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At the funeral service of Rev. Dr Philip Potter on 16 April in Lübeck, Germany, the WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit described Potter’s life as “a pilgrimage of justice and peace.” He called Potter a pilgrim who moved forward with faith, hope and love.

To express solidarity with churches and people in Israel and Palestine, the leadership of the WCC Central Committee has undertaken a visit to Israel and Palestine from 7 to 12 March.

Pilgrimage towards peace and justice formed the theme of remarks opening the 5-day Ecumenical Peace Consultation in Sigtuna, Sweden. The WCC general secretary invited 80 participants from all over the world to join in a common journey of hope.

A statement issued by the WCC Executive Committee on 25 November has made strong recommendations urging all countries to take special measures to protect and support refugees and displaced people from the Middle East, especially those from countries like Syria, Iraq and Israel-Palestine.

The spiritual head of the Church of Cyprus, Archbishop Chrysostomos II, welcomed members of the WCC Executive Committee at his office in Nicosia, Cyprus, on 25 November.

WCC leaders and President Nicos Anastasiades of Cyprus have discussed reunification of Cyprus and reconciliation among communities at a meeting on 25 November in the island's divided capital Nicosia.

The “pilgrimage is both a way to continue working for the one ecumenical movement and a way to move forward in our times that offer new dimensions, opportunities and practices,” said the WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit.

We met Rev. Dr Simo Peura, bishop of the Diocese of Lapua in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, and a member of the Central and Executive Committees of the WCC, in the chapel at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva.

Inspired by the theme “pilgrimage of justice and peace”, the Central Committee of the WCC, a chief governing body of the Council, has set directions for the work of the Council from 2014 to 2017.

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit was appointed to a second five-year term as general secretary of the WCC on 3 July, during the WCC Central Committee meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. The 53-year-old theologian and pastor from the Church of Norway has served as general secretary since January 2010.

The first full meeting of the new Central Committee of the WCC, a chief governing body of the Council, began on 2 July in Geneva, Switzerland. Prayers, official addresses from the leadership of the WCC and welcome greetings from the Swiss churches marked the opening of the WCC Central Committee meeting – all set to focus on the theme “pilgrimage of justice and peace” through the coming week.

The moderator of the WCC Central Committee called for an openness to change in an era of encounter with “different types of cultures and religions”.

“The senseless war in South Sudan must end now,” said the WCC general secretary, following the pastoral visit of a high-level ecumenical delegation to local churches in Juba, South Sudan on 2 May.

A high-level ecumenical delegation representing church organizations will arrive in Juba, South Sudan on Friday, 2 May, amidst continuing conflict in the country with an imminent threat of widespread hunger and malnutrition among its people. The delegation will meet with church leaders and government officials, urging immediate actions for peace and reconciliation.