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Dr Elizabeth Joy was the first woman ever to be shortlisted as a nominee for the general secretary of the World Council of Churches. A director at Churches Together in England, she is from the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. She grew up in both India and the United Kingdom. Below, during an interview held the day after the WCC elections, she reflects on her roots in the ecumenical movement, and on her message to the WCC.

Global Christian Forum sustains imperative role in a post-pandemic world and reaches out to new groups of people. Global meeting to be held in Ghana in 2024.

Rev. Dr Hyunju Bae represents the Presbyterian Church of Korea on the World Council of Churches central and executive committees and serves on the WCC Gender Advisory Group. She is a former professor of New Testament Studies at the Busan Presbyterian University, Republic of Korea, and now a co-president of the Korea Christian Environmental Movement Solidarity for Integrity of Creation.  Below, she reflects on a recent prayer vigil for peace, as well as other ecumenical activities in South Korea.

Below, Rev. Dr Susan Durber, moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order and His Eminence Bishop Maxim, from the Serbian Orthodox Church and a WCC Faith and Order commissioner, reflect on the publication “What Are the Churches Saying About the Church?”

The publication, which presents key findings and proposals from responses to “The Church: Towards a Common Vision,” is among the many fruits being harvested by the study groups of the WCC Faith and Order Commission for the WCC 11th Assembly.

There’s a reason why Orthodox theologian and human rights lawyer Natallia Vasilevich prefers to speak of the role of Christians rather than the role of churches in Belarusian society.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has, since the first day of the war in Ukraine and even in the months before, been working and praying earnestly for peace in this conflict and throughout the world. From the beginning, the WCC has called for an immediate end to armed hostilities, to stop the war and has appealed also for an immediate end to indiscriminate attacks with an escalating impact on civilians in Ukraine. WCC News met online with the WCC acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca to get the latest update on the work of the WCC.

The Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe - CCME released a statement that speaks about the response of Europe to refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. The statement addresses the concerns of discriminatory treatment of non-Ukrainians and minority ethnic people in this context and the more general question that the generosity shown in recent weeks often has not been extended to those fleeing from elsewhere.

Below, Dr Torsten Moritz, general secretary at the Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe, reflects on why church leaders requested such a statement, and what lies at the heart of some of their different inputs.

Our series of interviews with Thursdays in Black ambassadors highlights those who are playing a vital role in increasing the impact of our collective call for a world without rape and violence. Marcelo D. Leites is general secretary of the World Student Christian Federation.

From an early age, Bishop Mary Ann Swenson has tapped into the power of prayer.

Brother Guido Dotti, from the Monastic Community of Bose, Italy, is a member of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Theological Study Group of the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace. Below, he reflects on a special commemorative calendar, on his experiences with Pilgrim Team visits, and on his hopes for the WCC 11th Assembly. 

As the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity fast approaches, moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Faith and Order Commission Rev. Dr Susan Durber reflects on the theme “We saw the star in the East,” and on what unity means for the world today.

Rev. Dr Odair Pedroso Mateus, World Council of Churches (WCC) interim deputy general secretary and director of Faith and Order, shares his insights on the upcoming Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, to be held 18-25 January. Churches across the globe will reflect on the hope and joy in Matthew 2:2, “We saw the star in the East, and we came to worship him.” The Middle East Council of Churches, based in Beirut, Lebanon, was the convener for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2022 drafting group.

When Rev. Frank Chikane was leading the South African Council of Churches in calling out injustices of the apartheid system, their work did not stop even after the council’s office building was bombed to the ground in 1980s. Moderating the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs of the World Council of Churches (WCC) since 2016, Rev. Chikane has been engaged in addressing injustices in many parts of the world. WCC Communication asked Rev. Chikane to look back at his term at the commission and the ongoing calling of churches to address injustices in the world today.

The WCC executive committee held a special meeting on 4 January and reached a decision to hold the upcoming WCC central committee meeting, scheduled for 9-15 February, online rather than in-person as previously planned. Below, WCC central committee moderator Dr Agnes Abuom shares some details behind the decision, and plans for moving forward.

The Taizé community is well-known in the churches around the world for its encouraging accompaniment of young people on their faith journey. How has the pandemic challenged the community located in Southern France, and what do the young people thirst for in the time when most of our interactions take place online? WCC Communications learned more on these topics from Brother Alois, prior of the Taizé community, who was visiting the WCC in the beginning of December.

Racism and discrimination are sins, says Dr Agnes Abuom, yet in the third decade of the 21st century, the world must change how it addresses them, including having all at the table to solve them. That way, they can help rescue humanity and save God's creation, but that includes engaging with perpetrators.