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As Christians across the world prepare to celebrate Easter shuttered in their homes, they will still find the joy of the day and feel closer to each other, thanks to creative thinking by church leaders.

From including photos of church members within webcast worship services, to placing written greetings at doorways, Easter celebrations can still safely connect people who want to celebrate the resurrection of their common Lord.

في منتصف شهر آذار/ مارس الحالي، شهدت قرية معلول، التي دُمرت جراء الحرب العربية-الإسرائيلية التي نشبت عام 1984، زيارة مرافقي المسكونية لها.

Ma’alul, a Palestinian village destroyed in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, saw a visit by ecumenical accompaniers in mid-March. “I would have liked to invite you to a real home, not just as a refugee,” said Jad Saba Yusef Salem as he received the group of accompaniers to the village. Today, 95-year-old Salem is one of few remaining survivors from the 75 families who used to live in the village back in 1948.

إن تنديد مجلس الكنائس العالمي لمعاداة السامية هو أمر واضح وقاطع. فمجلس الكنائس العالمي يعتبر أن معاداة السامية تتعارض مع العقيدة المسيحية اعتناقاً وممارسةً، وخطيئة في حق الرب والإنسانية. لقد كررنا وأعدنا التأكيد على هذا التنديد مؤخراً رداً على الهجوم المأساوي الذي طال معبد اليهود "تري أوف لايف" في بيتسبرغ في 27 تشرين الأول/ أكتوبر 2018، ووصفنا هذا الهجوم بأنه "انتهاك صارخ لإنسانيتنا المشتركة."

The World Council of Churches’ condemnation of antisemitism is clear and categorical. WCC regards antisemitism as irreconcilable with the profession and practice of the Christian faith, and a sin against God and humanity.

The WCC published an open letter to media in response to the new report released by the NGO Monitor criticizing the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel.

On 14-16 December, the Conference of European Churches and Cumberland Lodge in the UK will host an Ecumenical Conference on Human Rights with the theme “Towards Peaceful Coexistence in the Middle East: Challenges and Opportunities.”

Respect for the other lies at the heart of peace education and was a key thread through a debate entitled “Education for Peace in a multi-religious world”. It was held on the 2018 World Human Rights Day at the United Nations Office in Geneva.

Heads of churches in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories have reacted with dismay and concern to the Israeli Knesset’s adoption on 19 July 2018 of a new Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People, which specifies that “The right to exercise national self-determination in the State of Israel is unique to the Jewish people.”

Every morning a cheerful and articulate man arrives at his office in East Jerusalem with at least a grain of hope. Dr Bernard Sabella has devoted his entire life to the rights of the Palestinian people. In his job as the executive director of Department of Services to Palestinian Refugees, he encounters issues concerning the Palestinian-Israeli relationship daily.

For Ramzi Zananiri, executive director of Jerusalem and the West bank at the Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees, which is part of the Middle East Council of Churches, the current situation in the Holy Land is "heart-breaking", and he says the Palestinians are "hostages" under troublesome realities.

Encouragement, inspiration and storytelling animated the plenary discussion of the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace.

Sitting in a tent at the Souda camp, on the island of Chios in Greece, a Pakistani family of 12 recalls the lives they had in their home country. They had everything except safety. Muhammed and his wife, Asia, along with their 10 children, fled their home country in search of a place where they weren’t constantly fearing for their lives.

During the 29 years Virgine Nasrawi has worked in the Talbiah refugee camp, located 40 kilometers south of Amman, the Jordanian capital, she has witnessed many changes. And the sudden influx of refugees from neighbouring Syria, caused by the devastating civil war in that country, is the most dramatic.

The WCC sent an open letter to the Gatestone Institute in response to the institute’s web articles criticizing the WCC’s “Seven Weeks for Water” campaign. The campaign focuses on critical water issues affecting the people of Palestine, particularly in the occupied territories.

When Fernando Enns thinks of water in a German context, he is reminded of thousands and thousands of refugees who have come to the country fleeing the conflict in Syria.

في أعقاب المؤتمر رفيع المستوى لمجلس الكنائس العالمي/الأمم المتحدة بشأن أزمة اللاجئين في أوروبا، والذي انعقد في المركز المسكوني بجنيف يوم 18-19 كانون الثاني/يناير، صدر بيانٌ بعنوان "استجابة أوروبا لأزمة اللاجئين، من بلدان المنشأ إلى العبور، وحتى الاستقبال واللجوء: دعوة إلى تقاسم المسؤولية وتنسيق الإجراءات".

Following the WCC/UN High Level Conference on the Refugee Crisis in Europe, which took place at the Ecumenical Centre Geneva on 18-19 January, a statement has been issued entitled "Europe’s Response to the Refuge Crisis, From Origin to Transit, Reception and Refuge, A Call for Shared Responsibility and Coordinated Action”.

Today 35 bishops and church leaders from 20 countries gathered in Munich, Germany to discuss the refugee situation and the role of the churches in Europe.

It is raining. It is cold and windy. Autumn is in the air in northern Greece. We have just arrived at the Idomeni refugee camp in northern Greece, on the border between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). The fast-approaching winter poses as great a threat to the refugees as do the smugglers. In the worst case, winter means death.