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With the welcoming sound of South African drums, the 58th meeting of the World Council of Churches Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) began this week in Johannesburg, reviewing the work of the commission between two WCC assemblies and discussing the churches’ engagement in critical issues of the world today.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) expressed grave concern over the current state of emergency in Sudan. “Government officials, including ministers and civilian members of the Transitional Sovereign Council, have been arrested,” said WCC acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca. “It has also been reported that at least seven people have been killed and some 140 others injured after soldiers opened fire on demonstrators.”

The WCC’s Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) will meet on 2-6 November in Johannesburg and online, reviewing its work between the two WCC assemblies and preparing for the upcoming WCC 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany.

World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed concern regarding the implications of a recent ruling of the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal reversing a judgement made in April that had declared the death penalty unconstitutional and ordered re-sentencing for all prisoners held on “death row.” This reversal effectively reinstates the death penalty in Malawi, and allows judges to resume its imposition.

In Nigeria’s northwest state of Kaduna, Christians are bearing the brunt of insecurity and violence, as bandits attack homes, villages and churches, killing Christians and kidnapping others for ransom.

At the centre of the communal violence is religious persecution, territorial ambition and ethnic cleansing in the region where communities have settled along religious lines, according to Rev. John Joseph Hayab, the country director for the Global Peace Foundation, Nigeria.

 

During National Ecumenical Prayers for Peaceful Elections in Zambia, held 1 August, religious and civic leaders gathered in-person and online to pray for peaceful elections in the nation, which has been coping with a rise in violence during the lead-up to 12 August voting.

In a 13 July letter to the United Nations Security Council, the Diálogo Intereclesial por la Paz en Colombia (DiPaz), an interchurch platform for dialogue for peace in Colombia, called on the international community to urge the Colombian government to resume the full implementation of the peace agreement and strengthen channels of dialogue to resolve societal issues.

The United Church of Christ, at a 14 June event entitled “UCC at the United Nations: Growing New Connections to Create a Just World for All,” explored how to strengthen global advocacy by journeying with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and other partners.

A 12 July statement from the South African Council of Churches notes with deep concern the violence and destruction of property that is engulfing the nation. “This violence is resulting in untold suffering,” the statement reads.

В преддверии первого саммита президентов США и России, который пройдет 16 июня в Женеве, Всемирный Совет Церквей (ВСЦ) выразил надежды на мир посредством открытого письма и молитвы.

The World Council of Churches (WCC), with an open letter and prayer, shared its hopes for peace on the eve of the first summit between the U.S. and Russian presidents, which will take place in Geneva on 16 June.

The World Council of Churches, ACT Alliance, Lutheran World Federation, World Communion of Reformed Churches, Anglican Communion, World Methodist Council, Latin American Episcopal Council and World Association for Christian Communication, in a letter sent 18 May, urged Colombian president Iván Duque Marquéz to stop the spiral of violence that is doing terrible harm to the civilian population.

World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca welcomed the announcement of the dissolution of parliament in South Sudan, to pave the way for the appointment of lawmakers from formerly warring parties in the country. This is an important step in the long-awaited and repeatedly delayed implementation of the peace accords between president Salva Kiir and vice president Riek Machar. “I pray that there will be no further delays in this process,” said Sauca, “and that the full implementation of the accords will finally ensure peace and good governance for the suffering people of South Sudan.”