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In a letter to H.E. Zbigniew Rau, OSCE chairman-in-office, and minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca and Dr Jørgen Skov Sørensen, general secretary of the Conference of European Churches, jointly appeal for urgent action by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to promote a just and sustainable peace in the Caucasus, following renewed violence in the region in which more than 100 lives have already been lost.

Four World Council of Churches (WCC) pre-assemblies are about to convene, drawing hundreds of people eager to, in a safe space, share their honest reflections and life challenges. The pre-assemblies include Indigenous Peoples, Ecumenical Youth Gathering, Ecumenical Disability Advocates Network, and Just Community of Women and Men.

As the World Council of Churches (WCC) Climate Working Group meets this month, the advisory body is looking forward to offering the fruits of its work for reflection and, most important, action at the WCC 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe. Below, Rev. Henrik Grape, senior advisor on Care for Creation, Sustainability, and Climate Justice, reflects on climate justice work in the lead-up to the assembly and beyond.

Co-hosted by the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Ecumenical and Francophone Seminar on the Theology of Ecology (SOFTE), the conference held on 5-8 July in Geneva, Switzerland, reflected on an ecumenical theology of ecology and care for creation that promotes a visible unity of Christian churches.

Ekaterina E. wears the human face of statelessness every day.“Statelessness is about expulsion from the human community” she says, “for me personally, being stateless means I have been separated from my mother for nearly 30 years now.”

Deploring the illegal and unjustifiable war “inflicted on the people and sovereign state of Ukraine” the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee lamented “the awful and continuing toll of deaths, destruction and displacement, of destroyed relationships and ever more deeply entrenched antagonism between the people of the region, of escalating confrontation globally, of increased famine risk in food insecure regions of the world, of economic hardship and heightened social and political instability in many countries.”

In a public statement focused on the Holy Land, the WCC central committee expressed “deep solidarity with the member churches and Christians of the region in their life and work, keeping the Christian faith and witness in the Holy Land alive and vibrant, as well as with all people in the region.”

Offering a churches’ perspective during a dialogue on humanitarian aid on 10 June, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca spoke on the faith and spiritual foundations for helping one another.

In a second ecumenical roundtable meeting convened by the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 10 June in Bossey, Switzerland, senior representatives of WCC member churches from several European countries neighboring and directly affected by the current conflict gathered to consult each other on relevant developments since the first roundtable meeting held 30 March.

The joint publication of the World Council of Churches (WCC) and ACT Alliance, offering resources to strengthen the diaconal capacity of the churches and to advance cooperation with their ecumenical partners, will be presented online on 9 June at 15.00 CET.

World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca will speak on “Churches and humanitarian aid” during a conference organized by the Foundation Dialogue for Peace, to be held 10 June in Geneva. 

As African women church leaders gathered last week for an inaugural “Ecumenical Women’s Initiative for Leadership and Learning”, they lamented grave injustices, celebrated women pioneers, and nurtured a spirit of solidarity they hope will blaze a global trail for the future. 

An inaugural “Ecumenical Women Church Leaders Initiative Consultation” will kick off from 17-19 May as a dozen African women gather in Geneva and online to exchange experiences and critical reflections.