International Lutheran organization makes leadership changes

Bishop Hans-Jörg Voigt, ILC chairman and Rev. Gijsbertus van Hattem (Belgium) ILC secretary.

Stronger mutual understandings of doctrine, mission and charity among member churches of the International Lutheran Council (ILC) are some of the challenges identified by Rev. Hans-Jörg Voigt, new chairman of the confessional Lutheran association. Voigt is the bishop of Germany’s Selbständige Evangelisch–Lutherische Kirche (SELK), a partner church of Lutheran Church–Canada. He succeeds former ILC chairman Dr. Gerald B. Kieschnick, who was not re-elected president of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.

During its meetings in Wittenberg, Germany in late October, the ILC executive committee, chaired by Bishop Voigt, appointed Dr. Ralph E. Mayan, former president of Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) to serve as the organization’s executive secretary. Former ILC executive secretary, Dr. Samuel Nafzger, submitted his resignation in September. The formal transition will take place at meetings scheduled in late February in St. Louis. Dr. Mayan served as chairman of the ILC from 1997 to 2007.

The ILC executive committee also appointed Dr. Robert Bugbee, LCC president, as vice-chairman and Rev. Jonas Flor, president of the Portuguese Evangelical Lutheran Church, to succeed Voigt as the European region representative.

Responding to an invitation from Lutheran Church–Canada, the executive decided to hold the ILC’s 2012 triennial world conference in Canada. “This is a great honour for our church” said LCC President Robert Bugbee, noting that LCC is a founding member of the ILC. “The welcome mat is rolled out and we are already looking at conference facilities in Niagara Falls.”

Dr. Reginald Quirk was appointed ILC News editor, succeeding Rev. Peter Ahlers. Quirk is preceptor of Westfield House, Cambridge, the institute of theological studies of the Evangelical Lutheran of England. ILC News is published four times a year and is posted in English and Spanish on the ILC website (www.ilc-online.org).

In an editorial in the November ILC News, Voigt cited four challenges to the future of the council. First was the joint presentation of the ILC foundation of teaching on the basis of the Lutheran Confession under focal points of mutual understanding of the sacraments, Scripture and doctrine. He also cited strengthening of the community of ILC member and guest churches, developing a mutual understanding of mission and charity, and ecumenical contacts according to ILC guidelines.

Prepared with additional material from LCMS Division of News & Information, Board for Communication Services.

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