Search results

Invoking prayers for creation, eco-justice and peace with the earth, Time for Creation, a Christian global event, is observed worldwide by many member churches of the WCC. This year, the Council has invited a focus on the theme “pilgrimage of justice and peace” – a call issued by the WCC 10th Assembly in Busan, Republic of Korea in 2013.

Amidst the reality of tensions often fueled by religions, a group of Christian, Muslim and Jewish youth has formed a multi-faith community. As part of an interfaith summer course sponsored by the WCC, this community wants to work for the protection of creation – a concern they say is common to all faith traditions.

The WCC has decided fossil fuel investment is a “no-go” zone on its list of investments, reflecting both its commitment to reversing climate change and ethical investments.

Inspired by the theme “pilgrimage of justice and peace”, the Central Committee of the WCC, a chief governing body of the Council, has set directions for the work of the Council from 2014 to 2017.

Imagine a place where young Christians can gather, opening doors to interfaith reflection while working for justice and peace. This is the Metta Karuna Reflection Centre in Siem Reap, Cambodia, founded and operated by Sister Denise Coghlan.

The serene air of the Metta Karuna Reflection Centre in Siem Reap is being stirred up. It is buzzing with the voices of young Christian leaders from Asia who believe that by engaging in interfaith dialogue, they can help bring justice and peace to Asia, a region where religious plurality can be both a blessing and a challenge.

The life of Tun Channareth from Cambodia was changed dramatically in his early twenties. A resistance soldier fighting the Khmer Rouge, Channareth’s legs were shattered when he stepped on a landmine near the border between Cambodia and Thailand.

Exploring realities of multi-religious societies and discovering new ways of working together as faith communities to promote justice and peace, young Christian leaders from Asia have gathered in Cambodia to take part in a two-week training programme called Youth in Asia Training for Religious Amity (YATRA).

Nearly one hundred representatives of the German member churches of the WCC met from 16 to 18 January at the Evangelical Academy of Loccum in order to share their experiences from the WCC 10th Assembly and to discuss how they would continue their way together on their pilgrimage of justice and peace.

As part of the preparations for the upcoming WCC assembly in Korea, young delegates to the event recently got together in Geneva to strategize on making youth contributions to the assembly and to the WCC youth programme more meaningful – envisioning a “youth pilgrimage for justice and peace”.

“Justice and peace now!” was a call made by the participants of the Asia-Pacific Students and Youth Gathering in the Philippines. They affirmed their role in revitalizing the ecumenical movement, aspiring to be “seeds of hope, catalysts of genuine and lasting peace that is based on justice”.

In a call to celebrate Time for Creation, Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, encouraged the churches to pay attention to the “human interventions impacting the ecological balance”.

Young people of the Christian, Muslim and Jewish faiths have created a unique community during a summer course at the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey. Together they seek to break religious stereotypes, promote mutual respect and enhance their understanding of religions beyond the conflict paradigm.

While reflecting on the theme of the WCC upcoming assembly in Busan, Indian churches stressed the importance of celebrating life in fullness, vibrancy, dynamism and fervour irrespective of caste, creed, colour, class, gender or ethnicity.

Youth representing the WCC addressed the theme of justice and peace at the 16th Baptist Youth World Conference in Singapore. Justice and peace remain a concern for the Baptist World Alliance (BWA), according to organizers of the conference, which brought together more than 2,000 young Baptists in Singapore.

While the WCC 10th Assembly is several months away, a foretaste of what young people will bring to the assembly and experience is already developing a rhythm.

At the recent World Social Forum, ecumenical voices warned about the grave consequences of extraction of natural resources and mining, which they say generate a tremendous amount of social and ecological debt.

Church representatives at a recent Oikotree Global Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa stressed the need to support peoples'€™ movements promoting justice in the economy and ecology, a concern, they say, that lies at the heart of the faith.

In Africa, trade, aid and investments from the European Union (EU), United States (US) and China have not fully addressed the roots of poverty, inequality and ecological degradation. Churches, therefore, need to engage in a “development dialogue” to support alternative economic agendas, which can help eradicate poverty, while safeguarding Africa’s natural riches.

The international tug-of-war over carbon emission thresholds and other instruments meant to limit the deterioration of the earth's climate has caused a big stir in recent months, but yielded little results. Therefore the international community must now get ready to take care of those who will be forced from their homes by climate change.