WCC brings spiritual resources to Provincial Synod of the Moravian Church of Great Britain and Ireland

In the British Province, synods serve as the highest decision-making body of the church and are held every two years. This year’s synod was held under the theme “Faithfulness in a Time of Change.”

Roberts, a Moravian minister, was invited to lead the morning prayers and Bible study sessions. He guided the synod to explore and reflect on how the provincial hymnal can serve as a spiritual well that brings the Bible to life.

“While we often tend to see the Bible as informing what we sing in our hymnals, it is also spiritually enriching for us to see how the hymnal can lead us back to reading and understanding the Bible with new eyes,” said Roberts. Each morning prayer included singing hymns and chants from the Moravian hymnal and teaching the synod theme song taken from the WCC 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany. 

Roberts also brought greetings to the synod on behalf of the WCC and used the opportunity to invite the Moravian Church of Great Britain and Ireland, which is a member of the WCC, to continue to actively engage in the ongoing Pilgrimage of Justice, Reconciliation, and Unity. The opening day of the synod highlighted the WCC’s Thursdays in Black campaign as synod delegates wore black as an act of solidarity. 

The chair of the British Province, Sr Roberta Hoey, remarked that “Faithfulness in Change” was more than the synod theme—it became something they lived together.

“We faced the realities before us with honesty, but also with hope,” said Hoey. “The synod affirmed a future focused on organisational renewal and a commitment to God’s mission.”

“It also recognised the importance of engaging more intentionally with our theological inheritance, not because we have all the answers, but because faithful change requires us to continue reflecting together on the beliefs and practices that shape our life as a church.”