Arusha report, panel discussion

What does the Arusha Call mean to you and to the world?

The Arusha Call means to me a call to repentance. Why? I try to explain it to you.

The Arusha call invites us and all the people in the world to join the on-going movement of the Holy Spirit. Above all, the Spirit leads us to fellowship of the triune God. As the fruit of that fellowship we are led to peace (shalom), i. e. to balanced Christian life.

The Arusha Call challenges us to have the Gospel as our most precious treasure. It helps us, as individuals and communities, to a simple lifestyle, to avoid wasting the resources of the nature, and to be more able to resist the greed and injustice.

We are called to confess that only with the presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ we have hope. With Him we can share our well-being and receive those who are rejected, despised or driven away from their homes and lands. With our Lord Jesus we are called to treat each other in a friendly way and to have dialogue even with those who don´t share our faith.

In everything we are called to maintain the way of humility, the way of the cross, not taking part in any means of forcing or violence. For these reasons the Arusha Call is a call to repentance.

Bishop Simo Peura ©
ELCF