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In a recent solidarity visit to Bangladesh, an ecumenical delegation was updated about the on-going persecution and attacks against religious minorities occurring in the country since early March of this year.

The general secretary of the WCC has called for an end to the increase of tensions on the Korean peninsula and encourages the parties involved to move immediately to dialogue about peace, reconciliation and reunification.

In a statement released on 9 April, the WCC general secretary has condemned the attacks against St Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo and killings of Christians in the village of Al-Khosous in Egypt.

At the recent World Social Forum, ecumenical voices warned about the grave consequences of extraction of natural resources and mining, which they say generate a tremendous amount of social and ecological debt.

Describing dramatic consequences of the Syrian civil war, Bishop Elia Toumeh of Marmarita said that when the difficulties pass, Christians must play a constructive role in the reconciliation of opposing factions for a new Syrian society.

"€œA church has to embrace its sick, go out in the world, and work with its people to heal the communities,"€ said Dr Erlinda N. Senturias from the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, in an interview.

Church representatives at a recent Oikotree Global Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa stressed the need to support peoples'€™ movements promoting justice in the economy and ecology, a concern, they say, that lies at the heart of the faith.

"The World Council of Churches (WCC) 10th Assembly will be an opportunity for praying, listening and sharing together. The event will provide participants a chance to listen for the voice of God, leading them to justice and peace in the world." These were the words of Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, the WCC general secretary, who spoke with the press in Seoul, Republic of Korea on 29 January 2013.

At the World Social Forum Free Palestine, young ecumenists from Brazil made their presence felt while advocating for peace in the Holy Land.

Arrests of Palestinian civilians and vandalism of their homes at the hands of Israeli military forces is not a new phenomenon in the West Bank. Natalie Maxson, a volunteer for the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel speaks from her experience of meeting a family in Azzun faced with a similar situation.

Orthodox churches have reaffirmed their commitment to "unity, justice and peace" saying that the "supreme act of God`s love is the economy of salvation". This and other theological reflections were shared in an inter-Orthodox consultation in Kos, Greece this week.

Transformative spiritualities and mission is a significant point of discussion at the pre-assembly event of the WCC Commission on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) which is currently under way in Manila. Transformative spiritualities are also one of the constituent themes of the CWME statement on mission and evangelism that will be presented to the WCC 10th Assembly in Busan, Korea in 2013. Dr Rico Palaca Ponce, academic director of the Institute of Spirituality in Asia based in Quezon City, the Philippines, gave an interview on the topic on 23 March.

With more than 200 participants from around the globe, an event of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) starts today in Manila, the Philippines. Its aim is to seek renewed thinking on mission and evangelism, developing a draft of the WCC statement on mission and evangelism that succeeds a statement of thirty years ago.

Reflections on the recent “Arab spring” and young people’s involvement in the challenges of a changing ecumenical landscape were the focus of discussions in a recent meeting of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Echos – Commission on youth in the ecumenical movement.

Given the significant role played by the young people in pursuit of peace in communities, the WCC features reflections from eight young people from around the world in its new book Echos for Peace, addressing the issues of global peace, justice and nonviolence, launched recently at the meeting of Echos Commission on Youth in the Ecumenical Movement in Lebanon last week.

“Without any doubt, ecclesiology remains in our times the crucial issue for Christian theology in ecumenical perspective.” This was one of the conclusions drawn by a week-long consultation in Cyprus at which forty Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox representatives provided a common response to The Nature and Mission of the Church, a 2005 ecumenical text published by the WCC Commission on Faith and Order.

The international tug-of-war over carbon emission thresholds and other instruments meant to limit the deterioration of the earth's climate has caused a big stir in recent months, but yielded little results. Therefore the international community must now get ready to take care of those who will be forced from their homes by climate change.

How does the church interact with a rapidly changing society? On 31 August, members of the World Council of Churches Central Committee spent much of the morning discussing this question in a pair of plenary sessions in Geneva.

A conference on "Promised Land" that aired different theological approaches to this key issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has given church leaders and theologians new views to take home to their churches. Some participants said their outlook had been changed by the "constructive confrontation" at the World Council of Churches (WCC) event.

The Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Grameen Bank's creator Muhammad Yunus not only recognizes his "creative genius in promoting his concept of microcredit, but also testifies to the fact that genuine economic and social development has to grow from below if it is to be accessible for the people," the World Council of Churches (WCC) said today in a congratulatory message.