World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay sent a pastoral letter to Haitian brothers and sisters whose lives are lived in a land with hatred, violence, and suffering. “Although we might be physically distant, we are close to you in heart, in the spiritual sense,” wrote Pillay. “We all are children of God. We belong to one family, as Jesus Christ himself said.”
At the World Social Forum 2024, taking place 15-19 February in Nepal, the World Council of Churches (WCC) will have an active role in this platform for the convergence of a diverse range of participants, including social movements, laborers, farmers, civil society groups, marginalized communities, and those affected by the impacts of neoliberal capitalism and privatization.
On 27 October Korean Theology Forum on Climate Crisis organized a conference “The Response of the WCC to the Climate Crisis and its Policy for Carbon Neutrality” for the formation of church leaders, pastors and students interested in ways to connect local activities to the global horizon. The conference was sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of the Republic of Korea.
Held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – a city of socioeconomic contrasts – from 21 August to 1 September, the 6th edition of the Ecumenical School on Governance, Economics, and Management for an Economy of Life (GEM School 2023) gathered 24 participants to rethink economic systems for a more equitable, sustainable planet.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) is among signatories on a joint letter to H.E. Sri Narendra Modi—prime minister of the Republic of India and chair of the Group of Twenty (G20)—which urges G20 leaders to adopt a New International Financial and Economic Architecture.
In the lively urban setting of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, theologians, church delegates, activists, and individuals attending the Ecumenical School on Governance, Economics, and Management for an Economy of Life (GEM School) came together between August 21 and 23. They convened for a deep and meaningful discussion at the NIFEA Consultation on Labour.
Sanctions should not harm the support for the most vulnerable, says a report on the impact of sanctions on humanitarian work presented at a side-event of 52nd session at the Human Rights Council of the United Nations in Geneva on 10 March.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) publication highlights the lessons learnt from the project Strategic Engagement of Civil Society Networks and Faith Actors in the HIV Response in India, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Jamaica.
A World Council of Churches (WCC) consultation in Jamaica sparked an open discussion between faith leaders delegated by the Jamaican Council of Churches, people living with HIV, UNAIDS, and local health ministers, all of whom agreed to strengthen their commitment to a fair an just response to HIV and AIDS.
A seminar in Chiang Mai, Thailand, “Ecumenical Diakonia, Churches’ Response to Sustainable Development Goals in Asia,” is taking place 24-26 October. Jointly organised by the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Christian Conference of Asia, the seminar is the third in a series of eight taking place across Asia, Africa, and the Pacific.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) is beginning a project with local partners in four countries—India, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Jamaica—to bring back HIV and AIDS response to the national agendas, this time with a focus on sustainability.
World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca extended greetings and sympathy to the many in South Korea affected by record heavy rainfall—the most in 115 years. The deluge battered Seoul and caused damage throughout the central and eastern regions in South Korea.
World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed great concern in the wake of a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that struck the northern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines on 27 July.
In a pastoral letter to the Korean Christian Federation, World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed “very deep Christian concern” over the COVID-19 outbreak in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed grave concern about a major humanitarian crisis following the emergence of COVID-19 in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Authorities have acknowledged the deaths of at least 50 people and that 1.2 million suspected cases – or almost 5% of the entire population – are being monitored.
In a 15 October letter to US president Joe Biden, leaders from the World Council of Churches, ACT Alliance, Council of Churches in Cuba, and other faith-based groups urged an end to nearly 60 years of embargo against the Cuban people, who are facing an appalling humanitarian situation.
As reports of casualties and loss grow in Haiti in the wake of a 7.2-magnitude earthquake on 14 August, a tropical depression was threatening the same area two days later.
The Church of South India, through a campaign on climate-resilient schools, has been inspiring and educating students and teachers through a series of one-hour sessions which began in May this year and will run until the United Nations climate talks in November.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) expressed concern and extended prayers for those who continue to be affected by severe monsoon-related flooding and landslides in India. More than 150 people have perished in western India, and there is extensive damage.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) will express its solidarity in lament, hope and courage with churches of India during a Day of Praying and Fasting for the healing of India on 7 May as COVID-19 continues to surge across South Asian countries.