Preliminary Meeting
January 13-14, 1968 – Geneva, Switzerland

“Ad hoc committee evaluated conversations held in Europe and North America; recommendation to set up a permanent
Lutheran-Reformed Committee whose main task was to further the theological consensus between Lutheran and
Reformed Churches and to seek ways amd means of achieving a closer working relationship between the two world families”

FIRST SERIES (1970-1979)

MEETINGS

1. January 28-29, 1970 – Geneva, Switzerland
   “The continuing dialogue between the two World Bodies; ‘Concord’ as Model of Church fellowship: the practical
   implications of a theological consensus; role of the two World Organizations in the life of the younger Churches” –
   REPORT
2. February 3-5, 1971 – Geneva, Switzerland
   “Present Relationship between Lutheran and Reformed Churches; the Mutual Understanding of the two Confessional
   Bodies of their Ecumenical Commitment and their Role in the Future Development of the Ecumenical Movement; the
   Attitude of the two Confessional Bodies towards the Idea of a ‘Universal Council`”
3. November 14-16, 1972 – Basel, Switzerland
   “Relationship between the Central Affirmation of the Christ-Event as Justification and Social Commission of the Church;
   Evaluation of Confessional Approach in the Search for the Unity of the Church”
4. July 17-21, 1973 – Cartigny / Geneva, Switzerland
   “Relationship between the Proclamation of the Gospel and Social Task of the Church; the Relationship between Koinonia
   and Doctrinal Consensus; the Implications of the Leuenberg Agreement; Role and Purpose of Confessional Families” –
   JOINT STATEMENT COMMUNIQUÉ

CO-CHAIRMEN

Rt. Rev. Dr. Friedrick Hübner, Kiel, Germany (Lutheran)
Rev. Dr. Jacques Rossel, Basel, Switzerland (Reformed)

CO-SECRETARIES

Dr. Peter Højen, LWF
Rev. Richmond Smith, WARC

• March 17-22, 1975 – Strasbourg, France
  “New committee named: scope was to examine the theological and ecclesiastical implications of the Leuenberg agreement;
  to undertake a series of case studies on Lutheran-Reformed relations; to continue studying the idea of a ‘Universal
  Council’” – REPORT
• March 29-30, 1979 -Geneva, Switzerland
  “Consultation on the future of the dialogue where the Joint committee was dissolved and an ad hoc working group
  formed to consider the future of the full L/R Joint Committee”
• September 2- 8, 1979 – Geneva, Switzerland
  “Decision taken on the future of the dialogue”
• August 2-8, 1981 – Wuppertal, Germany
  “Report of the Ad hoc committee received by the LWF and the WARC encouraging further bilateral conversations”

SECOND SERIES (1985-1988)

MEETINGS

1. December 2-6, 1985 – Geneva, Switzerland.
   “Ecumenical relationships at national and regional level”
2. November 30 – December 4, 1986 – Techny-Chicago, USA
   “Reports on the relations between Lutheran-Reformed throughout the world, an analysis of the large context of ecumenical dialogue, preliminary observations for communal affirmation of faith”
3. November 28 – December 2, 1987 – Driebergen, Netherlands.
   “Preparation of a draft statement which will become the joint commission’s report: a common theological affirmation, a discussion of unity in diversity and recommendations to the sponsoring bodies”
4. November 28 – December 1, 1988 – Budapest, Hungary
   “Producing the final draft of an agreed statement, the introduction calls for attention both to the estrangement of the
   Reformed and Lutherans traditions in the 16th century Reformation subsequent centuries in also to the reformation
   heritage the two church groups having in common; themes of the report: our common faith, the way to church fellowship,
   sacraments and ministry, witness and service, language and ethnicity”Easter 1989 – Geneva, Switzerland
   REPORT – Toward Church Fellowship

CO-CHAIRMEN

Rt Rev. Dr Gyula Nagy, Hungary (Lutheran)
Prof. James B. Torrance, Scotland (Reformed)

CO-SECRETARIES

The Rev. Dr Eugene L. Brand and Ms Irmhild Reichen Young, LWF
Prof. Dr Alan P. F. Sell (1985-87) and Ms Regina Rueger, WARC

LUTHERAN-REFORMED JOINT WORKING GROUP
(1999-2001)

1. November 10, 1999 – Geneva, Switzerland.
   “To analyze current relations between Lutheran and Reformed churches in different regions, and give advice on the
   continued development of global relations between the two partners; to identify other possible forms of practical
   collaboration; to consider whether it would be helpful to begin a new full round of international Lutheran-Reformed
   dialogue”
2. November 17-23, 2000 – Campinas, Brazil
   “Planning meeting”
3. October 14-17, 2001 – Geneva, Switzerland
   REPORT Called to Communion and Common Witness

CO-CHAIRMEN

Rt. Rev. Guy Edmiston, USA (Lutheran)
Prof. Dr. Jane Dempsey Douglass, USA (Presbyterian)

CO-SECRETARIES

Rev. Sven Oppegaard, LWF
Rev. Paraic Réamonn and Rev. Dr. Odair Pedroso Mateus, WARC

THIRD PHASE (2006-2012)

“Lutheran-Reformed Joint Commission”

• Preliminary Meeting
  February 21-23, 2004 – Geneva, Switzerland“Approval of new international dialogue commission; 2 tasks: to examen the relations between the ‘structures’ of the Church and communion; to study the history of the Lutheran and Reformed churches with
  particular attention to their evolution and who influenced positively or negatively the good relations in the
  two confessional families”

1. July 1-7, 2006 – Utrecht, Netherlands
   “Discussed current structures and practces of Lutheran-Reformed relatons; diversity and complementarity of
   ecclesiological approaches”
2. August 11-17, 2007- Windhoek, Namibia
   “The meaning and authority of confessions in Lutheran and Reformed traditions” – COMMUNIQUÉ
3. October 3-9, 2008 – Buenos Aires, Argentina
   “The dialogue looked at the meaning of satis est in relationship to the two confessions and the non-existence of churchdividing
   issues”- COMMUNIQUÉ
4. January 28-February 4, 2010 – Bratislava, Slovakia
   “Continue working on the final text”2012
   REPORT Communion: On Being the ChurchSigning of the Agreed Statement on the Doctrine of Justification
   July 5, 2017 – Wittenberg, Germany
   “Wittenberg Witness. A Common Statement of The World Communion of Reformed Churches and The Lutheran World
   Federation” – COMMON STATEMENT