c. 1997 Religion News Service

GENEVA _ If there’s one thing the panoply of Christian churches can agree on, it is that rampant capitalism and its sordid offspring, such as greed, are worthy causes to harangue.”The globalization of economic markets is seriously harming the common good, environmental sustainability and democracy,”the Rev. Konrad Raiser, general secretary of the World Council of Churches, said at the opening Thursday (Sept. 11) of the annual meeting of the ecumenical group’s Central Committee, which runs through Sept. 19.

But the fight against economic inequality may pale compared to the challenge of bringing unity to the increasingly fragmented and rambunctious 330 member denominations of the WCC.

By the WCC’s own account, the ecumenical movement is in something of a rut. Serious challenges to the cause of unity are being waged by the Orthodox churches of the East; divisions among Christians are deepening along the fault lines of social issues, like homosexuality and the role of women; and an increasing number of young people are turning away from the ecumenical movement.

One of the most tangible manifestations of the troubles is the steadily eroding financial support of the WCC, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 1998.

Member churches have reduced donations and European governments that partially finance its activities have cited tough economic times for cutbacks. The council has been forced to trim its work force by nearly 25 percent and curtail international activities, like education and development programs in the Third World.

Raiser called the staff reductions”a consequence of the painful process of consolidating budgets.”He said nearly 50 percent of members do not contribute financially, an untenable situation.

But more troubling, officials say, are the growing rifts among Christians that have spawned in the post Cold War era of autonomy assertiveness.”During the Cold War we didn’t have this polarization,”said Aaron Tolen, a Presbyterian from Cameroon and a member of the WCC central committee.”Fifty years ago most of the member churches were from Europe and America. Now they’re from Africa, Latin America and Asia. You’ve seen a rise in ethnocentricity. So, when you look at the ecumenical movement today you see a lot of disparity.” But, he added,”this is not a reason to give up trying to find a visible unity.””The fact that churches have problems recognizing one another is the raison d’etre of the WCC,”said Dwain Epps, a Presbyterian from Klamath Falls, Ore., who coordinates international affairs for the group.”There are a lot of tensions, there’s no question about that. And we’re in the middle of it.” Trying to find a middle road to satisfy all the member churches is the principal aim of the Geneva meeting, which will set the agenda and the tone for the eighth General Assembly of WCC member denominations scheduled for December 1998 in Zimbabwe. The assemblies convene every seven or eight years.

But the path is not expected to be smooth. Many of the non-European churches show less inclination to make declarations about progressive social topics, like special rights for homosexuals, which some European churches want enshrined in the movement’s platform.

The evangelical movement also has robbed the WCC of its leading ecumenical role because many in those circles, such as the growing Pentecostal churches, are not historically wedded to ecumenism.

The 15 independent Eastern Orthodox Churches, which have been revived after 50 years of communism, are also posing a stiff challenge to the ecumenical movement.

Last May, the Georgian Orthodox Church withdrew its membership in the WCC. It accused the group of acting more like a church than a fellowship, saying it is peddling a distinctly Western brand of Christianity. It also declared hostility toward the proselytizing efforts of some WCC member churches in its backyard and said moves to expand rights for gays and women were politically motivated and out of step with its teachings.

Raiser tried to downplay the falling-out, saying Georgia’s withdrawal was not an”exceptional situation.”He noted that”similar conflicts have arisen in many other churches representing the whole spectrum of Christian traditions.” But the conflicts are not expected to recede anytime soon. The Russian Orthodox Church also has threatened to walk out, a step that could cause an exodus among the other Orthodox churches.

Earlier this summer, the Russian parliament, at the request of the powerful Orthodox church, approved legislation that would have severely curtailed the activities of Protestants and Catholics, among others. President Boris Yeltsin, under intense pressure from Pope John Paul II and Western political leaders, vetoed the bill.

A compromise bill _ still unacceptable to many in the West _ is currently being worked out.

The WCC is expected to draft a proposal that will be voted on in Zimbabwe next year that harshly criticizes efforts by any religious organization to impede religious freedom.

Officials in charge of coming up with a blueprint, much less language that is acceptable to the myriad interests, acknowledge it is a rough time.”If a new generation is to make its own the commitment expressed (50 years ago), the understanding of the place and role of the WCC in the ecumenical movement must be given new focus,”says the introduction to the document that will be hashed out over the next week.

MJP END HEILBRONNER