece
Mgr Duarte da Cunha, Secretary General of CCEE
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For further information please contact:
Erin Green
CEC Communication Coordinator
Tel: +32 2 234 68 42
e-mail:
Website: www.ceceurope.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ceceurope
Twitter: @ceceurope
Thierry Bonaventura
CCEE Media Officer
Tel. +41 71 227 6044, cell. +41 79 12 80 189
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The Conference of European Churches (CEC) is a fellowship of some 115 Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican and Old Catholic Churches from all countries of Europe, plus 40 national councils of churches and organisations in partnership. CEC was founded in 1959. It has offices in Brussels and Strasbourg.
The Council of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (CCEE) encompasses the current 32 European Bishops’ Conferences and the Synod of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, represented by their Presidents. Further members are the Archbishops of Luxembourg, of the Principality of Monaco, the Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus, the Bishop of Chişinău in the Moldovan Republic, the Eparchial Bishop of Mukachevo and the Apostolic Administrator of Estonia. The current President is Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, Archbishop of Genoa; the Vice-presidents are Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, and Mgr Stanisław Gądecki, Archbishop of Poznań. The General Secretary of CCEE is Mgr Duarte da Cunha. The Secretariat is based at St Gallen (Switzerland).www.ccee.eu