20 Years of Together for Europe

A prophetic sign of unity

Ottmaring, 7-9 November 2019

From 7 to 9 November 2019, some 170 representatives of Communities and Movements from Western and Eastern Europe gathered in Ottmaring and Augsburg. They are aware of the importance of being a sign of unity in Europe, of overcoming individualism and fear of the other. “Growing together is a great effort. But synergy releases new forces and ideas for a Christian Europe.“(Fr. Heinrich Walter)

In Augsburg, city of peace, 20 years earlier the “Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification” (JDDJ) was signed in St. Anne’s Church. This time, it was the imposing City Hall that welcomed a reconciled European people into the Golden Hall, amidst singing, praise and various speeches, in the presence of the Evangelical Bishop Christian Krause, then signatory of the Declaration.

On the same day 20 years earlier, the Ecumenical Centre in Ottmaring saw the birth of Together for Europe. Now there the representatives of the European Christian Movements reviewed their 20-year history, but above all they looked to the future. They spoke about the seeds of fraternity and the fruits in which these can be found.

Herbert Lauenroth and Johannes Hartl illustrate the events of God’s people in today’s challenges; they alternate between visions of the one people of God (Gerhard Pross) and prophecy in precariousness: “Together for Europe can help Europe become a sturdy tree. It is a prophetic sign of unity’ (Sr. Nicole Grochowina).