European Lutheran Conference
May 21-24, 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal
Is the Christian Faith too foolish for our young Generation?
The theme of the ELC 2025 is inspired by the biblical word of St. Paul:
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
For many young (and old) people, the christian faith is nonsense. For us it is the power of God that saves our lifes. Since the church is there to reach out and spread the Good News about God’s way of saving us, we want to think about how to reach out to our young generation in particular. They have most of the questions and try to find orientation for their life. At the same time they are bombarded by social media spreading all sorts of faiths and ideologies. What does it take to reach our young generation with the Good News? How can we as pastors and ordinary members of the church help them?
Keynote Speakers
Markus Nietzke (Germany)
is Superintendent of the church district of Niedersachsen-West of the Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church in Germany. His topic is:
Reaching out by providing a strong biblical foundation
Garry Heintz (France)
is Vice-President of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of France. His topic is:
Reaching out by dealing with ideologies (questioning our faith)
George Samiec (England)
is President of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England. His topic is:
Reaching out by incorporating examples of best practice
Finland; President J. Ehlers, UK; Bishop H.-J. Voigt, Germany