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Tribulation” is certainly an appropriate description for the previously unimaginable scale of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has affected almost everyone around the world, whether through the direct impacts on our health or the health of our loved ones, the sudden restrictions on all our movements, or the fear of the virus arriving in our lives.

The seventh and last reflection of the seven weeks for water 2020 of the WCC’s Ecumenical Water Network is written jointly  by Ms Frances Namoumou, Programmes Manager, and Mr Netani Rika, Communications Specialist, Pacific Conference of Churches.  In the following reflection they have analysed the water scarcity situation in the Pacific that is getting worsened by climate change with a justice perspective from the narratives of the persistent widow of the bible. They challenge us not to give up our “thirst for justice” under any circumstances.

The fifth reflection of the Seven Weeks for Water 2020 is by Dinesh Suna, coordinator of Ecumenical Water Network, World Council of Churches. He is a Lutheran and comes from India. In the following reflection, he explores the importance of “hand-washing” in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic while this basic facility is not available to millions of people, particularly to children. He dedicates this reflection to World Water Day which is being observed on 22 March with the theme “Water and Climate Change.”

The third reflection of the seven weeks for water 2020 of the WCC’s Ecumenical Water Network is by Adi Mariana Waqa, the Child Protection Coordinator of the Pacific Conference of Churches with contributions from Frances Namoumou Programmes Manager, PCC  and Mereani Nawadra (Project Officer for Gender Equality Theology,  Methodist Women’s Fellowship. In the following reflection they critique Abraham’s decision to send off Hagar into the wilderness with a child with very little water. They draw comparisons that Hagar then and women of today take on the responsibility of securing water needs of the family at the cost of their own safety and wellbeing. This reflection is to commemorate International Women’s day in the context of right to water.

Are we in a time when the message of the threats of climate change is on its way to sink into our shared consciousness? After being active in the climate debates in the ecumenical and interreligious discussions and advocacy work with not so much of a visible impact on policies and action I am wondering if we are getting closer to the point where we should have been 20 years ago. A point that says that humanity needs to choose another way if we are going to secure a decent future for coming generations and to save ecosystems and peoples opportunities to have a good and peaceful life together.

“To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.” 

(Revelation 21:6) 

It is not a coincidence that our holy book, the Bible, comes from a desert area: Palestine, Jordan and Egypt. In fact, water has been and continues to be truly the source and essence of life. What the Israelites experienced in biblical times, drought and water shortages, is the experience of Palestinians today.

WCC statement expressing shock over the attacks by Boko Haram in Nigeria, which is said to have cost the lives of more than 2,000 people, including children used in suicide bomb attacks.

A moment of silence was held at the chapel of the Ecumenical Centre to honour the victims of the shooting at the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris and to pray for peace.

"An urgent call to action for a just peace in Syria" - statement from the WCC Ecumenical Consultation on Syria, held 15-17 January 2014, at the Ecumenical Centre to be presented at the Geneva 2 talks on Syria.

Communiqué from the WCC Consultation on the Crisis in Syria held on 18 September, Bossey, Switzerland

Like the ticking of a clock marking out time, water drips noisily. Maybe it drips off the edge of a stone or roof in times of rain and plenty, or perhaps from a badly turned off tap in societies where earth's most precious and vital resource is unconsciously wasted.

From 28 November to 4 December 2011 an ecumenical delegation visited the Ivory Coast to meet with the churches and representatives of civil society in the country on the initiative of four international church organizations.

Theological education with migrant Christians in the changing landscape of World Christianity - Crucial issues from WCC/ETE perspective

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

The stories and questions in this study guide on Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry (BEM) are intended for group discussion or individual study.

Madrid, Spain

Reflections from three young people brought together by WCC to participate in the 30th European Young Adult Taizé Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.

Representing the experiences, perspectives and visions of different excluded groups, a select group of 25 theologians from many parts of the world gathered in La Paz, Bolivia during May 2007, perhaps for the first time, to articulate their visions of the world and the church. Their attempt was to identify the possible thematic directions for the new programme - Just and Inclusive Communities - that brings together WCC's ongoing work in the areas of Overcoming racism, Ecumenical Disabilities Advocates Network, Indigenous Peoples and Dalit Solidarity.

This document has been written to accompany World Council of Churches, Partnerships between Churches and People Living with HIV/AIDS Organizations: Guidelines, (2005). Whereas the partnership document explores the question of why churches should work with People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) organizations and networks, this document has a focus on how churches may work with PLWHA organizations and networks. For example: What issues do you need to think about? What are the needs of PLWHA? How should you interact PLWHA? It is hoped that this document of practical suggestions will assist in helping make partnerships functional and effective.