News
The World Council of Churches’ rich history of promoting understanding and cooperation among Christians worldwide is being celebrated this week in Amsterdam, the site of the movement’s founding assembly.
“New publications about the history of the organization and its diverse leadership offer WCC member churches and the public at large the chance to discover the rich history of the ecumenical movement,” says Michael West, consulting editor with WCC Publications (WCCP). “These publications address both the challenges and the successes of the movement. You could say the WCC is an open book,” he adds with a smile.
In a special publishing initiative designed to draw attention to WCC’s history and to how it informs and enriches current and future programmes, WCC Publications has issued four new books and a special edition of its journal The Ecumenical Review.
“WCC journals and publications such as these offer thoughtful input from a global perspective on the full range of issues that concern the ecumenical movement and prompt reflection on future perspectives for the WCC,” says Kristine Greenaway, WCCP’s coordinating editor.
The list includes the long-awaited update of the classic introduction to the WCC penned by Martin Conway and the late Marlin VanElderen. The new edition, titled Pilgrimage of Faith: Introducing the World Council of Churches, was written by Donald W. Norwood. The British ecumenist, pastor, and journalist offers a vivid and lively first person overview of the organization as seen through the lens of its 10 global assemblies. His account highlights the emergence of themes that have marked WCC from its earliest years: the centrality of prayer to the ecumenical movement; peace building; dialogue; anti-racism; the role of women in church and society; advocacy for justice; education; diakonia; and care for creation.
A memoir by former WCC general secretary, Konrad Raiser, The Challenge of Transformation: An Ecumenical Journey, offers a privileged view into the life, work, and reflections of the German theologian who was called to lead the organization through challenging years of refocusing, rethinking, and restructuring the ecumenical movement. Stephen Brown, editor of The Ecumenical Review edited and translated the book from the original German.
“This anniversary is not just about looking back”, says Greenaway, pointing to Walking Together: Theological Reflections on the Ecumenical Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace. “This book highlights WCC’s ongoing focus on the ecumenical Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace.”
The anthology’s editors, theologians Susan Durber and Fernando Enns, draw on their long ecumenical experience to gather engaging contributions on the theme of justice and peace from a diverse range of perspectives.
An issue of The Ecumenical Review created to mark WCC’s 70th anniversary contains an article, address, or book chapter by each of the WCC's seven general secretaries since 1948: Willem A. Visser 't Hooft (1948–66); Eugene Carson Blake (1966–1972); Philip Potter (1972–1984); Emilio Castro (1985–1992); Konrad Raiser (1993–2003); Samuel Kobia (2004–2009); and Olav Fykse Tveit (2010–).
“Each of the general secretaries was dealing with the issues of his time. Yet common issues emerge: the tension between the WCC as a movement for renewal and as a grouping of churches; the meaning of fellowship as mutual accountability for the churches that have committed themselves to the WCC; widening the ecumenical fellowship beyond the member churches of the WCC; and the image of the ‘pilgrim people of God’,” Brown explains.
The final book in the yearlong publishing initiative is the English edition of the biography of the late general secretary, Emilio Castro. Carlos A. Sintado and Manuel Quintero Peréz wrote the Spanish original of Emilio Castro: A Legacy of Passionate Ecumenism. Tony Coates provides the English translation. All three knew Castro and draw on first hand experience to offer a portrait of the Uruguayan church leader. The book, which will be officially launched in Geneva on 28 September, is now available for sale.
Pilgrimage of Faith: Introducing the World Council of Churches – Donald W. Norwood
The Challenge of Transformation: An Ecumenical Journey – Konrad Raiser
Articles in this issue of The Ecumenical Review, available free of charge
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