The Christian Council of Nigeria extended condolences for those who lost loved ones amid violent attacks in remote villages in northern Nigeria. At least 140 were killed as assailants targeted 17 communities, burning down most houses in the area.
To promote transparent, democratic, and peaceful elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the All Africa Conference of Churches, with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and Fellowship of Christian Councils and Churches in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa, appointed international ecumenical observers to observe the elections on 20 December.
Matthias Schmale is a UN resident and humanitarian coordinator based in Nigeria. He previously served with the UN Relief and Works Agency, and is also a former World Council of Churches (WCC) steward. He took some time to reflect on his concerns, current work, and fond memories of his days as a steward.
With a focus on peacebuilding and human rights protection, The United Evangelical Mission’s International Summer School 2023, organized in cooperation with the World Council of Churches and other partners, took place in August and September in Hofgeismar, Germany.
During an ecumenical morning prayer held 15 May, the World Council of Churches (WCC) staff and partners observed the UN International Day of Living Together in Peace, holding in prayer many nations across the world facing challenges to living together in harmony.
“They came to our house. We refused to open the door so they broke in though the window.”
That’s how Damaris Blessing Tiswan, a finance student at Kaduna Polytechnic, began describing her ordeal of being kidnapped with her four siblings at midnight.
On the eve of presidential and National Assembly elections in Nigeria, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof Dr Jerry Pillay, on behalf of the global fellowship, extended prayers for an enduring peace for the people and nation of Nigeria.
As Pope Francis travels to the Democratic Republic of Congo, then with Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury, and Rt. Rev. Iain Greenshields, moderator of the general assembly of the Church of Scotland, to South Sudan on 3- 5 February, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay said he welcomes and supports the visits.
World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay denounced a bomb attack that killed 17 members of the parish of the 8th Community of Pentecostal Churches of Congo on 15 January. Thirty-nine people were wounded.
In South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the peace and reconciliation work of pastors, priests and lay Christians remains critical for the people, as the global church and ecumenical groups amplify their concerns over the complex but separate conflicts in the two African countries.
In a 21 June statement, religious leaders in eastern Africa released a statement on the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. They reaffirmed their commitment to peace, security and democracy in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in the eastern African community at large.
World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed deep shock at a recent attack on a church community during a Sunday morning mass at St Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria.
In a statement during its executive committee meeting, the World Council of Churches (WCC) expressed relief at hearing the news of the safe release of kidnapped religious leaders in Nigeria—but also expressed alarm over an escalating crisis of criminal kidnappings across the nation.
On the International Day of Living Together in Peace declared by the United Nations, members of the World Council of Churches (WCC) fellowship from countries troubled by war and conflict gathered to pray for sustainable peace in the world.
After an armed gang in northern Nigeria killed eight people, injured two dozen more, and abducted some of the 400 passengers on a train, the Christian Association of Nigeria repeated demands for greater government security.
World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed deep concern about the worsening security situation in Nigeria, and the impact on the people and churches of the country.
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.
As children and women in Nigeria become targets of rising insecurity and violence, churches are moving to offer support to the victims, while amplifying their voice against the challenge, according to senior Christian women leaders in the West African nation.
Religious leaders condemned the kidnapping of 140 schoolchildren from the Bethel Baptist High School in Kaduna, Nigeria, and called for their full release. The attack on 5 July was the fourth mass school kidnapping in Kaduna state since December. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing.
The “Nigeria Project” is both viable and desirable, despite a security crisis overwhelming the West African nation, said Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, retired Roman Catholic archbishop emeritus of Abuja.
