Dialogue between the DPCU and the CPCE enters a temporary pause

The dialogue between the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (DPCU) and the Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE) will be paused for approximately two years. This moratorium was discussed jointly at a meeting of the mandate givers and those responsible for both delegations in Rome on 9 December 2025. At its meeting on 29 May 2026 in Doorn, the Netherlands, the Council of the CPCE endorsed this orientation.

In a Joint Press Release, the DPCU and the CPCE emphasise: “The pause does not mean the end of the dialogue. It is intended to allow for an evaluation of the experience gained so far and for clarification of the conditions for a possible continuation of the dialogue. The work undertaken in recent years has not been without fruit. It has deepened mutual understanding and helped both sides to articulate more clearly important theological affirmations that can be recognised together, as well as those questions that require further clarification.”

The Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE) is a communion of churches that brings together 96 Lutheran, Methodist, Reformed and United churches in more than 30 countries across Europe and South America. It has a total of 40 million Protestant members. By signing the Leuenberg Agreement in 1973, the member churches committed themselves to “common witness and service”.

_{Photo: Nicolas Schnall / pba [attached]}