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On the occasion of International Migrants’ Day on 18 December, the Churches’ Commission for Migrants in Europe, the Conference of European Churches, and the World Council of Churches appeal to states to ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.

A coalition of Protestant and Catholic organizations has reached an agreement with the Italian government to provide travel and integration services for refugees from North Africa and the Middle East.

Une coalition d’organisations protestantes et catholiques est parvenue à un accord avec le gouvernement italien pour offrir des services de transport et d’intégration aux réfugiés d’Afrique du Nord et du Moyen Orient.

“Church leaders and other leaders of faith communities played a vital role in Paris,” said Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, in an interview during the week following the COP21 UN conference on climate change.

In a meditation at the Saint Egidio evening prayer in the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Rome on 14 December, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit celebrated love and hope this Advent season, particularly in the context of the plight of thousands of refugees and varied reactions to the climate talks in Paris.

Le 14 décembre à Rome, lors de la prière du soir de Sant' Egidio, en l'église Santa Maria in Trastevere, le pasteur Olav Fykse Tveit, secrétaire général du COE, a proposé une méditation pour célébrer l'amour et l'espérance en cette période de l'Avent, évoquant plus particulièrement la détresse des milliers de réfugiés et les diverses réactions à la Conférence sur le climat de Paris.

Bible Societies are working in more than 200 countries and territories around the world to make known the Word of God. At the heart of the work – from the translation of Holy Scripture to publishing, distribution and advocacy, and engagement activities – is the principle of collaborating with and serving the churches.

Bishop Dr Tamás Fabiny, Lutheran World Federation vice president for Central Eastern Europe, remembered deceased refugees in a sermon at the prayer gathering of the Sant’Egidio community in Budapest on 22 November. He also urged churches to continue to advocate for open and supportive attitudes toward refugees, especially in communities where prejudice is steeped in tradition.

L’évêque luthérien Tamás Fabiny, vice-président pour la région d’Europe centrale occidentale de la Fédération luthérienne mondiale, a fait mémoire de réfugiés décédés, lors d’un sermon à l’occasion d’une réunion de prière de la communauté Sant’Egidio à Budapest, le 22 novembre. En outre, il a instamment prié les Eglises de continuer à promouvoir des attitudes ouvertes et accueillantes à l’encontre des réfugiés, notamment dans les communautés où les idées préconçues sont ancrées dans la tradition.

As the 21st Conference of Parties (COP 21) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change came to a close in Paris, a consultation organized by the National Council of Churches in the Philippines and the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance of the WCC on 11 December in Quezon City, Philippines considered “The Right to Food and Life in the Context of Climate Change.”

Global church leaders have welcomed the landmark Paris climate agreement for taking into account the immediate needs of poor countries most severely affected by extreme weather.

Edward Dommen has been honoured for writing A Peaceable Economy, his 2014 book on the potential for peacemaking through economics. The work appears in the Voices and Visions series of WCC Publications, the World Council of Churches book publishing programme.

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches, is visiting Rome 14-15 December.

In a statement issued on the occasion of the International Human Rights Day on 10 December, the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs expresses deep concern over the many challenges that still remain in securing human dignity and rights for all.

Reflections from the International Conference on Peace and Reunification on the Korean Peninsula in Arnoldshain, Germany

As he visited vastly different places — Berlin and the island of Samos, a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea — the Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens and All Greece made a consistent call for more definitive state action on the refugee crisis.

Citing doubts about a mandate for military deployment and the prospects for success, the Evangelical Church in Germany voiced its opposition to the deployment of federal armed forces against the terrorist militia group that identifies itself as Islamic State.

Climate change poses serious environmental challenges to meet current and future demands for food. The poorest communities, having the smallest carbon footprint on the planet, are facing the greatest impact of climate change. For many years, the right to food has been a key issue and priority for many parties, churches and ecumenical delegations involved in climate talks.

Les changements climatiques posent de sérieux défis au niveau de l’approvisionnement alimentaire, tant présent que futur. Ce sont les communautés les plus pauvres, dont l’empreinte carbone est la plus modeste de la planète, qui doivent affronter les plus graves effets de ces changements. Depuis plusieurs années, le droit à la nourriture constitue un problème crucial et une priorité pour de nombreux milieux, dont les Églises et les délégations œcuméniques, qui participent aux débats sur le climat.

The Basel University honoured Ghanaian Methodist theologian Mercy Amba Oduyoye with a doctor of theology honoris causa.