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Thursdays in Black grew out of women’s movements of resilience and resistance to injustice, abuse and violence. In the Pacific region, which has some of the highest recorded rates of violence against women, churches are leading conversations to change attitudes and actions. Domestic violence is prevalent throughout Fiji. According to UN Women’s Global Database on Violence against Women, almost 2 out of 3 women aged 18-64 in Fiji have experienced physical or sexual violence from their intimate partner – almost twice the global average.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has made several new appointments this year, welcoming programme executives, a programme director, and a new dean of the Bossey Ecumenical Institute.

The Council of Baptist Churches in North East India (CBCNEI) is one of the largest Baptist groups in India, including 1.2 million members in 7,263 congregations. The CBCNEI officially became a WCC member church in July. Rev. Dr Solomon Rongpi, general secretary of the CBCNEI, spoke to WCC news about the CBCNEI’s decision to join the WCC.

As wars and conflict continue to force thousands of families to flee their homes every day, the WCC appeals to all people of good will to support the UNHCR’s #WithRefugees campaign. By signing a petition to be handed over to the UN headquarters before the General Assembly meeting on 19 September, people around the globe are asked to raise their voices, to ensure that every refugee child gets an education, that every refugee family has somewhere safe to live, and that every refugee can work or learn new skills to make a positive contribution to their community.

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.

The Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Sudan’s diocese of Wau has developed a course titled “Reconcile - Moving Forward in Peace”, inviting people to be peace-builders this Lenten season.

To say no to all kinds of excuses that justify violence against women and girls, the WCC invites its member churches and partners to join the World YWCA campaign “NoXcuses for Violence against Women”.

At a recent event in Geneva, 120 members of migrant communities representing various local churches were given an orientation to the WCC assembly in Busan, Republic of Korea. The event featured reflections on justice and peace issues, especially in relation to migrant workers.

Reflecting on the theme of the World Council of Churches' (WCC) upcoming assembly in Busan, "€œGod of life, lead us to justice and peace"€, an ecumenical conference in Johannesburg addressed violence against women and children with disabilities.

"Women with disabilities are often excluded from the society, and are no longer seen as recipients of the gift of God,"€ said the Rev. Micheline K. Kamba at a recent World Council of Churches (WCC) conference. It is important, she said, to pray for action amidst the alarming situation of violence against women with disabilities.

The more radical social and political changes are, the more likely they are to bring out tension amongst social actors. It is in a context such as this - a Living Letters delegation visiting Bolivia in mid July heard - that Bolivian churches struggle to overcome violence in society.

by Aruna Gnanadason (*)

Cf WCC Upcoming Events of December 2003