News
:: Seminar on UN reform in New York
:: Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
:: Kobia to meet churches and government officials in Bern
<p class="nospace"» International ecumenical seminar on UN reform
<p class="nospace"» 11-13 January, New York, United States
The WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) is bringing together about 20 key experts on UN-related issues from member churches and partners for a three-day seminar on UN Reform. The seminar, to be held at the UN Church Center in New York, will discuss the content of a proposed WCC 9th Assembly statement on this topic, and will include a 12 January public plenary at which the president of the UN General Assembly, Jan Eliasson, will be a panellist. The draft of the proposed statement will be presented a month later to the Public Issues Committee of the WCC 9th Assembly in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The UN Reform agenda includes four areas: the Security Council; creation of a human rights council; a peace-building commission; and reform of the UN secretariat.
Contact: Laurence Bropleh, +1 212-867-5890
wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/international/unliaison.html
<p class="nospace"» Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
<p class="nospace"» 18-25 January, Worldwide
"Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them" (Matt. 18: 20) is the theme - chosen by an ecumenical group in Ireland - of the 2006 edition of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Jointly prepared since 1968 by the WCC and the Roman Catholic Church, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is traditionally celebrated from 18-25 January. Resources include an introduction to the theme, a suggested ecumenical worship service that local churches are encouraged to adapt for their own particular contexts, biblical reflections and prayers for the "eight days", and additional prayers from, and an overview of, the ecumenical situation in the country that has prepared the material - in this case, Ireland.
www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/faith/wop-index.html
<p class="nospace"» Kobia to meet churches and government officials in Bern
<p class="nospace"» 18-19 January, Bern, Switzerland
The main purpose of a January visit to Switzerland's capital city Bern by WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia is to meet with the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches (on 18 January). On the same day, Kobia will also meet with the Swiss president, Moritz Leuenberger, and on 19 January with the country's foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey. On the evening of 18 January, Kobia will preach at a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity service in the French-language church in Bern. The service will be attended by Swiss delegates and visitors to the WCC Assembly. A brief visit to the Swiss Protestant churches' development agency Bread for All is also envisaged.
Contact: Simon Weber, +41 (0)31 370 2501; mobile: +41 (0)78-739-5853
www.sek.ch[in German or French]
<p class="nospace"» Major WCC events coming up:
WCC 9th Assembly (2006)
14-23 February 2006, Porto Alegre, Brazil