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Scholars and academics from different religious traditions have gathered online for the first meeting of the editorial board of Current Dialogue, the World Council of Churches’ journal on interreligious encounter.

At a Religions for Peace World Council meeting held 29 October, World Council of Churches interim general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca reflected on the importance of building relationships between religious communities.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has announced an essay competition for youth who want to reflect on the theme “The Future of Interreligious Dialogue.” The contest marks the 50th anniversary of the WCC’s Office of Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation.

In a look back at how history has shaped the formation of bilateral dialogues, the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 27 October hosted the first in a series of webinars focusing on ecumenical bilateral dialogues and their importance for the one ecumenical movement.

The organizers of Germany’s biggest ecumenical gathering planned for 2021 have announced they intend the event to go ahead but on a reduced scale due to the COVID-19 pandemic and with strict hygiene measures.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) have released a joint document, “Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity: A Christian Call to Reflection and Action During COVID-19 and Beyond.” Its purpose is to encourage churches and Christian organizations to reflect on the importance of interreligious solidarity in a world wounded by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A virtual event on “The Contribution of Buddhism to Peace” was organised to mark the International Vesak Day at the United Nations on 7 May. The event was organised by the International Buddhist Foundation in Geneva (IBF), an interreligious partner of the World Council of Churches (WCC), under the leadership of its president Ven. Halyale Wimalaratne, in collaboration with the permanent missions of Sri Lanka and Thailand. Inaugurated by H.E.Tatiana Valovaya, Director General of the UN Office in Geneva (UNOG), the event drew Permanent Representatives and Deputy Permanent Representatives of more than 40 countries.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the World Council of Churches (WCC) Young Adults Training for Religious Amity programme that was to take place in Fiji from 15-27 May has been postponed. This decision was made in consultation with the joint ecumenical partners of this pro-gramme - the Pacific Conference of Churches, World Communion of Reformed Churches, Council for World Mission, and World Methodist Council. The organisers agreed that it was impossible to organise the programme as planned in the current unprecedented global situation where the acceleration of COVID-19 infections has prompted mas-sive lockdowns and severe travel restrictions by several countries in order to contain the spread of the pandemic.

Asia region president for the World Council of Churches (WCC) Rev. Dr Sang Chang has reminded Christians they should understand that worshipping our God of Life and protecting the God-given lives of people are the same.

The annual meeting of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) and the World Council of Churches (WCC) was hosted by the WCC at the Ecumenical Centre, Geneva, and at the nearby Chateau de Bossey from 6-7 February.

A lively interchange on the rapidly changing landscape of interreligious encounter marked the launch of a new journal at the Ecumenical Centre on Friday, 7 February. The occasion was the unveiling of the new incarnation of Current Dialogue, the pioneering World Council of Churches periodical on interreligious dialogue. Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), welcomed the new publishing arrangement as an historic moment for the ecumenical movement, through which Current Dialogue joins the WCC’s other two academic journals, noting that the journal brings a distinctive ecumenical perspective to the growing field.

A special event on 7 February in Geneva will mark the launch of the World Council of Churches periodical on interreligious relations Current Dialogue as an academic journal for researchers, students, interfaith practitioners, and all those interested in the study of religions. Current Dialogue thereby becomes the third WCC academic journal to be produced by publishers Wiley, alongside The Ecumenical Review and International Review of Mission.