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Israeli president Isaac Herzog formally received World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay on 20 February, to discuss the current situation in Israel and Palestine, and the war in Gaza. 

The World Council of Churches (WCC) stands in solidarity with the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem as they condemn Israeli airstrikes that exploded at the Orthodox Church compound of Saint Porphyrios in Gaza on 19 October. 

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is condemning an attack on one of the buildings within the compound of the St Porphyrios Greek Orthodox Church in Gaza. The building—affiliated with the church, which is one the oldest churches in Gaza—has collapsed in the explosion, caused by Israeli missile strikes, according to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.

The World Council of Churches (WCC), in consultation with heads of churches and representatives of Palestinian Christian organizations within the Jerusalem Liaison Office Advisory Group, is making an urgent call for an international investigation led by the United Nations into the numerous war crimes committed against civilians during the ongoing conflict. 

On 28th August, during a visit with Ambassador Andranik Hovhannisyan, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Armenia to the UN Office, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed solidarity with those making efforts to lift the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh by reopening the Lachin corridor.

Prayers, minds and hearts across the world were focused on the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel during an online ecumenical gathering hosted by the WCC on 14 September.

Church leaders from across the world are expressing their grave concern over the government of Israel’s plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank.

Born in Nazareth, Galilee, Rev. Dr Saïd Ailabouni moved to the US at the age of 19 to become a physician. But he was so angry at God that he went to study theology instead, becoming a Lutheran pastor. Now he is leading the Middle East & Europe desk of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Since leaving his hometown 50 years ago, he visits his Palestinian family regularly. As the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel approaches, Ailabouni agreed to share some of his lifetime observations with the Word Council of Churches.

A Jerusalem Post report of 20 February 2019 by Hagay Hacohen titled: “World Council of Churches exposed as biased, anti-Israeli group” is inaccurate and riddled with false innuendo.

Due date for demolition of Khan al Ahmar was 1 October. Though the Bedouin community still stands, the feeling is the bulldozers could show up anytime.

Freddy Elbaiady has made history as a politician. But what counts most for the 46-year-old Egyptian doctor is his work at the Salam Medical Center in El-Qanatir, north of Cairo. The bridges between Christians and Muslims that are built through this work are sustainable even in times of crisis.

As a student back in the seventies, it took a while for Rifat Kassis to come to terms with being both a good Christian, and a Palestinian living under occupation. His call to become a reverend in the Lutheran Church in Palestine brought him to Germany to study theology 40 years ago.

During the visit to Iraq on 20-24 January, a delegation of church leaders shared the findings and recommendations of a recent study exploring the specific needs of displaced people in Iraq and Syria. The delegation also learned a lot about the current situation and challenges from representatives of local faith communities in Iraq, heads of the country’s Christian churches and Christian young people.

Manuel Quintero is retiring after eight years of service as the international programme coordinator for the WCC Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). He took time to reflect on the mission of EAPPI, particularly within its current context, as well as aspects of the programme that have been dear to his heart.

During the 29 years Virgine Nasrawi has worked in the Talbiah refugee camp, located 40 kilometers south of Amman, the Jordanian capital, she has witnessed many changes. And the sudden influx of refugees from neighbouring Syria, caused by the devastating civil war in that country, is the most dramatic.