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During a World Council of Churches morning prayer—focusing on the churches and people of Belarus, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine – a reflection by Prof. Dr Dmytro Tsolin focused on both the pain of the war in Ukraine as well as how we hang onto hope.

His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphany of Kyiv and All Ukraine visited the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 10 April at the request of the WCC general secretary, the Rev. Prof Dr Jerry Pillay, to discuss the current situation in Ukraine, the role of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine (OCU) in working toward peace, the continued involvement of the WCC in addressing the war, and the process for membership with the WCC. 

Am 22. März sind Christinnen und Christen in aller Welt zu einem Globalen Friedensgebet zusammengekommen, um für Frieden in einer zerbrochenen Welt zu beten und Menschen zuzuhören, die in der Ukraine und anderen Weltregionen unter den dort herrschenden Konflikten leiden.

During a Global Peace Prayer on 22 March, Christians across the world drew together to pray for peace in a broken world, and to listen to voices from people suffering in Ukraine and other conflict-ridden areas.

A Global Peace Prayer on 22 March will draw Christians together in hope for a better future. A communique from a prayer planning committee explained that Christians are called into prayer and advocacy for peace. “In a global context where war and violence abound, the practice of peace has become even more urgent,” reads the message.

Ein weltweites Friedensgebet am 22. März soll christliche Gläubige in der Hoffnung auf eine bessere Zukunft zusammenbringen. Das Kommuniqué eines Planungsausschusses für dieses Friedensgebet erklärt, dass christliche Gläubige zu Gebet und Fürsprachearbeit für Frieden aufgerufen sind. „In einem globalen Kontext, in dem es zu viel Krieg und Gewalt gibt, ist ein Engagement für Frieden dringlicher geworden denn je“, heißt es in dem Kommuniqué.

In einem Brief vom 2. März an Patriarch Kyrill von Moskau bat der geschäftsführende Generalsekretär des Ökumenischen Rates der Kirchen (ÖRK), Priester Prof. Dr. Ioan Sauca, den Patriarchen um Mediation, damit der Krieg zwischen Russland und der Ukraine beendet werden könne.

In a letter to Patriarch Kirill of Moscow on 2 March, World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca asked the patriarch to mediate so that the war between Russia and Ukraine can be stopped.

The ecumenical staff gathered with people from Zimbabwe and Botswana on 14 June for a morning prayer and song that focused on the church as a place of refuge and trust.

Most South Africans know of Brigalia Bam as chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), where she served from 1999 to 2011. Previously secretary general of the South African Council of Churches, and already an IEC commissioner, she was chosen by then-President Nelson Mandela from the list of parliamentary nominees for this critical role. In a country that had recently been on the brink of racial civil war, she guided South Africans with humour, tolerance and impartiality along the path of inclusive democracy.

The first ever WCC Eco-School on Water, Food and Climate Justice will be held 24 July to 3 August, hosted by the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian Blantyre Synod. Applications are now open with a deadline of 11 June (deadline extended).

When a WCC meeting on ecumenical HIV and AIDS response concluded last week in Limuru, Kenya, its message to the global HIV and AIDS community was terse: traditional ways of tackling the pandemic have failed.

Botshelo Moilwa, a young African woman from Gaborone, Botswana, called on churches to affirm the dignity of women amidst the realities of HIV and AIDS and sexual violence, if they are to realize the Christian vision of justice and peace.

Christian theology regarding all people as created in God's image can help overcome the HIV and AIDS pandemic. This and other views on the impact of HIV in Africa, its gender dynamics and the role of people living with HIV, were shared by Prof. Musa W. Dube, a former consultant of the Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiative in Africa (EHAIA) in a recent interview.