Friday, February 17, 2006
People at the WCC
One of the amazing things about being at the World Council of Churches is meeting all kinds of people, including some very big names. I have more than once been chatting with someone on the bus or in line for lunch only to find out that he is the General Secretary of the Church of Norway, or she is a world-renowned theologian whose writings I was assigned in seminary.
Today, however, we were in the super-famous category. This morning, the President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva spoke to the assembly. There were metal detectors and secret service (or whatever the Brazilian equilavent is) everywhere, and students from the university chanting and waving flags outside - we never figured out if they were supporting or protesting him. And, actually, he begun his speech by saying that it doesn't matter whether they are shouting for or against him, that it is a beautiful thing that people are shouting because that means it's a democracy. He also gave much credit to the WCC for our past work on justice issues, including support of Brazil and political dissidents like Paulo Friere when Brazil was under totalitarian rule.
Then, later in the day, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, addressed the assembly. I also got to hear him speak at the Bate Papo, a Portuguese term for an intimate chat. These occur each day at lunch time here, and they feature a renowned world leader in conversation with a young adult active in the ecumenical movement. They are fascinating conversations to listen to, and the young adults really press with wonderful and strong questions. Tomorrow we will hear Rigoberta Menchu, Nobel Peace Prize winner. So, I am meeting and hearing from some pretty amazing famous people - and also LOTS of amazing not-so-famous people who also have amazing stories to tell. More soon!
Today, however, we were in the super-famous category. This morning, the President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva spoke to the assembly. There were metal detectors and secret service (or whatever the Brazilian equilavent is) everywhere, and students from the university chanting and waving flags outside - we never figured out if they were supporting or protesting him. And, actually, he begun his speech by saying that it doesn't matter whether they are shouting for or against him, that it is a beautiful thing that people are shouting because that means it's a democracy. He also gave much credit to the WCC for our past work on justice issues, including support of Brazil and political dissidents like Paulo Friere when Brazil was under totalitarian rule.
Then, later in the day, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, addressed the assembly. I also got to hear him speak at the Bate Papo, a Portuguese term for an intimate chat. These occur each day at lunch time here, and they feature a renowned world leader in conversation with a young adult active in the ecumenical movement. They are fascinating conversations to listen to, and the young adults really press with wonderful and strong questions. Tomorrow we will hear Rigoberta Menchu, Nobel Peace Prize winner. So, I am meeting and hearing from some pretty amazing famous people - and also LOTS of amazing not-so-famous people who also have amazing stories to tell. More soon!
# posted by Petra : 3:39 PM
