Communiqué
The Reuilly Contact Group, between the French Protestant Churches (Lutheran and Reformed) and the Anglican Churches of the British Isles, met for the 13th time from 17 – 19 February 2020 in Edinburgh, under the leadership of Co-Chairs, the Rt Revd John Stroyan (CofE) and the Revd Christian Krieger (Communion Protestante Luthéro-Réformée). We were grateful for the hospitality of the Diocese of Edinburgh.
In light of the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, the representatives of both churches reaffirmed their dedication to strengthening the partnership, and restated their commitment to witnessing and serving together wherever possible, especially between the Anglican chaplaincies in France of the Diocese in Europe and the French Protestant churches.
The major social, political, and economic challenges facing the world, from global warming to global migration issues, will not be resolved at the national level alone, but will need strong alliances. Herein lies an opportunity for the churches to work together, to be ‘bridge-builders’ for the common good and public moderators of the discussion, resisting collusion with language that is alienating, and speaking prophetically the Christian message of hope to advocate a common vision for our shared humanity in the twenty-first century.
Furthermore, in light of the 20th anniversary of the Reuilly Agreement, which was drawn up in the summer of 2001 and signed in both Canterbury and Paris, two events are proposed for 2021: a spring meeting in France and an autumn event in England. In spring the plan is to have a Contact Group meeting, followed by a day of prayer and meditation, as well as a celebratory church service the next day. For the autumn event, the Group has planned to have the first Theological Reuilly Colloquium, where topics such as the history of both churches, their ecclesiologies and church polities will be presented and discussed, with experts attending from both sides.
The Rt Revd John Stroyan, Bishop of Warwick