Search results

“Before God and our communities, we are responsible to Jews for the historical and ongoing realities of anti-Semitism, to Palestinians since the Nakba, to Muslim neighbours in the light of Islamophobia, to persons who are vulnerable, and to victims of colonial conquest, among others," said participants of a World Council of Churches (WCC) sponsored conference.

In his public lecture on 28 February at the headquarters of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams called the Universal Declaration of Human Rights “a historical landmark”, which he said sometimes may be “misread”, especially in a “cultural settings where individualist assumptions rule”.

The key role played by young people during the transformations in the Arab world throughout the past year was a recurrent theme for the recent World Council of Churches (WCC) Christian-Muslim consultation on “Christian Presence and Witness in the Arab World”.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit reaffirmed churches’ commitment to justice and peace in the Middle East, while stressing the importance of a common vision for living together by Christians and Muslims in the Arab world.

The dramatic events of 2011 brought an increased focus on the relevance of the church in pursuing just peace, said Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit , general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) this week in Geneva.

An international study process developed by the World Council of Churches (WCC) is preparing a report on freedom of religion as a fundamental human right for all.

When the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit attends a day of prayer for peace in Assisi, Italy on 27 October, he will be accompanied by Clare Amos of the Church of England the new WCC programme executive for inter-religious dialogue and cooperation.

The WCC Executive Committee opened its bi-annual meetings Monday 12 September in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with a welcoming ceremony by local church leaders and poignant and detailed presentations on the regional humanitarian crisis in Somalia and neighbouring countries.

"€œChristian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct"€, a five-page document on the conduct of mission "€œaccording to gospel principles", was released during a public presentation on Tuesday 28 June 2011 at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland.

The “dignity of work” or “decent work” in the context of a values-based response to globalization was at the core of a recent international inter-religious seminar hosted by the Geneva-based World Council of Churches (WCC).

Two panel discussions in Geneva, Switzerland highlighted the second morning of the “Transforming Communities” international consultation on Muslim-Christian relations. Panellists focused the attention of approximately 60 delegates on the topics “Beyond Minority and Majority” and “From Conflict to Compassionate Justice.”

At the 50th meeting since its foundation in 1946, the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) decided to refocus, establishing four thematic working groups, in order better to respond to the needs of the member churches.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit has welcomed a recent Turkish government decree allowing for a better protection of the rights of non-Muslim religious minorities in Turkey.

World Council of Churches (WCC) current and incoming general secretaries have highlighted honesty in dialogue as the basis of meaningful interfaith encounters.

WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia was one of ten world religious leaders who signed a statement entitled "Faith in Human Rights" at an International Inter-religious Conference in The Hague, Netherlands on Wednesday, 10 December.

By Juan Michel (*)