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”Truly, I am in the household of God,” began WCC associate general secretary for public witness and diakonia Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri in her keynote speech today at the 14th Assembly of the Christian Conference of Asia.

Under the theme “Living Together in the Household of God,” some 440 representatives of member churches and partner bodies from 28 countries gathered on Thursday 21 May in Jakarta, Indonesia, for the opening of the Christian Conference of Asia’s 14th General Assembly.

“Nuclear weapons are incompatible with the values upheld by our respective faith traditions”, representatives of some 50 Christian, Buddhist, Muslim and Jewish organizations said on 1 May. The inter-religious statement came in a joint call to the 191 governments participating in the world’s largest disarmament treaty. The call, co-sponsored by the WCC, was made during civil society presentations to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference in New York City.

Amidst intimidation, illegal arrests, disappearances, torture and killings in Tanah Papua resulting from tensions between the Indonesian authorities and the Papuan pro-liberation groups, churches seek justice, peace, dignity and security for the Papuans.

The WCC general secretary has sent a letter to the President of the Republic of Indonesia H. E. Joko Widodo appealing for clemency for the 10 death row prisoners scheduled for imminent execution in Indonesia.

After a concerted examination of the evidence presented at the Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons and two earlier conferences, 44 of the states present called for a ban on nuclear weapons. The host government Austria added momentum with a specific, cooperative pledge to “fill the legal gap for the prohibition of nuclear weapons” and eliminate them.

“Churches in Japan are true witnesses of Jesus Christ through their words and deeds. Their strength even in a minority situation is impressive. Their voices in critical times are significant for Japan, paving a way towards justice and peace,” said Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC during his visit to member churches of the WCC in Japan.

A statement issued by the 4th Global Inter-religious Conference on Article 9 has been received with appreciation by the WCC.

At the 4th Global Inter-religious Conference in Tokyo, Japan, the WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit expressed grave concern at the Japanese government’s initiative to reinterpret or change Article 9 of the Japanese constitution.

Participants in a recent WCC consultation in Myanmar have stressed the need to equip churches and ecumenical organizations to build peace, human security and human dignity in order to move beyond conflicts, towards a world of peace.

Rev. Dr Ester Pudjo Widiasih has recently been appointed as programme executive for spiritual life at the WCC. Widiasih, who comes from the Javanese Christian Churches in Indonesia, is experienced in the field of church music and worship.

Inspired by the theme “a pilgrimage of justice and peace” – a call issued by the WCC 10th Assembly in 2013 – a conference in Germany affirmed the commitment of working together with churches in South Korea and Japan towards a “common journey of spiritual renewal and prophetic calling” for a “just peace” in the region.

Although climate change is often thought of as something external to an individual person, it is interwoven with personal spirituality, as well. This was the conclusion of a panel of three faith leaders during a session at the Interfaith Summit on Climate Change held on 22 September.

Representatives from the WCC and Japanese churches meet with second in command of Japanese government about nuclear dangers and maintaining peace clause in constitution.

It was nearly 70 years ago on 6 and 9 August 1945 that the atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These are tragedies that are to be remembered and must never happen again, Isabel Apawo Phiri, associate and acting general secretary of the WCC, said.

As the members of the WCC Central Committee return to their home communities, they will continue some key questions related to their pilgrimage of justice and peace.

In a statement “Towards a Nuclear-free World”, the Central Committee of the WCC recommended ways for churches to work to end nuclear dangers and respond to the witness of those affected by continuing nuclear tragedies – from Hiroshima in 1945 to Fukushima in 2011 and beyond.

Sexual slavery, resistance and women’s demand for justice were the focus of a recent event hosted by the WCC in Geneva, Switzerland, featuring representatives of the Korean Council for Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan.

A workshop on “human rights and nuclear disasters” hosted by the WCC and led by lawyers and doctors from France, Japan, Canada, Belarus and Switzerland will be held on Friday, 28 February at the Ecumenical Centre, Grand Saconnex, Geneva.

A consultation in Geneva termed political dialogue as the only way towards peace and stability in Tanah Papua, a province of Indonesia. The region has remained the focus of tensions between the Indonesian authorities and the Papuan indigenous people for years – resulting in grave human rights violations.