United in Diversity: A Christian View on the European Union

We had a fruitful Breakfast Meeting on the 5th April 2014 from 830 – 1030 at the ETF. Please find further details about the breakfast seminar below

United in diversity: A Christian view on the European Union 

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Europe stands at a crossroads. The euro crisis moves the debate on the future direction of the European Union (EU) to the forefront. Participants in this debate are inclined to take an extreme position. They either cling to the nation-state or go for a centralised federation, as in the current campaign for the European Parliament elections, to be held 22-25 May 2014. What position should Christians take?

From a Christian perspective, there are good reasons to be both positive and critical about the EU: positive about the EU as a community of values and in its efforts for public justice in Europe and globally; and critical because this ideal is continually overshadowed by economic and financial motives and because further integration threatens cultural diversity and democratic legitimacy.

The essence of a Christian view is a relational approach to Europe’s values and to European public justice. It aims to find a proper balance between unity and diversity. This is expressed well in the EU’s official motto: ‘United in Diversity’. Now more than ever, European leaders must act according to this motto to lead the EU forward to a flourishing and hopeful future

For a full transcript of the paper, please click on the following: Transcript from ILE Breakfast 5th April 2014

Our Speaker Dr. Sander Luitwieler

web-Sander-Luitwieler-APR_DSC0124-2Sander Luitwieler (1978) studied Political Science at Leiden University, the Netherlands. During his studies and as a Ph.D. student, he specialised in European Union politics. In 2009, he got his Ph.D. degree at Erasmus University Rotterdam. In 2012, he concluded the Master Christian Studies of Science and Society at VU University Amsterdam. In his research, he focuses on developing a Christian perspective on European culture and the EU. In addition to several academic publications, he has produced a number of publications for the Research Institute of the Christian Union and the European Christian Political Foundation (ECPF). The latest one is “A community of peoples. Europe’s values and public justice in the EU”. At the moment, he is a Research Fellow at the Evangelical Theological Faculty in Leuven, Belgium.