2010-02-19 14:03:35

Pope to visit Lutheran church in Rome


(February 19, 2010) Pope Benedict XVI will visit a Lutheran church in Rome for a German-language service in which both he and a Lutheran pastor will give homilies. The Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Vatican press office on Thursday confirmed that the visit, which was announced previously, will take place March 14. The president of the pontifical council, Cardinal Walter Kasper, will participate in the visit. Rome's Lutheran community had invited the Pope in 2008 to mark the 25th anniversary of Pope John Paul II's visit to the church. The Polish Pontiff's 1983 visit commemorated the 550th anniversary of the birth of Martin Luther, who initiated the Protestant Reformation. Earlier this month, the Holy Father gave a special greeting to a U.S. Lutheran delegation visiting the Vatican. On that occasion, he said he has "been encouraged that relations between Catholics and Lutherans have continued to grow, especially at the level of practical collaboration in the service of the Gospel." Last year, the 10th anniversary of the joint Catholic-Lutheran declaration on justification was celebrated.







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