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As Morocco devastated by earthquake, WCC calls for prayer and solidarity

After the deadliest earthquake to hit Morocco in decades took more than 1,000 lives, and the death toll continued to grow, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay called for prayer and solidarity from the WCC global fellowship and from all people of good will across the world.

WCC extends condolences upon death of His Holiness, Abune Kerlos I, fifth Patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church

The World Council of Churches (WCC) extended condolences upon the death of His Holiness, Abune Kerlos I, fifth Patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church. WCC acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca noted that the election of Abune Kerlos I as Patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church came at a time of unprecedented challenges for the churches and people of Eritrea, and for the entire world.

Young Africans are eager to grapple with challenges

Young African clergy, theologians and laypersons are eager to engage with the challenging issues facing their continent and the world. This became clear in a recent essay competition for authors below 35 years by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in partnership with the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC).

WCC contributes to contextual theologies course in Morocco

The World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Theological Education programme has, for the second time, contributed to ecumenical capacity development in Morocco. The WCC helped instruct a course on contextual theologies and African theologies at the Ecumenical Theological Institute Al Mowafaqa in Rabat.

Churches celebrate reconciliations in Ethiopia, Eritrea

The WCC’s executive committee has welcomed recent reconciliations in Ethiopia and Eritrea. In a statement issued from its 2-8 November meeting in Uppsala, Sweden, the committee also invited further support from member churches for further efforts there.

“Good healthcare a right, not a privilege,” says WCC-EAA

The World Council of Churches - Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance endorses a newly expanded collaboration on HIV between the Medicine Patent Pool and Gilead. On 4 October, the MPP announced a licence with Gilead Sciences for bictegravir, a new integrase inhibitor part of a once-daily, single-tablet HIV regimen currently filed for regulatory approval at the United States Food and Drug Administration and the European Union.

Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church hosts WCC delegation

A delegation from the WCC concluded a solidarity visit to the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church, one of Africa’s oldest Christian churches dating back to the year AD 329. It was the first such visit in more than 10 years and the WCC left with a pledge to pray and work for peace between Eritrea and its neighbor Ethiopia as they attempt to resolve a border dispute.

Partnership and mapping are a priority for WCC health and healing programme executive Mwai Makoka

Working as a medical doctor in his home country Malawi seems to have given Dr Mwai Makoka ideal experience for his task of programme executive for Health and Healing at the WCC. He has experience in medical microbiology, HIV and AIDS, working for both government and church-based institutions after graduating as a doctor in Malawi, a country accustomed to working with church-run hospitals.

“It’s time to be brave, to form diverse partnerships”

“How can we work together, to share what it is in our hands, share the work that is before us? How can we empower one another, capacity-build our religious leaders and mobilize our congregations, to be more proactive in health-promoting issues?”

“Health and healing for all people, that is the challenge”

“So much has changed, and yet so much remains the same. Global public health structures have changed, yet gross inequalities still exist – between developed and under-developed countries, between rich and poor, and the vision for equitable health care still lies in the far distance. Primary health care remains a task unfinished.”

WCC to develop Global Ecumenical Health Strategy, starting in Lesotho

“Standing at the threshold of the Sustainable Development Goals, the WCC believes it is time for the church to reaffirm the role it has played over centuries as leader in global health, and to consolidate efforts towards health and healing for all,” says Dr Mwai Makoka, WCC programme executive for Health and Healing. Meeting in Maseru, Lesotho, on 27 February, the WCC is starting the process of developing a Global Ecumenical Health Strategy, following the legacy of churches’ high profile in health care and mission historically.

Ecumenical Patriarch: Survival of God’s creation is at stake

We have come a long way but have made little progress, stated Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, in his message to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), referring to 22 years of UN conventions as an unacceptably long period to respond to the environmental crisis.

Faith groups march for climate justice

A lively and youthful, but demanding, voice of the faith groups was heard clearly in the streets of Marrakech last Sunday, where a joint group from the ACT Alliance, the Lutheran World Federation and the World Council of Churches (WCC) marched among several thousand activists to demand environmental justice during the United Nations (UN) climate conference COP22.

COP22 media pack available from ecumenical groups

ACT Alliance, the Lutheran World Federation and the World Council of Churches have put together a comprehensive kit to offer to the media. It highlights basic information about their some of their experts attending COP22 who are able to speak about climate change from the perspective of faith communities. We have speakers who represent a broad range of experience on climate change.

Faith communities explore concrete climate action at COP22

Joining efforts to explore how to move from dependency on fossil fuel to a sustainable future, faith representatives gathered at the Indonesian Pavilion at COP22 in Marrakech, Morocco on 8 November, for an event hosted by the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry.