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During a 23 August service in the Netherlands in the Nieuwe Kerk, a 15th-century church in Amsterdam, WCC leaders will celebrate the WCC’s 70th anniversary at the very spot in which the organization was founded.

As the worst flooding in half a century struck the southern India state of Kerala, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit called for prayers for those affected and for those responding, and expressed his sympathy for those who have lost loved ones in the disaster.

A World Council of Churches (WCC) “Pilgrim Team” will visit Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, from 18-23 August. Under the theme “African Women of Faith and Gender Justice,” the group aims to acknowledge and build women’s roles in church and society. By focusing on gender justice, and on peace with no violence against women, the Pilgrim Team will raise awareness, and call churches and ecumenical partners to action together for justice and peace.

I have experienced many good stories with the WCC, but unfortunately disappointing ones as well, says Rev. Dr Margot Käßmann, Lutheran theologian and former chairperson of the Council of the Evangelical Church in Germany. She was a member of the WCC Central and Executive Committees for many years, until her resignation in 2002. The story she contributed for the WCC 70th anniversary commemoration looks back to the 1998 WCC Assembly in Harare, which marked the end of the Ecumenical Decade of Churches in Solidarity with Women.

“On the Move” is the theme, as 12 Dutch and 12 international youth gather for a Youth Pilgrimage in the Netherlands on 21-23 August.

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.

As the anniversary of Korea's liberation and division draws near, churches in Korea and around the world prepare for the Sunday of Prayer on 12 August.

Prayers and songs are available for use during the WCC anniversary, whether on 23 August – which marked the opening of the 1st Assembly in Amsterdam and the formal constitution of the WCC – or on another day during this anniversary year. Praying together is a powerful source of unity, says WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit.

After important parliamentary and presidential elections this week in Zimbabwe, followed by deadly violence in the capital city of Harare, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) has recognized the conclusions of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, supported careful review of the polling results and urged patient efforts at national reconciliation.

As election polls closed in Zimbabwe on 31 July, and people awaited announcements of results, reports on the ground were indicating that, although peace was holding, the situation is tense.

Whether as individual believers or as a community, it is our collective task to advocate for Christian unity, says Melanio L. Aoanan from the Philippines. A clear vision for religious and ecumenical theological education is needed that is relevant in the 21st century.

WCC Communication shares a brief overview of the Central Committee meeting held in Geneva on 15-21 June, 2018.

“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.

Dr Erlinda N. Senturias, from the Philippines, gives thanks that WCC has created safe spaces for the churches to talk about HIV and AIDS. She asks that the ecumenical movement continue to be a beacon of support for this ongoing journey of health and healing.

The signing of the National Covenanting Document in Australia in 2004 was a significant ecumenical milestone. Ray Williamson Oam traces this journey towards deeper unity with its roots in the Canberra Statement of the WCC 7th Assembly.

In a lecture that opened a summer course offered by the foundation Pro Oriente in Vienna, Austria, on 9 July, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit commemorated the WCC’s 70-year history and described its ongoing Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace.

The World Council of Churches invites member churches, faith-based communities, and civil society organizations around the world to join together for a week of prayer for just peace for all in Palestine and Israel on 16-23 September 2018.

For Marijke van Duin it was culture shock on two levels: being in sub-Saharan Africa, attending a huge international conference. Both for the first time. The Dutch Mennonite experienced confrontation, transformation and hope at the WCC 8th Assembly in Harare…and made a friendship that transcended borders.

Fifty years ago, Dr Martin Luther King was still planning for his sermon at the opening of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Fourth Assembly in the serene town of Uppsala, Sweden. But just three months before the assembly’s opening service, he is assassinated. His dream of a new world is, however, alive at the assembly.

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit spoke on “The Oneness of the Ecumenical Movement” at the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) 11th General Assembly, being held in Kigali, Rwanda from 1-7 July.