|
During springtime the Theobalt work was mainly applied to preparing the conference, which took place in Visby 14th - 17th of June. In all there were around 80 participants out of which 41 were official delegates from 18 churches. The theme of the conference was: 'Churches around the Baltic Sea - their contribution to the region in a changing context'. Details about the conference can be found in the comprehensive report, which is published in book form and distributed to the participants, network churches and other interested people and parties.
After contacts with the Swedish prime minister and other representatives of the government, a project plan was compiled in the beginning of the year. It gives three main fields for future activities: 1) Dialogues/Meetings between people, 2) Education, 3) Communication. The project plan is based on the purpose of Theobalt as it was defined at the meeting with the steering group in Riga in April 1999. The Diocesan board of Visby, acknowledging Theobalt as a task of the diocese, has adopted the plan as a basis for support and allocation of resources in accordance with the capacity of the diocese. The plan runs till 2004 and will be implemented in relation to available resources.
1. Considering the interest from the Swedish government since Theobalt IV, it was quite appropriate to inform about the development of Theobalt, in connection with the Swedish presidency of the EU. This contact was the immediate reason for the project plan and resulted in a financial contribution to the conference. Generally speaking, there is a great interest from the government to follow the work of Theobalt without, however, interfering in principle or practise. 2. In connection with a conference arranged by the Nordic Ecumenical Council in Brussels in February, attended by Ragnar Svenserud, Theobalt was presented to representatives of EU Commission of enlargement, to the Swedish embassy to the EU and to CEC (Mr Keith Jenkins). Likewise, information has been given to the EU ambassadors in Latvia and Poland. Also the embassies of Sweden in Riga and Warsaw have been visited for talks about Theobalt. 3. As a result of a meeting with the Apostolic Nuntio to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia (Archbishop J E Ender) in Vilnius in November 2000, Ragnar Svenserud was invited to give a speech on Theobalt to the Roman Catholic Bishops' conference in May 2001. The conference took place in Tallinn. 4. Theobalt was also presented at the annual conference of the network of the Hansa cities in Riga. Theobalt was exposed in the stand together with the city of Visby and a short presentation was given to the Hansa assembly. 5. BIEN (Baltic Intercultural and Ecumenical Network), the Christian youth network in the Baltic area, was represented at Theobalt V through its general secretary. As a result Theobalt was invited to participate and present itself at the BIEN future workshop in Riga in August, which gathered around 150 participants from the three church traditions in the Baltic area.
During 2001 more or less close contacts have been established
with other networks in the area. The contacts have mainly been
taken by the other part.
Eighteen churches have appointed a contact person for Theobalt. The intention is to gather this group once a year in Visby. Accordingly there was a meeting in September 2001. Fifteen churches were represented. The participants shared their experience of being a contact person. Several of them gave evidence of an increasingly positive attitude towards Theobalt within their own churches. Moreover the project plan was discussed as well as future activities. It was then proposed that a small booklet about the network churches should be published. There was also a wish for a collection of prayers from the three Church traditions. A special deliberation was applied to the educational programme and the group paid a visit to the place on Northern Gotland where possible school premises are available.
The basic principle is that each church should finance its own costs in the Theobalt work. However, this is not yet possible for all churches. At the same time, it is important that no church should have to stay outside the network due to economical reasons. Therefore, a system for financial support is necessary. The general work of Theobalt is financed by the Diocese of Visby. Primarily it applies to the administrative work (salaries, stationery, IT, office and travelling). It also includes covering costs for travelling and accommodation in meetings in the case when a church is unable to pay for its own representative. When it comes to larger conferences contributions from different sources is an important and indispensable help. Thus Theobalt V was financed mainly through grants from the Swedish government, the Swedish Institute, Church of Sweden, the Diocese of Strängnäs and Church of Finland.
In general it is apparent that Theobalt is getting more and more established in the area. The number of churches participating in the Theobalt V conference is a sign of that as well as the response from the churches on the proposal to appoint contact persons. The interested attitude and the atmosphere in the personal contacts with church leaders is another important sign of the acceptance of Theobalt. It is probably fair to say that by now there are expectations on the idea of Theobalt. The standing committee, with its mandate given by the representatives of the churches participating at Theobalt V, is a platform for the network churches to handle principle matters in the development of the network. The same applies to the group of contact persons when it comes to the practical work. The project plan, finally, gives a solid ground for concrete actions that will serve the idea of the network in order to establish it even more firmly. It is still a challenge to arrange a solid financial ground. Even if the Diocese of Visby is ready to shoulder a basic budget, contributions from outside will be necessary also in the future. The grant from Church of Finland to the Theobalt V budget is a positive example of a shared responsibility among the churches. How can this be developed in a constructive way with respect for the churches' different capacities? At the same time, no stone should be unturned to try to get support from other sources in society, from those who realise the value of an ecclesiastical contribution to the societal development in the Baltic area. Ragnar Svenserud |
BIEN:
Already at Theobalt V the junior representatives started a discussion
on how to establish a link between Theobalt and BIEN. At the meeting
in Riga (see above) a steering committee for BIEN was elected.
Theobalt is represented through Kristina S Furberg, Diocese of
Visby. |
 |