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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.”

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.

As the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca congratulated them and expressed solidarity with their ongoing fight for justice and peace.

As a report on human rights abuses in the Philippines was delivered to the UN by the global group Investigate PH, churches and human rights groups reiterated their concerns over propagation of a culture that allows the abuse to happen.

A webinar held 22 October gave space for persons with disabilities to share their reflections. Entitled “From Lamentation to Transformation,” the event, first in a series of webinars on COVID-19 perspectives, highlighted hope through stories, practical support, and social change as experienced by persons with disabilities.

Fourteen church leaders and activists from Canada, India, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States, embarked on a Pilgrim Team Visit to the Philippines from 9-13 August. They listened, learned and bore witness to the escalating human rights crisis in the country. The visit was convened by the World Council of Churches in partnership with the National Council of Churches in the Philippines.

The World Council of Churches, working with the Jamaica Council of Churches and Caribbean and North America Council for Mission, offered a training in Jamaica to help people cope with violence against children, particularly sexual violence, gang-related violence, and gun violence.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) condemned the massacre earlier this month of 14 farmers by police officers in Canlaon City, as well as Manjuyod and Santa Catalina towns in Negros Oriental in the Philippines. The WCC also renewed its call for the government of the Philippines to end the culture of impunity and to ensure full investigation and accountability for all such killings.

Pilgrims coming from Germany, Italy and Norway ended their journeys for climate justice on 7 December upon arrival at the St Stephen’s Church in Katowice, Poland, where the United Nations (UN) climate conference is underway. They were warmly welcomed by the delegations of the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) that are attending the 24th Conference of Parties of UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP24).

Turtles, both in the Caribbean and elsewhere, are becoming increasingly confused. Their main prey of jelly fish doesn’t taste the same nowadays and is much more difficult to digest. Often, turtles die after having ingested plastic bags they thought were jelly fish.

A warm welcome with cheers and high expectations awaited WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit when he touched down in Kingston earlier this week. The Jamaican capital was the first stop of a 10-day tour in the Caribbean.

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit will visit Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad and Antigua from 29 September-9 October. Tveit will be preaching, meeting with religious leaders and visiting communities.

An international consultation will commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Decade of the Churches in Solidarity with Women (1988-98), 1-6 October in Kingston, Jamaica.

“Christ’s call for abundant life (John 10:10) means that the church must work to address the enormity of challenges, including access to water resources, care for creation, and adequate health care,” said Rev. Matthew Ross during a World Council of Churches (WCC) seminar on young people’s involvement in “Ecumenical Diakonia and Sustainable Development,” held in Matanzas, Cuba, July 15-20.

Noting “the worsening human rights situation and increasing violence and impunity” in the Philippines, WCC’s central committee has expressed its alarm and outrage, pointing particularly to the role of the government there.

The World Council of Churches Ecumenical Water Network (WCC-EWN) invites you to use the season of Lent to reflect on water. Since 2008, EWN has been providing weekly theological reflections and other resources on water for the seven weeks of Lent and for World Water Day on 22 March. This year, the focus is on Latin America.

If women will not support each other to step up to the pulpit or become engaged in politics, then gender equality will not be a priority issue for leaders both in the church and in government, says Eppie Marecheau, Christian educator and president of the Christian Council for Caribbean Women. In July, she participated in a seminar organized by the Pan African Women’s Ecumenical Empowerment Network (PAWEEN), at the WCC's Ecumenical Institute Bossey.