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In the spirit of the 2006 WCC Assembly's statement on ecclesiology, «Called to be the One Church», the 120 members of the Commission on Faith and Order, along with 37 guests, consultants and younger theologians gathered on the island of Crete in Greece, 7-13 October 2009.

Report of the WCC director of Faith and Order Canon Dr John Gibaut

Sermon by WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia at the Opening Prayer of the Faith and Order Plenary Commission meeting, 7 October 2009, Crete, Greece.

Report of the Steering Committee of the Special Commission on Orthodox Participation in the World Council of Churches presented before the WCC Central Committee, 2003

A lecture in honour of the late Rev. Joseph Wing given during the 33rd Assembly of The United Congregational Church of Southern Africa - UCCSA-24th August,2009, Molepolole, Botswana

Tanner discusses Faith and Order as a movement, as a Commission, as an agenda, as a method, and as a commitment to the future.

Around 35 theologians and leaders representing communities, churches and organizations of indigenous peoples in 16 countries in many parts of the world attended a consultation from 21-26 October, 2008 in Baguio City, Philippines. This consultation was called in response to a proposal by the Ninth General Assembly of the WCC to facilitate the theological contributions of indigenous peoples to enrich the life and work of the WCC. In solidarity with the struggles of the largest indigenous peoples' population in Asia, Baguio City in the Philippines was chosen as the context for this theological conversation.

Sina-Marei Degenhard took part in the WCC internship programme 2007. During their stay in Geneva each intern is expected to plan an ecumenical project to implement in his or her home context upon return. The report Sina-Marei Degenhard wrote about the project she implemented in Germany is published as an example.

Exploring responses in faith to institutionally and structurally embedded cruelty was the purpose of the theological consultation on cruelty that took place in Puidoux, Switzerland during December 5-8, 2006. Organized by the WCC and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), this gathering focused on cultures, traditions as well as social, economical and political structures that are themselves cruel, as well as creating an ethos that "enables" people to become cruel. Twelve case studies from different contexts and perspectives provided the basis for the debate. Some of these are about racism, casteism, patriarchy, xenophobia, terrorism and counter-terrorism, torture of prisoners, genocide, rape and sex trafficking, and occupation. Papers from this consultation will be published in 2008.

A statement from the delegates of the ecumenical conference "Abolished, but Not Destroyed: Remembering the Slave Trade in the 21st Century" in Runaway Bay, Jamaica; December 2007

The purpose of this paper is to spell out a framework for the proposed study and its envisaged outcomes for use of staff, researchers and the World Council of Churches (WCC) Reference Group on poverty, wealth and ecology. At the 9th General Assembly of the WCC held in Porto Alegre in 2006, it was proposed during the Ecumenical Conversation that had focused on "the scandal of poverty" that churches and partners in the ecumenical movement embark on such a study process to address the dearth of reflections and analysis on wealth and how wealth creation is related to poverty and ecology.

This essay engages in socio-ethical analyses of the interconnectedness and relatedness of poverty, wealth, ecology, economy and injustices in Africa, particularly South Africa. Poverty and wealth cannot be understood in isolation from the socio-political, ecological, economic, historical and geo-spatial contexts in which they exist and are encountered. They require urgent attention in the articulation of the Christian faith and praxis in our contemporary society as it poses a lot of challenges for many, particularly women. This implies that theological and ethical reflections must be located in the actual lives of African communities and the earth, in order to understand how they deny or enhance the lives of humanity and that of the earth.

Keynote lecture by Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia