Agape Italy 11 to 15 September 2019
On behalf of the Board of Oikosnet Europe and on behalf of Agape Centro Ecemenico in Italy, it is our pleasure to invite you to the next Annual Conference (AC) of Oikosnet Europe (OE).
The AC is scheduled to take place from 11 – 15 September 2019 in the beautiful settings of Torino in Northern Italy.
“We are looking forward to an exciting Annual Conference,” Walter Lüssi, President of Oikosnet Europe states. “Agape is an exciting learning space. People, especially young people, hardly come back from there unchanged and with new ecumenical inspiration. In 2019, as Oikosnet Europe, we also want to be inspired by the special flair of the place and by the experience of the Agape Center in community building.”
Identities on moving landscapes: an historical view from the Alps
The theme of the 2019 Annual Conference has be chosen accordingly. It deals with identities in a changing world, characterised by migration. The Directors and staff of the Agape Center send their cordial invitation and write: “Waldensian communities are migrating communities – by means of survival, by force and, after civil rights were granted to religious minorities in 1848, by choice. Moving slowly from a clandestine movement, to a Church in a ghetto and ultimately to freedom has brought a change from a closed community to a Church open to everyone. How can identities forged by forced migration change with freedom? Is a crisis needed to form new identities? In the recent migration movements we can see similar processes of forming and changing identities. We will analyse these processes in the light of accessibility and community back then and today, we will give an insight to the political contexts in Italy and it’s position in Europe and we will discover what answers Protestant Churches in Italy and the Italian Civil Society have found to the identitarian challenges of today. ”
Registration and how to get there
Agape lies within the Waldensian Valley in the north of Italy. The closest airport is Turino. And from there it takes some time to drive. For the Oikosnet Annual Conference, Turino will be the starting point of shuttles to Agape. Participants should arrive well before 18h00 on 11 September. More detailed information will be provided to registered participants. For more information on the Agape Center check: https://agapecentroecumenico.org/en
The registration for the conference is open until August 21. We look forward to see you all there!