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Fighting ignorance, fear and stigma through Bible study

The shock expressed by members of a rural congregation when offered an opportunity for voluntary HIV testing and counselling, and other similar experiences have taught Pauline Wanjiru Njiru that it is not the Human Immunodeficiency Virus that kills people, but fear, stigma and ignorance.

Accelerating the church's response to HIV

“The speed with which you run depends on what is chasing you.” One of Ezra Chitando's favorite African proverbs also captures his beliefs regarding the church's long-term commitment to meeting HIV-related challenges.

WCC starts Global Theological Education Survey

The last time a significant empirical study on the role and challenges of theological education in so-called mission fields was presented was during the 1910 World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh.

Call for common charter on quality of theological education

A common charter reflecting the essential elements of quality in theological education for schools of all denominational backgrounds was proposed recently by representatives of the World Conference of Associations of Theological Institutions (WOCATI) at a meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Central Africa: Breaking the silence on human sexuality and HIV

Hendrew Lusey has never forgotten the words he first heard at a World Council of Churches (WCC) workshop on human sexuality in 2002. At that time, he had recently been appointed the regional coordinator for central Africa with the Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiative in Africa (EHAIA).

Asian forum calls for closer cooperation in theological training

A communiqué has been issued following a June meeting of the Asian Forum on Theological Education (AFTE), in which 15 representatives of diverse regional and national Christian associations call for solidarity in theological education in Asian churches “transcending stereotyped views of each other as ‘ecumenicals’, ‘evangelicals’ or ‘charismatics’”. Theological educators throughout Asia are requested to engage in closer dialogue, networking, the sharing of resources and cooperation in training of church leaders.

WCC's HIV work reaches quarter-century mark

The HIV pandemic has been on the world stage for three decades now.  For most of that time the World Council of Churches (WCC) and its member churches have been deeply involved in making churches and theological institutions HIV-competent, especially in sub-Saharan Africa.

Promoting visibility of theological education and research in Europe

Fourteen participants representing the theological faculties as well as networks and associations of institutions of higher theological education in Europe gathered for the constitutive meeting of the Coordinating Committee for the Graz Process. The meeting took place from 26-28 May 2011 in Graz, Austria.

Migration and theological method

Father Daniel Groody, a professor from Notre Dame University in the United States and a Roman Catholic priest, presented a theological approach to the topic of migration at a Tuesday 8 March gathering in the library of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Geneva.

Books key to the battle against HIV and AIDS in Africa

Three decades into the AIDS pandemic it has become clear that churches, non-governmental agencies and governments need to redouble their efforts to combat the disease and its effects, said the central governing body of the World Council of Churches (WCC) during its meeting in February 2011.

IEPC course for seminarians

Graduate study in peacemaking will be available for academic credit at the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation (IEPC), held 17-23 May in Kingston, Jamaica and sponsored by the World Council of Churches (WCC). A course for seminarians and other graduate students will be offered on “Overcoming Violence: An Engagement with the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation”.

Ecumenical consultation calls for prophetic diakonia

In the aftermath of an international consultation on the engagement of Christians in ministries of service, relief and development, Cuban theologian Reinerio Arce agreed to be interviewed on the continuing need for “diakonia” as an essential ministry of the ecumenical movement. Dr Arce, president of Matanzas Theological Seminary and moderator of the Presbyterian-Reformed Church in Cuba, was a participant in the Global Consultation on Prophetic Diakonia in Utrecht, the Netherlands, from 13 through 15 December 2010.

Theological education with migrant churches

New models of theological education involving migrant churches are an imperative for Christianity in the 21 st century. This was one of the key convictions expressed at a joint international consultation of the programme on Ecumenical Theological Education (ETE) of the WCC and the Academy of Mission at the University of Hamburg , Germany.

Orthodox consultation focuses on Christian unity in theological education

Thirty representatives of Orthodox institutions gathered in mid-November 2010 at the Andrei Saguna theological faculty in Sibiu, Romania to reflect on the topic “The Ecumenical Movement in Theological Education and the Life of Orthodox Churches”. This discussion was moderated by Metropolitan Gennadios of Sassima (Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople).