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| A refugee family locked up in a so-called ‘hotspot’ on the Greek island of Samos, following the establishment of an EU-Turkey refugee agreement in 2016. Photo: Magnus Aronson/WCC, April 2016 |
“We are now in the Christian fasting period of Lent,” the statement reads. “It is a time of reflection, a time for examining our personal life and our life as a member of society.”
The statement acknowledges the physical and mental boundaries now being tested by the spread of the new coronavirus and the developing refugee situation on the external borders of Europe.
“A common trait of both challenges is that they require us to take personal and shared responsibility, across all boundaries and irrespective of political convictions,” the statement reads. “They challenge us as people and members of the human race.”
Burdens should be shared and shouldered jointly, the church leaders urge. “People who are fleeing insupportable conditions can lose almost everything – but never their human rights,” reads the statement. “What is currently happening on the border between Turkey and Greece, is putting our humanity to the test.”
Complex political, cultural, financial and democratic problems give rise to legitimate concerns and fears, the statement reads. “Such fears must be taken seriously, but must not keep us captive and prevent us from shouldering our responsibility.”
The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 350 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 550 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is the Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, from the [Lutheran] Church of Norway.
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