DPCU represented at the Feast of Saint Birgitta in Vadstena

At the invitation of the General Chapter of the Lutheran "Societas Sanctae Birgittae" (SSB), Father Dr Augustinus Sander, DPCU Official responsible for relations with the Lutherans, delivered a solemn lecture at the shrine of St Birgitta in the "Blue Church" in Vadstena, Sweden, on 23 July 2026. The presentation, titled "Saint Birgitta as an Ecumenical Bridge", also marked the start of the annual Birgittine pilgrimage of Swedish Catholics.

Before an audience of around 1,000 people, Father Augustinus paid tribute to Birgitta as the "Woman of Unity" and a "Witness to Ecumenism" (in the words of Saint Pope John Paul II) and highlighted her spiritual significance for Catholic-Lutheran dialogue.

The SSB is an association of approximately 200 men and women within the Church of Sweden, founded in 1920 – partly on the initiative of Archbishop Nathan Söderblom – as a High Church renewal movement.