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“Politics is only as good as the people who engage in it.”

Lord David Alton of Liverpool

“To serve right and fight against the dominion of wrong is
and remains the fundamental task of the politician.”

Pope Benedict XVI

“If conscience disapproves, the loudest applauses of the world are of little value.”

John Adams
Founding Father and second President of the United States of America

“We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath
the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“The man or woman who governs – who loves his people is a humble man or woman.”

Pope Francis at the private audience with the ICLN in August 2013

“The life of St. Thomas More
teaches us that government
is above all an exercise of virtue.”

Pope St. John Paul II

Why

Faith • Formation • Fellowship

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Mission

To equip dedicated Christians in public office with faith formation, expert education and a global network of peers and friends, empowering them to exercise virtuous and effective leadership that is committed to the dignity of every human being. The ICLN does not engage in lobbying or political activism and operates on the principles of independence, non-partisanship, and the Chatham House Rule of confidentiality

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Vision

We live in times of collapsing moral leadership, an absence of political accountability and the rapid decline of just lawmaking. That is why the ICLN is needed today: to form the conscience of individual leaders in public office – irrespective of their political affiliation – by offering them Christian fellowship and continuing education. They desire to serve their countries upholding the highest of ethical and professional standards.

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History

Since 2010, the ICLN has connected and supported committed Christian leaders in public office by building a growing international network. Our annual meetings and other programs have drawn over 1000 politicians from around the world, whilst our young leaders program prepares the next generation. The ICLN succesfully provides an independent platform for education, policy cooperation and the improvement of bilateral ties.

What it means to be a Christian in Politics

When

Calendar of Activities

Monthly Global Video Conferences (working groups) every last Tuesday of the month at 5 pm Central European Time

ICLN Political Leadership Academy: Freedom of Conscience, Religion and Security of Person: How to Enforce Globally Embattled Fundamental Rights
11-18 November 2024, online

4th meeting of the Fellowship of Young Christian Global Leaders (YCGL) 17-20 July 2025 in Fátima, Portugal. Please nominate candidates
by December 1st, 2024!

16th Annual Meeting of the International Catholic Legislators Network (ICLN)
21-24 August 2025 in Rome, Italy

For Event Information : Information requests may be directed to: office(at)icln.world

Who

Executive Board

Dr. Christiaan Alting von Geusau
President & Chief Executive Officer
Manuel Maan Baghdi
Vice President & Chief Information Officer
Dr. Wolfgang Kropf
Vice President and General Counsel

Supervisory Board

Shawn Kohl
Chairman
Martin Santivanez Vivanco
Vice Chairman
Martijn van Helvert
Member

Honorary Patrons

His Eminence Cardinal Dr. Christoph Schönborn
Archbishop of Vienna
The Right Honorable Lord Prof. David Alton
of Liverpool, House of Lords, United Kingdom
His Eminent Beatitude Moran Mor Bechara Boutros al-Rahi
Maronite Patriarch of Antiochia
His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II
Supreme Head of the Syriac-Orthodox Church

The ICLN is a non-profit limited liability company (ICLN gemeinnützige GmbH) under Austrian company law, with permanent staff and headquarters in Vienna and a legally and financially independent partner office in Washington D.C., as well as representative offices in Nairobi and Singapore. We are non-partisan, independent and financed exclusively through participation fees and carefully vetted private donations without institutional or government ties.

Contact  the ICLN

The Home for Christians in Public Office

For more information about our current program of activities and how to apply for being considered for a personal invitation to our events, please contact us at: office@icln.world. You may also write us if you are interested in our Political Leadership Academy: apart from our online version, these courses can also be offered in-person and tailored to the needs of a specific audience.

Participation at ICLN events presupposes a visible Catholic or otherwise Christian profile that is reflected in the individual voting record and public statements made. The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church, with its special concern for the protection of life, marriage and the freedom of conscience and religion is at the core of our mission.

Home

Address

Reisnerstraße 40
1030 Vienna, Austria
+43 1 533 5002.

Support the Important Work of the

International Catholic Legislators Network

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Our Patron Saint

“When statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of their public duties, they lead their country by a short route to chaos.”

St . Thomas More
Lord Chancellor of the British Realm, Speaker of the House of Commons and martyr