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Churches in South Sudan shared Easter messages of hope, even amid troubling times for the African nation.The South Sudan Council of Churches, in its message, emphasized renewed hope. “In today’s world, marked by so many conflicts and so much suffering, we understand that many of us feel disheartened,” reads the message.

As a photo exhibition from the Marshall Islands opened at the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 8 March, speakers offered a stark overview of the damage done by nuclear testing—as well as the resilience and determination of the Marshallese people to pursue justice. 

As its 12th General Assembly in Kanaky (New Caledonia) concluded, the Pacific Conference of Churches, in an outcome statement, expressed a vision for leading change through transformation. 

The Pacific Conference of Churches joined other nongovernmental and civic groups on the streets of Suva, Fiji, to peacefully demonstrate against Japan’s dumping of Fukushima nuclear wastewater into the ocean.

Church leaders in South Sudan emphasized peace and hope, as the world’s youngest nation marked the 12th Independence Day.

During an ecumenical morning prayer held 15 May, the World Council of Churches (WCC) staff and partners observed the UN International Day of Living Together in Peace, holding in prayer many nations across the world facing challenges to living together in harmony.

In a pastoral letter to the churches of South Sudan and to Norwegian Church Aid, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed shock and sadness about the news of an attack on Norwegian Church Aid vehicles in Imehejek, Lopa Lafon, in the Eastern Equatoria region of South Sudan.

After receiving a pilgrimage of global religious leaders, the South Sudan Council of Churches released a statement on 10 March echoing the church leaders’ call for nonviolent means to solve the nation’s problems.

As Pope Francis travels to the Democratic Republic of Congo, then with Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury, and Rt. Rev. Iain Greenshields, moderator of the general assembly of the Church of Scotland, to South Sudan on 3- 5 February, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay said he welcomes and supports the visits.

Hope, excitement, and expectations are rising is South Sudan ahead of the ecumenical pilgrimage of peace by the Pope and world Protestant leaders.

After postponing their unique ecumenical pilgrimage of peace to South Sudan, world Christian leaders will travel to the world’s youngest nation in February.

The Pacific Conference of Churches is calling for “less talk and more action” that supports the resilience of Pacific communities affected by climate change at COP27 in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt.

In South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the peace and reconciliation work of pastors, priests and lay Christians remains critical for the people, as the global church and ecumenical groups amplify their concerns over the complex but separate conflicts in the two African countries.

Churches from the Pacific Islands and across the world continued to voice their prayers of support and care as Tonga copes with the aftermath of the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano on 14 January, which triggered 15-metre tsunami waves that hit the archipelago.

World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca extended prayers and condolences to people in Tonga, and the churches and rescue workers helping them, in the wake of a massive volcanic eruption smothered the Pacific islands in ash, cut power and severed communications.

World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca, in a letter to the president of France, expressed support for appeals from the Protestant Church of Kanaky-New Caledonia and other concerned partners regarding the third referendum under the Noumea Accord.

The Ecumenical Network on South Sudan (Europe and North America Hub), on the occasion of International Peace Day on 21 September, released a call entitled “High Time for Peace and Accountability in South Sudan.”