Report on the 13th Assembly of the Conference of European Churches,
Lyon, 15-21 July 2009
Andrew Bowden
The assembly celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Conference of European Churches (CEC). There were a lot of people there! From the British Isles, the Bishops of London, Guildford and Dublin among others. The Orthodox Churches were very fully represented, with the exception of Russian Orthodox who have (temporarily we hope) withdrawn. A large Nordic-Baltic group, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy and everywhere else too. And a lot of hangers-on like us! English, German and French languages were all used, and there was simultaneous translation via headphones available.
Besides the key-note addresses there were ‘hearings’ – smaller groups addressed by an expert on a special theme, there was group work, and there were sessions on CEC business matters. There was an ‘Agora’ consisting of ten or more stalls set up by interested groups. Orthodox groups from Cyprus, Albania, Greece and Czech Republic were very prominent.
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