European Council of Religious Leaders
| Abbreviation | ECRL |
|---|---|
| Motto | "Different faiths, common action" |
| Type | INGO |
| Purpose | Peace through common action of different faiths |
| Headquarters | Oslo, Norway |
|
Region served
|
Europe |
|
Official language
|
English |
|
Moderator
|
Dr. Revd Thomas Wipf |
|
Parent organization
|
Religions for Peace |
|
Staff
|
3 |
| Website | http://www.rfp-europe.eu/ |
European Council of Religious Leaders (ECRL) is a European interreligious council for cooperation between senior leaders of religious traditions represented in Europe (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism). The ECRL is one out of five regional interreligious councils within the global movement, Religions for Peace. The Council held its inaugural meeting in Oslo in 2002.
Vision: The major religious communities in Europe cooperate effectively for peace and reconciliation, in Europe and beyond.
This vision grows out of the shared commitment of faith traditions to human dignity and the right to live in peace. On this basis religious leaders have committed themselves to work together in order to prevent conflict, promote peaceful coexistence and encourage their communities to do the same. European Council of Religious Leaders works on the basis of mutual respect and appreciation for religious diversity.
Based in the different religious traditions and Holy Books, the Council encourages a common moral responsibility for the prevention of conflict and the promotion of dialogue. Values that are deeply held and widely shared offer guidance to the work. In a continent where religion has often been seen as a source of conflict, the European Council of Religious Leaders seeks to be a resource for peace.
The ECRL aims at promoting inter-religious cooperation in Europe and beyond. The work of the Council includes annual council meetings, participation in conferences, delegation visits to conflict areas and maintaining contacts across religious boundaries.
The secretariat of the ECRL is situated in Oslo and the Moderator is Bishop Emeritus Gunnar Stålsett.
As a guideline for the work of the Council and to spread knowledge of inter-religious dialogue, the ECRL, on its Council meeting in Berlin in 2008, issued a declaration:
The council consists of senior religious leaders representing: 7 per each religion/denomination of longer history of presence in Europe, 6 of religious traditions with shorter presence in Europe and 4 ex officio members representing different entities of Religions for Peace movement.
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