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Following five ballots, Rev. Felipe Adolf was elected on 24 May as president of the board of the Latin American Council of Churches during the 6th Assembly of this regional council in Havana, Cuba, meeting from 20 to 26 May.

The upcoming WCC 10th Assembly is not only a pivotal moment in the life of the global fellowship of 345 member churches but also a defining moment for the WCC and its programmatic and financial partners.

The world's first Arms Trade Treaty is “a milestone in efforts to bring commerce in deadly weapons under much-needed controls,” according to the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC).

The WCC Executive Committee has expressed deep concern about the alarming increase in threats to human security in Latin America. The committee has called for renewed efforts by churches to ensure peaceful and just societies.

Church representatives at a recent Oikotree Global Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa stressed the need to support peoples'€™ movements promoting justice in the economy and ecology, a concern, they say, that lies at the heart of the faith.

By Marcelo Schneider (*)

While peace talks are underway between the Colombian government and FARC rebels (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) in Norway, Dr Ricardo Esquivia of the Mennonite Church in Colombia affirmed that “creativity and audacity to advocate for justice in a nonviolent way” is essential at this time.

Youth engagement in eco-justice is expanding in scope and sophistication, says Marcelo Leites, Latin American and Caribbean regional secretary for the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF).

A public statement applauding steps toward peace talks in Colombia was issued recently by representatives of churches and ecumenical organizations that form the Peace Commission of the Evangelical Council (CEDECOL), the Ecumenical Network in Colombia and the Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI).

By Susan Kim (*)

Death threats against human rights defenders in Colombia have caused "great concern" for the World Council of Churches (WCC). A letter from the WCC to the Colombian president, Juan Manuel Santos, calls on the “government to take all necessary measures to effectively protect the life and physical integrity” of the human rights defenders.

A tribute published by the World Council of Churches (WCC) expresses deep admiration for the life and work of renowned liberation theologian José Míguez Bonino, who passed away on 1 July in the city of Tandil, Buenos Aires, at the age of 88.

By Marcelo Schneider (*)

By Marcelo Schneider (*)

By Marcelo Schneider (*)

After two months of illness, the renowned ecumenist, theologian and Lutheran pastor Dr Milton Schwantes passed away on 1 March in São Paulo, Brazil, at the age of 65. The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit called his contribution over the years an "asset for the ecumenical movement.”

“We must continue to express our prophetic vision by reporting violation of human rights in God’s creation" said Rev. Nilton Giese, general secretary of the Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI), adding, “we must continue to dedicate ourselves to the task of theological and pastoral capacity building, inspired by prophetic and evangelical principles.”

Official statistics indicate the existence of three million people who were pushed away from their land and property in Colombia due to armed conflict that has taken place for years in the country. Human rights organizations claim, however, that the number of "displaced people" is actually close to 5 million people.

by Theodore Gill (*)

Church leaders from across the Americas and the Caribbean are meeting in Managua, Nicaragua, to discuss the violence of racism, and the challenges it poses for churches and ecumenical organizations.