Search results

When it comes to healing memories, the “power of forgiveness” can free up the way for the common witness that the world we live in desperately needs, the World Council of Churches general secretary has said.

WCC general secretary, Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, spoke at the ecumenical penance and reconciliation service in Hildesheim, Germany on 11 March, which he praised as an “encouraging sign of unity in the world”.

A "wall of guilt" to be torn down during the course of a prayer service: this symbolic action marked the central celebration of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity by the Council of Christian Churches in Germany (ACK), as well as celebrations in other parts of the world using the model prepared by the ACK.

Churches are probably the most powerful global civil society group, and they need to live up to this responsibility in the quest for peace, says German bishop, Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm. Bedford-Strohm, chairperson of the council of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), was speaking at an event to promote peace in the Ecumenical Centre on 3 November.

As Geneva host celebrations of the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation on 3-4 November, the World Council of Churches with the Protestant Church of Geneva (EPG), the International Museum of the Reformation (MIR) and in collaboration with the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches (FEPS), are pleased to invite you to attend a panel discussion on initiatives and the role of Geneva as “Peace Capital” of the world.

Bossey’s story is both old and new but it’s younger than ever, says one of its graduates, a renowned ecumenical scholar who opened a book launch on the history of the institute that has had students from so many parts of the world.

Churches need a “holistic and inclusive vision of just peace” in the face of national and international conflicts, the moderator of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Dr Agnes Abuom, said at an international peace consultation in Berlin.

All of Europe is preparing for the anniversary of «500 year Reformation». On November 3rd 2016 the international festivities and the first stopover of the «Reformation-Truck» will be launched in the City of Reformation, Geneva. Geneva hosts the World Council of Churches as one of many international organisations.

Germany’s main Protestant and Roman Catholic churches have published a “Common Word” for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017 in which they call for a “healing of memories” of past divisions and for the event to be commemorated in ecumenical fellowship.

An exclusive offer for you! EKD, CEC and WCC invite you to Wittenberg and Berlin Preview visit to the Reformation anniversary sites with a limited number of participants. Take a look behind the scenes at preparations for this great historical event - the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. Retrace the footsteps of Martin Luther.

As many in the world observed and cheered the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, church leaders spoke out in support of the Olympic refugee team and the place of public honor it offered for refugees competing in the games.

What does the impending 500th anniversary mean outside its European birthplace? In the Middle East, Reformation stands for a strong legacy yet also the uncertain future of a tiny and splintered minority. The churches of the Reformation remain important within the constellation of Christian groups, say non-evangelical Christians, who call upon them to lead in ecumenical outreach to newer charismatic and Pentecostal groups.

A celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, called the “European Reformation Roadmap,” will begin in November 2016 in Geneva, then tour across sites of significance through May 2017.

Women and children figure prominently as refugees in mass movements of people in recent months and their rights will be at the forefront of a summer school organized in Greece by the Conference of European Churches.

More than 120 people from throughout the world have gathered in the eastern German city of Halle to reflect on how insights from the Protestant Reformation 500 years ago can contribute to transforming the world today.

The 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017 should be a profoundly ecumenical, as well as European and international celebration, according to Bishop Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, chair of the Council of the Evangelical Church in Germany.

Some 3,000 people answered a call by Berlin’s Protestant church to march for “openness and tolerance” as a response to a demonstration in the German capital by extreme rightwing groups.

On 19 January at 13.10-13.40 CET, a press conference will be held at the Ecumenical Centre Geneva, addressing the Refugee Crisis in Europe.

Reflections from the International Conference on Peace and Reunification on the Korean Peninsula in Arnoldshain, Germany

Citing doubts about a mandate for military deployment and the prospects for success, the Evangelical Church in Germany voiced its opposition to the deployment of federal armed forces against the terrorist militia group that identifies itself as Islamic State.

Faith campaigners have presented a total of 1,780,528 signatures gathered worldwide calling for decisive action to curb global warming. The petitions were delivered to leaders of the United Nations COP 21 climate conference beginning its work in Paris.