The World Council of Churches (WCC) is planning a year of activities in 2025 to mark the 1700th anniversary of the first Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in 325, a key moment in the history of Christian faith and for the ecumenical journey today.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) has remembered the contribution of the Rev. Dr Reinhard Groscurth, who served the council’s secretariat on Faith and Order, and was the editor of many publications on the ecumenical movement and church unity.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on World Mission and Evangelism, in partnership with the Portuguese Council of Churches, hosted a seminar in Lisbon, Portugal, on 5-9 June entitled “Making the last FIRST,” relating this theme to decolonization.
As churches in the southern hemisphere closed the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on 28 May, they brought final reflections to this year’s theme of “Do good; seek justice (Isaiah 1:17).”
A webinar on 25 May, “Exploring the nexus between racism, xenophobia and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and African Union (AU) free movement protocol,” marked Africa Day by focusing on the potential of faith communities, especially Christians, in bridging the gaps that continue to frustrate the free movement of people and goods around the continent.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is celebrated in the southern hemisphere from 21-28 May. Below, Rev. Canon Michael Wallace, vicar for the Dunedin North Anglican Parish Te Pāriha o Ōtepoti ki te Raki, reflects on his hopes for observing the special week in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Churches in the southern hemisphere will observe the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on 21-28 May, the week between Ascension and Pentecost. This year’s theme is “Do good; seek justice (Isaiah 1:17).”
In a webinar hosted by the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order, speakers and participants explored the question: What does it mean to be the church within the contemporary context of world Christianity?
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order is convening for the last time with its current composition before a new commission takes its place.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order will convene for the last time with its current composition before the new commission takes its place.
Opening the launch of the text “Future of Mission Cooperation”—the last in a World Council of Churches (WCC) trilogy reflecting on the centenary of the International Missionary Council—WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay described the volume as “the outcome of a rich and long process.”
A new volume of “The Future of Mission Cooperation” will be released during a hybrid event on 24 March, and will be followed by a discussion for an editorial group to discuss next steps with scholars and schools who contributed to the text.
Rev. Dr Kuzipa Nalwamba, World Council of Churches programme director for Unity and Mission, reflects below on mission, theology, and the making of a better world.
Rev. Dr Odair Pedroso Mateus began to teach at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute in 2004 and joined the World Council of Churches (WCC) in 2007. Most recently he served as WCC interim deputy general secretary and Faith and Order director. Below, he reflects on his fondest memories, accomplishments, and hopes.
The new St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in New York City hosted a special Week of Prayer for Christian Unity service in a church that was previously destroyed by terrorist attacks on 11 Sept. 2001.
At an ecumenical service hosted at St Paul’s Anglican Church by the Barbados Christian Council, those gathered prayerfully explored the symbols of stones and water as “the beginning of a decolonized spiritual practice.”
In a service for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, representatives from 25 churches in Geneva drew together in the World Council of Churches chapel on 18 January.
Christians in New York City opened the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on 18 January by participating in a worship service at the Interchurch Center, an office building that houses many church-related organizations and many others focused on intercultural and religious exchange. The service was infused with themes of justice and unity, both from a perspective of African-American history and the urging of Christians today to put their faith into action.