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This week world leaders are gathered in Davos under the very theme of “Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World”. They do so at a time when we see poverty amongst plenty; hunger and thirst in the midst of abundance; shocking disparities in the quality of life between neighboring communities: real problems that the world has the potential and the possibilities to resolve.

It’s 70 years since the World Council of Churches was founded in Amsterdam on 23 August. In addition to a commemoration service in Amsterdam on 23 August, the WCC, its member churches and partners are planning a variety of events to move forward on our ongoing Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace, and at the same time honour and learn from these 70 years of ecumenical endeavour. Dr Abuom, from the Anglican Church of Kenya, is the moderator of the WCC Central Committee. She is the first woman and the first African in the position in WCC’s history. In an interview, she reflects on the evolution of the WCC in the past 70 years.

Hace 70 años que se fundó el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias en Ámsterdam, el 23 de agosto. Además de un servicio de conmemoración que tendrá lugar en Ámsterdam el 23 de agosto, el CMI, sus iglesias miembros y asociados ecuménicos están preparando varios eventos para seguir avanzando en nuestra actual peregrinación de justicia y paz, y, al mismo tiempo, rendir homenaje a estos 70 años de labor ecuménica y aprender de ellos. La Dra. Abuom, de la Iglesia Anglicana de Kenya, es la moderadora del Comité Central del CMI.

Bishop Mary Ann Swenson has a unique position in observing and advocating for women’s rights or, as she would quickly clarify, “the fair treatment of human beings” no matter what their gender. As bishop-in-residence at the Hollywood United Methodist Church, she ministers to church members who were not only present at this week’s Golden Globe Awards – they were the nominees. And, as vice-moderator of the WCC Central Committee, she is part of a global parish, traveling to communities far removed from the privilege of Hollywood, where violence occurs against women who are seen by their own communities as having no voice and no rights.

The huge impacts of businesses on the communities in which they operate often bring benefits, but companies can disregard and even harm people’s rights in pursuit of economic gain. The WCC, ACT Alliance and the Lutheran World Federation hosted a side event at the 6th United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva on 28 November, in this context.

The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, revealed in October that at the end of 2016 the number of people displaced from their homes due to conflict and persecution was a record 65.6 million, with 22.5 million of them refugees.

During a solidarity visit in Kenya on 10-12 October, leaders from the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee met with Kenyan church representatives, expressed their support for Kenyan churches working toward peace and justice, and deepened their vision for future WCC events, including the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism set for March 2018.

Durante una visita de solidaridad en Kenia que tuvo lugar del 10 al 12 de octubre, los líderes del Comité Central del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) se reunieron con los representantes de las iglesias de Kenia, expresaron su apoyo a las iglesias de Kenia que trabajan por la paz y la justicia, y profundizaron en su visión para los próximos eventos del CMI, como la Conferencia sobre Misión Mundial y Evangelización prevista para el mes de marzo de 2018.

Ecumenical diakonia means complementing each other in what we do best: serving our communities, thus bringing visible church unity to the world, agreed participants at an Ecumenical Strategic Forum on Diakonia and Sustainable Development convened by the World Council of Churches (WCC) last week.

In a joint statement from the National Council of Churches of Kenya and the All Africa Conference of Churches, Kenyan communities expressed their hopes for peace in the lead-up to elections slated for 8 August.

The WCC general secretary extended condolences on the death of Ambassador Bethuel Kiplagat, former moderator of the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA).

“The world is calling upon the faith leaders to use their power for justice for the excluded and discriminated against, and for the exploited planet earth,” says WCC deputy general secretary Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri.

Working conditions for millions of workers in the informal economy, especially migrants and seasonal workers, tend to escape legal regulations and even fail to meet basic human rights standards. The state as well as the church has a big responsibility regarding the most vulnerable of workers, found participants in a workshop on the protection of workers in an informal economy yesterday at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva.

The Reformation was a defining moment 500 years ago but can also serve as an inspiration for the next five centuries, South African Anglican Archbishop Thabo Makgoba has told tens of thousands of people at the German Protestant Kirchentag.

Reconciliation was once primarily seen as a message of the church but is now used by secular leaders trying to establish peace in communities torn by conflict and war, the WCC president for Africa, the Rev. Mary Anne Plaatjies van Huffel, has said at a major Protestant gathering in Germany.

As more people face famine today than any time in modern history, the WCC together with the All Africa Conference of Churches and a range of faith-based partners and networks invite a Global Day of Prayer to End Famine on 21 May 2017, in response to the hunger crisis.

En este momento en el que más personas hacen frente a la hambruna que en cualquier otro momento de la historia moderna, el CMI, junto con la Conferencia de Iglesias de Toda el África y una amplia gama de asociados y redes religiosas, convoca un Día internacional de oración para acabar con el hambre el 21 de mayo de 2017, en respuesta a la crisis del hambre.