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Lecture by Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, general secretary of the World Council of Churches. 23rd Peter Ainslie Lecture, Disciples General, Assembly, Portland, Oregon, July 26, 2005.

Address by Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, WCC general secretary, at the international conference of the International Council of Christians and Jews, Chicago, 24-27 July 2005

The present document is the result of a study process started in response to strong suggestions made during the 2002 meeting of the WCC Central Committee to the three staff teams on Faith & Order, Interreligious Relations, Mission & Evangelism and their respective commissions or advisory bodies. The question of the theological approach to religious plurality had been on the agenda of the WCC many times, reaching some consensus in 1989 and in 1990. In recent years, it was felt that a new approach to this difficult and controversial issue was needed.

This paper offers reflections on mission as ministry of reconciliation from an ecumenical point of view and is shared by the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) of the World Council of Churches as a document for reflection and study in preparation for the world mission conference in Athens in May 2005.

In a time of globalization with increasing violence, fragmentation and exclusion, the mission of the church is to receive, celebrate, proclaim and work for reconciliation, healing and fullness of life in Christ. Come, Holy Spirit, heal and reconcile

We request our churches in Korea, Japan and Germany to work locally for the remembrance of history and the transmission of insights gained thereby to the next generation.

We therefore request our congregations to work for a situation where the wrongdoing, which in some cases has only just come to light, is not repressed, and call upon them to seek solutions in cooperation with the responsible politicians and citizens' action groups.

Table of contents:
Introduction
Minute on economic measures for peace in Israel/Palestine
Human rights and languages of indigenous peoples
Countries affected by the tsunami
International Criminal Court
Detainees held at Guantanamo Bay
Iraq crisis: enhancing peace, accountability and the rule of law
Practising hospitality in an era of new forms of migration