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Churches to pray for care of creation

Joined in prayer, Christian churches around the world will again observe the ecumenical “Time for Creation” (1 September to 4 October), this year bolstered by Pope Francis’s recent proclamation of 1 September as the “World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.”

Religious leaders meet French president to advocate for climate justice

A statement calling for a binding agreement on climate crisis, and a call for two degrees rise in temperature, the internationally-agreed target for limiting global warming, was presented to the French President Francois Hollande by representatives of the Conference of Religious Leaders of France on 1 July at the Elysée Palace in Paris, France.

Joint efforts to fight violence against children

Violence against children was one emerging issue discussed at the Christian Conference of Asia's assembly. “It is still a sad reality in large parts of the world, but momentum to end violence against children is growing within governments and communities, amongst parents and religious leaders. This is a good thing since it takes everyone to make a change”, says Lauren Rumble, UNICEF’s chief of child protection in Indonesia.

Armenian genocide of 1915 commemorated by WCC Executive Committee

“The member churches of the World Council of Churches have pledged themselves to stand against all genocides, wherever they happen,” said the Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the council (WCC), on the morning of 10 June after a solemn service of remembrance at the Armenian Genocide Memorial and Museum overlooking the capital city of Yerevan. The service took place in the context of the one-hundredth anniversary of an era of great suffering following mass arrests, executions and deportation of Armenians beginning on 24 April 1915.

WCC conference invites churches and partners to renew initiatives for just peace in the DRC

An international conference on peace and security in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has issued an invitation for churches and partners to establish “a suitable structure or process for the purpose of sharing and consolidation of existing initiatives by the churches and related organizations or networks, and in order to consider new ecumenical initiatives” in the DRC.

Churches launch resource to end corporal punishment of children

A worship resource published by the Churches’ Network for Non-violence and the Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children invites church leaders and Christian communities to help end corporal punishment of children. The Churches’ Network for Non-violence includes member churches of the WCC.

A presence to accompany vulnerable communities

They are there every day, each month of the year – as they have been for the last 13 years. They have become a natural element in the chaos of life in Israel and Palestine. Their presence is appreciated. They provide safety and stability. Their sole weapon is a pen, or a camera. They see and listen; they analyze and report back.

WCC appreciates religious leaders’ declaration for the eradication of slavery

A declaration issued on 2 December by religious leaders calling for the eradication of slavery has prompted an expression of appreciation from the WCC. The declaration, issued at the Vatican, brings together signatories from the Catholic and two WCC member churches: Anglican and Orthodox, with Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish and Muslim leaders who signed a joint declaration of commitment against modern slavery.

WCC general secretary represented faith-based organizations at UNICEF meeting

UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, this week invited 20 of its major partners from the private sector and civil society to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The WCC general secretary represented faith based-organizations at a high-level breakfast in New York hosted by the UN agency.

Churches have a special role to play in HIV response

In Africa, where up to 40 percent of the health care facilities are provided by faith based organizations, Dr Mirfin Mpundu, executive director of the Ecumenical Pharmaceutical Network, says that due to their unique position churches can play a special role in eliminating HIV and AIDS and bringing improvements in the lives of people living with the virus.

WCC general secretary highlights WCC and ACT Alliance collaboration

“We are moving together. We are moving in faith. We are moving with a purpose and with shared values.” These were the words of the WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, who in his address at the 2nd General Assembly of ACT Alliance stressed the significance of strengthening cooperation between the Council and the ACT Alliance.