In an annual audience during the ongoing Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Bishop Bo-Göran Åstrand of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland gifted a pair of gloves to Pope Francis, described as “a modest gift, to warm the Pope’s hands in an otherwise cold world.”
In a visit to Rome, a World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation met with organizations that, as WCC general secretary Jerry Pillay said, “keep the fire of ecumenism burning.”
During a visit with Pope Francis in Rome on 23 March, a World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation and the Roman Catholic Church committed to walking, praying. and working together for justice, reconciliation, and unity.
On 20 May 2022, a group of us, 14 pilgrims from different parts of the world (Kenya, Brussels, Germany, Hong Kong, Philippines, Poland, Rome, Korea, Canada, Fiji, Australia, London, Scotland, and Geneva—a very diverse group) gathered in Palermo, Italy for a Pilgrim Team Visit on the theme of migration.
Three World Council of Churches (WCC) Pilgrim Team Visits, one to Italy, a second to Armenia and a third to Norway, are continuing the WCC’s accompaniment for communities in their quest for justice and peace under the theme of “Christ’s love moves the world to reconciliation and unity,” through the lenses of post-war trauma healing, gender justice, and migration.
The Central Mediterranean route is the overseas crossing from North Africa to Italy. Those migrating on this route generally aim to reach Italian shores but leave from a variety of North African countries bordering the Mediterranean. Though in past years most migrants have departed from Libya, which is a destination for migrants as well as a transit country, there is also a proportionally small but growing number of departures from Tunisia, Egypt, and Algeria.
Rich examples of the work promoted by member churches of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Italy in assisting refugees and migrants, have been the highlight of the first days of WCC delegation visit to the region this week.
The majority of the initiatives visited are led by women.
Alexander Vozhdaev, from the Russian Orthodox Church, participated in a study visit to Rome 20-27 January as part of pursuing a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Ecumenical Studies at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute.
Rev. Emma Jansson, from the Church of Sweden, participated in a study visit to Rome 20-27 January as part of pursuing a Complementary Certificate in Ecumenical Studies at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute.
Carolina Zamorano, from the Methodist Church of Mexico, participated in a study visit to Rome 20-27 January, as part of pursuing a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Ecumenical Studies at Bossey Ecumenical Institute.
Bernard Mushi, from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, participated in a study visit to Rome 20-27 January, as part of pursuing a Complementary Certificate in Ecumenical Studies at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute.
Students from the World Council of Churches (WCC) Bossey Ecumenical Institute began an 8-day study visit to Rome on 20 January, with a full programme that includes lectures, a tour of the Vatican, and opportunities to interact with leaders from the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
On 20 January, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca reflected on “The Pandemic, the World Council of Churches, and Global Health,” as part of a discussion hosted by the Institute for Ecumenical Studies of Angelicum University.
On 20 January, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca will serve as a panelist for “Ecumenism in a Time of Pandemic: From Crisis to Opportunity.”
World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca shared joyful greetings to the Taizé European Youth Encounter as young people self-reflected, prayed, met each other, and together faced the needs of our times.
As the national three-year programme “Disestablishment 150” drew to a close, the Church of Ireland is looking back on highlights from a commemoration of the historic milestone in which the Church of Ireland was made wholly independent of the Church of England, and was no longer the official state church.
Meeting with Pope Francis in the Vatican on 25 June, both the Lutheran World Federation president Archbishop Dr Panti Filibus Musa and Pope Francis expressed the hope that the 500th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession in 2030 can become common ground on which to strengthen the commitment of Lutherans and Catholics to unity and reconciliation.
A new report and resource kit to address hateful content online has been published by WACC Europe, the European region of the World Association for Christian Communication.
In a lecture at the Institute for Ecumenical Studies at St Thomas Aquinas Pontifical University (Angelicum) on 13 December, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit offered a lecture entitled "Ut Unum Sint: Between Winter and Spring, Reality and Prophecy, 1995 – 2020.”