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Thirty years ago, on 9 November 1989, when the Berlin Wall fell, the Nicolaikirche in Leipzig had gained a reputation as a gathering point for events signalling the end of an era of communist rule in what was then East Germany.

In a visit to Bern on 4-5 November, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit visited with leaders of the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches, focusing on the role of the WCC in the future shaping of the ecumenical movement.

Tveit spoke during the general assembly of the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches, exploring the question “Where does the ecumenical movement stand today and where should the WCC take in it in the future?”

The latest issue of The Ecumenical Review, the quarterly journal of the World Council of Churches (WCC), focuses on the Pan-African Women’s Ecumenical Empowerment Network (PAWEEN), a project of the WCC’s programme on Ecumenical Theological Education (ETE).

Formally established as a network in 2015, PAWEEN aims to celebrate, commemorate, and build upon the legacy of Pan‐African women in the ecumenical movement.

The 10th World Assembly of Religions for Peace is convening in Lindau, Germany, this week. The multi-religious gathering is being organized from 20-23 August in partnership with the Foundation Peace Dialogue of the World Religions and Civil Society.

On International Youth Day, Azeez Sadeq, who now lives in Lyon, France, shared his personal story of being an Iraqi refugee.

"Have you ever thought that one day, you can lose everything?” he asked the young people gathered with him.

That's what happened to Sadeq when he was 18 years old, when the Islamic State Organisation, also referred to as Daesh, invaded his village.

As the Worship Assembly Planning Committee had its first meeting in Baden, Germany from 5-11 July, prayer was at the forefront for becoming the heartbeat of the World Council of Churches (WCC) 11th assembly in Karlsruhe in September 2021.

The Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz hosted an international conference on “The Many Faces of Jesus Christ: Contextual Christology in a New World Come of Age.” Meeting from July 4-6 on the university campus, the conference brought together 20 scholars from Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America to listen to and debate new developments in Christology from around the world. Anglican, Baptist, Catholic, Pentecostal and Reformed theologians made presentations on Christology, as reflected in theological writings, poetry, art, music and murals, and lived experience.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) hosted a Sikh-Christian dialogue on 5 July with the theme “Pursuing Peace in a Pluralistic World” to commemorate the 550th birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak, the first guru of the Sikhs.

Rev. Margarithe Veen, an ordained minister at the Protestant congregation of Achlum-Hitzum in the Netherlands, shared her year-long research findings with the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 1 July.

Conversations at the World Council of Churches (WCC) exhibition booth at the Kirchentag showed there is a growing interest in ecumenical movement among German churches. The topics of a particularly high interest were the Thursdays in Black campaign and studies at the Ecumenical institute in Bossey.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) Executive Committee just concluded its first meeting of the year. The committee reviewed and received the 2018 reports and adopted the 2018 financial report. The Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace with Latin America and the Caribbean; the 70th anniversary of the WCC; the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism; and the visit of Pope Francis, together with many ongoing activities, made 2018 an extraordinary year in the life of the WCC – one that affirmed the vitality and visibility of the fellowship of churches.

The World Council of Churches (WCC), with the Korea Institute for National Unification, reflected on international cooperation for improvement of human rights and ecumenical cooperation for diakonia ministry in North Korea.

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit sent greetings to Church and Peace commemorating the organization’s 70th anniversary.

Racism is a curse that continues to haunt the global community, with new forms constantly emerging. This curse brings us to the realisation that no country is free from racism and we cannot afford any attitude of pretence or denial that no further action is needed to focus on racial justice in order to re-establish human dignity and equal human rights on a global scale.

Unity, justice and peace – three values held together in love – are the focus of the WCC Staff Planning Days on 9-12 April. Led by WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, the gathering maps the WCC’s critical contributions in a world full of challenges.

A group of churches from Germany’s west inspired by the quest for justice and peace presented an ecumenical exhibition showing how “Peace takes a different way” at the World Council of Churches in Geneva.

A conference in Berlin has recalled how in 1989 an ecumenical assembly mobilised dissent in the former East Germany in the run-up to a peaceful revolution that led to the collapse of communism and the end of the Berlin Wall.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is inviting the public, media, and all people of goodwill to join in a Midday Prayer on 20 March. Prayers will focus on grieving family, friends and colleagues who lost loved ones from UN agencies, the WCC and other organizations who perished in the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash on 10 March.

Last week a delegation from the World Council of Churches (WCC) led by Metropolitan Prof. Dr Gennadios of Sassima, vice-moderator of the WCC Central Committee and moderator of the Assembly Planning Committee, and Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, visited Karlsruhe, Germany, where the WCC 11th Assembly will be held in September 2021.

Almost 30 international students from the WCC's Bossey Ecumenical Institute, Switzerland, are embarking on a future of ecumenism, dialogue and unity that began with months of intense study and fellowship.