Church in focus: Central Council President Schuster calls for courage to contradict

Würzburg. The President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany has appealed to society to call out injustice even when it requires a lot of courage. “Whoever opens his mouth makes it easier for the next person to do the same,” said Josef Schuster at the Synod of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) in Würzburg. Teachers, for example, would have to intervene if students were racially insulted by their classmates. In your circle of friends, at work or in a club, you shouldn't hold back if anti-Semitism takes hold. “Especially among people we know well, sometimes it takes a little courage to say a word,” said Schuster.

“You don’t want to embarrass the colleague you’re working with again tomorrow or start an argument at family dinner.” But you shouldn't wait for "someone else to start. Let's object when someone tells an anti-Semitic joke or belittles another person because of their origin, skin color or gender."

This year's EKD conference with numerous discussion forums and working groups will take place until Wednesday under the motto "Continuing together - Church as a workshop for democracy education and intergenerational learning as an expression of lived faith". Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is expected as a guest on Tuesday.

The Synod is the church parliament of the EKD. The committee will meet in a newly elected form in April 2027. After six years in office, the President of the EKD Synod, Anna-Nicole Heinrich, is not running again. Former Transport Minister Volker Wissing (independent) is named as a possible successor in media reports. In total, almost 17.4 million people belong to the EKD.