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In a video message viewed by more than 1, 790 000 people, leaders in various USA-based churches are urging people to “reclaim Jesus” and reject narrow nationalistic and racist ideas.

On 27 March, a hug between a 7-year-old girl, Majida, and her grandmother reflected the bright light of possibility that the ecumenical Humanitarian Corridors project continues to bring to refugees arriving in Italy. The child was waiting with other family members at the Fiumicino Airport in Rome as her grandmother arrived, safely and legally, in Italy from Lebanon.

To mark the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, sport demonstrations, cultural activities, and a #whitecard torch relay, with which the WCC and some of its partner organizations are linked, will be held in Za’atari Refugee Camp in Jordan on 6 April.

On 20 March the unique program aiming to empower Syrian-Armenian youth who escaped the ongoing conflict in Syria and settled in Armenia was launched in Yerevan. Through training, capacity building and joint activities, the project aims to deepen the relations between Syrian and local Armenian youth.

Charlottesville in Virginia hit world headlines in 2017 during clashes between white supremacists and neo-Nazis who attacked protestors, including clergy, calling for the removal of a controversial statue.

The Meeting on the Implementation of the Plan of Action for Religious Leaders and Actors to Prevent Incitement to Violence that Could Lead to Atrocity Crimes will take place in the Vienna International Center, United Nations Office in Vienna, from 13-15 February 2018.

When WCC’s long-time partner, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, another small but important step towards a safer world was taken. Not only was it a recognition of global efforts to abolish nuclear weapons, but also an affirmation of the role Christian churches have played at local and grassroots levels to raise awareness and mobilize people against nuclear proliferation.

While celebrating new steps taken towards global elimination of nuclear weapons, the WCC Executive Committee also fears the cycle of confrontation on the Korean peninsula might slide into nuclear warfare.

The WCC Executive Committee, during its meeting in Amman, issued a “Statement on Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and on 2017 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.”

On 20 September at the United Nations in New York, a treaty to ban nuclear weapons was formally opened for signature. At the time of writing, some 49 states have signed.

Dr. Emily Welty is an assistant professor in Peace and Justice Studies at Pace University in New York City (USA). She also serves as vice moderator of the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs. As an advocate for banning nuclear weapons, Dr Welty is known both for her unwavering belief in a world free from nuclear weapons, and for her strategic thinking toward that goal.

The need for the ecumenical movement is an urgent one today, said World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit as he spoke this week at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University in Minnesota (USA).

The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, on 18 August, released a response condemning recent racist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia. The bishops lamented the loss of life, and condemned “shameful efforts” to promote racial bigotry and white supremacist ideology.

In an open letter on 28 August, former moderators of the general assemblies of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and its predecessor churches expressed their increasing alarm when notions of nationalism and racial superiority are masked and clothed in terms of the Christian faith.

As the recent developments of nuclear weapons and increased tensions between United States and North Korea leaders can bring the world to the brink of war, churches around the world are calling for bilateral dialogue, expressing their commitment to peace and nonviolent resolution.

Friday evening when the leaders of the G20 states will be meeting in Hamburg and discussing global economic, social, environmental and political issues, the churches in Germany are inviting people in Germany and all over the world to a common peace prayer.

Pope Francis and Pope Tawadros II of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt have taken a significant ecumenical step by signing a common declaration that Roman Catholics and Copts may recognize each other’s baptisms. The agreement is, in the eyes of the World Council of Churches (WCC), a “sign of hope”.

Nearly 70 percent of the world’s countries have now begun negotiations to ban nuclear weapons. One-hundred-thirty-two governments from all regions took part in the first-ever such talks at the United Nations on 27-31 March. There is concerted opposition to the talks from nuclear-armed governments and their allies.

The Episcopal Church in North Dakota, in an open letter dated 25 October 2016 and penned by Rev. John Floberg, called on communities of faith to converge at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota, USA from 2-4 November to “stand witness to water protectors’ acts of compassion for God's creation, and to the transformative power of God's love to make a way out of no way.”

The WCC convened an inter-Orthodox consultation in Cyprus on 6-13 October to respond to the text “The Church: Towards a Common Vision,” a convergence document presented by the WCC Faith and Order Commission.