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Nomen est omen – the big white hall right next to the entrance really lived up to its name as a Networking Zone during the assembly. Here, there were times of colorful confusion, laughter, concentrated listening, and relaxed tranquility on the sidelines of a program that was filled to the brim. The Networking Zone was a source of strength for us at the Protestant Church in Switzerland, which was allowed to occupy a booth here as one of the host churches. This hall came to life only through the efforts of everyone at their booths: after getting their bearings, refueling with the best assembly coffee, some Ricola drops, and candies from the ACK, they were ready to keep going.

At the meeting for Bossey alumni, I represented the “oldest” alumna of the 1978/79 term, and it was good to see what a chance Bossey studies and encounters not only continue to give but increase for further ecumenical involvement and for carrying ecumenical messages. Today the studies at Bossey are well institutionalized and established at the University of Geneva. My own former classmates were not present as alumni: The Methodist Bishop Sally Dyck (USA) is again represented in the WCC central committee and was busy at that moment.

It was one of the first days of the 11th assembly when I met an old Bossey friend. We had not seen each other for 24 years, although it felt we met yesterday. We shared memories of our Graduate School of Ecumenical Studies in Bossey in 1998 and remembered the names of our friends. We spoke about Bossey as a life-changing experience for both of us.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) was able to gather believers from different parts of the world for its 11th assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany. The assembly proved to be one of love and unity.

I believed Christian unity to be an ideal we strive for, perhaps analogous to the saying "if you shoot for the moon, you'll land in the stars." In the times I have seen Christian Unity manifest, often in times of prayer and most often when hands and feet are moving to answer prayer, it has been fleeting, almost illusory. 

COP26 in Glasgow started this week, offering a stage for world political leaders. For most of them, it was an opportunity to share their vision of the world they are leading. For some others, despite being among the most powerful, COP26 is also an opportunity to express their position on the major challenge of humanity in the 21st century by their absence. What did we hear in the first two days of this COP?

In his 1967 book Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? Rev. Dr Martin Luther King Jr envisioned a “World House.” 

Human trafficking continues to remain one of the most grievous assaults on the fundamental rights and inherent dignity of people. The crime, also known as modern-day slavery, is dehumanising in the sense that it corrupts one’s identity as being made in the image of God, instead reducing one to a mere commodity or object.

Nigerians, like the rest of the world, have had to battle the threat of COVID-19 since the beginning of the year 2020.

When it comes to disability, the argument that reigns in society is that of a limited human being, and when it comes to a condition such as deafness, the conversation at homes, institutions and even in churches all around the world defines one model: not only of a quiet, silent and mute human being—but an invisible participant.

Will the COVID-19 pandemic be remembered as a time when everything changed, as a unique moment in history that all can personally relate to? It has already changed a lot for many – while many people have been hit very hard, almost all have faced totally new situations, having to adopt new daily routines, think differently.

It was at the World Council of Churches (WCC) 10th Assembly in Busan in 2013 where my journey with the Churches’ Commitments to Children - or (CC2C for short - started. Thirty-eight churches came together, formed a working group and came out with a joint declaration entitled “Putting Children at the Centre.” This declaration essentially called upon the WCC to ensure that children were not shunted to the side but took their rightful place at the centre of the churches’ plans, activities and social fabric where they belong.

On occasion of International Translation Day, WCC Language Service coordinator Pamela Valdés shares her thoughts on the topic.

I love riding subways, well, all trains for that matter. I am a people watcher. Sometimes I just stare off as station-wall signs speed by in a blur. This time, however, something was different.

The festival of lights called Deepavali (or Diwali) in India is deeply connected with the idea of hope, aspiration and abundance. Deepavali is the celebration of victory that is promised to a person who leads a morally responsible life. It is a victory of justice, represented by the oil lamps that cast away the darkness of oppression.

This week we continue celebrating the foundation of the World Council of Churches at the Amsterdam Assembly in 1948. Since its founding 70 years ago, the WCC has held assemblies in Evanston, New Delhi, Uppsala, Nairobi, Vancouver, Canberra, Harare, Porto Alegre and Busan.

Water is a key resource both to provide drinking water and to generate food and energy for a growing world population. A fifth of the global population lives in regions affected by water stress - in regions where more water is used than can naturally be recharged.