Displaying 1 - 20 of 68

Reflections on “What Are the Churches Saying About the Church” share fruits of WCC Commission on Faith and Order

Below, Rev. Dr Susan Durber, moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order and His Eminence Bishop Maxim, from the Serbian Orthodox Church and a WCC Faith and Order commissioner, reflect on the publication What Are the Churches Saying About the Church?”

The publication, which presents key findings and proposals from responses to The Church: Towards a Common Vision,” is among the many fruits being harvested by the study groups of the WCC Faith and Order Commission for the WCC 11th Assembly.

Common Threads

Key Themes from Responses to The Church: Towards a Common Vision. Faith and Order Paper No 233

Churches now agree more than they disagree on many characteristics of the Church and its faith, mission, and life: the responses to the convergence statement The Church: Towards a Common Vision make this clear. Within this growth in agreement, key themes come to the fore, calling for greater understanding, study, and common conversation: visible unity, communion, mission, the role of the people of God in ministry and decision-making, sin and the church, and more. 

This volume presents essays on sixteen of these key themes. Each essay was written by a member of the subgroup of the WCC Commission on Faith and Order that focused on reading and analyzing the responses. The essays were then discussed by the group and revised in light of the discussions. Some of the themes have been prominent since the 1982 convergence statement Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry. Others have emerged more recently. 

Together with the report What are the Churches Saying about the Church?, the essays illuminate the many ways in which the vision of unity has inspired and changed the churches, as well as critical areas where future work is needed.

Desmond Tutu: Pastor of the Nation - A Tribute

Desmond Mpilo Tutu was a unique character. His contagious sense of humour and laughter has helped to resolve many critical situations in South Africa’s political and church life. He was able to break almost any deadlock. He shared with us the laughter and grace of God many a time. He was a man of God with all the oddities that come with it. Read the tribute by Baldwin Sjollema.

WCC celebrates life of Brazilian theologian and ecumenist Zwinglio Mota Dias

Zwinglio Mota Dias used to make jokes about problems with the spelling of his first name in Brazil and elsewhere. In Brazil because of the first half of it. Elsewhere because of the second. Born to a Presbyterian family, his parents wanted to name him as a tribute to the great Swiss reformer of the 16th century, Ulrich Zwingli.

Churches and Moral Discernment (III)

Volume 3: Facilitating Dialogue to Build Koinonia

Faith and Order Paper No. 235

The study document “Churches and Moral Discernment: Facilitating Dialogue to Build Koinonia,” harvests the fruits of the study process on moral discernment which began in 2015. In its analysis, the document describes patterns in the complex negotiations between continuity and change as churches respond to moral challenges. At its core, the study document invites the churches to more deeply understand the significance of “the conscience of the church” in moral discernment processes and points to its ecumenical potential. The document offers a tool to analyse core elements in the conscience of the church that shape moral discernment.

Latest issue of International Review of Mission focuses on “reconciliation as a missional task”

The latest issue of the World Council of Churches’ journal International Review of Mission deals with one of the most urgent issues in the world today – reconciliation.

Under the title, “Reconciliation as a Missional Task,” the issue explores the meaning of reconciliation, how it can be understood theologically, and what its missiological dimensions mean for the church’s missional task.

Churches and moral discernment: A series of three webinars by WCC Faith and Order Commission

In preserving and restoring unity, churches are increasingly confronted with moral questions. The World Council of Churches Faith and Order Commission has studied this topic and recently presented a new study document called “Churches and Moral Discernment: Facilitating Dialogue to Build Koinonia.” In a series of three webinars, the commission will introduce the document and two other publications that assist in learning from and with each other about discerning ethical questions in the churches.