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Opening the first business plenary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) 11th Assembly on 1 September, WCC moderator Dr Agnes Abuom acknowledged the contributions of three former WCC general secretaries, as well as acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca, and general secretary-elect Dr Jerry Pillay.

Opening to the sounds of nature reverberating through the speaker system, World Council of Churches (WCC) 11th Assembly delegates took part in the first thematic plenary, “The purpose of God’s love in Christ for the whole of creation – reconciliation and unity," on 1 September, the first day of Season of Creation.

Addressing the challenges for a common vision of churches on human rights today, the international conference “Christian Perspectives on Human Dignity and Human Rights” will take place on 9-12 April in Wuppertal, Germany. Everyone is invited to follow the public session of the conference on 11 April, when a panel of the keynote speakers will bring together biblical, theological and practical perspectives on human dignity.

George Ziadeh is CEO of the Compassion Protestant Society, which has started a fundraising campaign, “Beirut Hope,” to help the hundreds of thousands of people affected by the explosion in the port of Beirut on 4 August. The interview below is excerpted from an original interview of Ziadeh produced by the Evangelical Church in the Rhineland, that joined the appeal for donations for the victims of the explosion in the port of Beirut.

In the aftermath of armed attacks by both the US and Iran, WCC reiterates its call for restraint and de-escalation of the confrontation.
“Further escalation and conflict between the United States and Iran can only serve short-term political interests, while threatening the permanent destruction of many lives, communities and precious cultural and environmental heritage,” said World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit. “I appeal to political leaders on all sides of this confrontation to put the interests of the people of the region ahead of their own interests, and to seek peace through dialogue and negotiation rather than confrontation.”

Born in Nazareth, Galilee, Rev. Dr Saïd Ailabouni moved to the US at the age of 19 to become a physician. But he was so angry at God that he went to study theology instead, becoming a Lutheran pastor. Now he is leading the Middle East & Europe desk of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Since leaving his hometown 50 years ago, he visits his Palestinian family regularly. As the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel approaches, Ailabouni agreed to share some of his lifetime observations with the Word Council of Churches.

Salpy Eskidjian Weiderud, leader of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process, has received an International Religious Freedom Award from the US Department of State. The awards “honor extraordinary advocates of religious freedom from around the world” and will be presented on 17 July in Washington, D.C.

WCC News spoke to Rev. Douglas Leonard, coordinator of the Ecumenical United Nations Office and World Council of Churches (WCC) representative to the United Nations in New York, after attending a summit in Washington D.C. that brought together some 45 representatives of churches and faith-based organizations committed to developing an advocacy plan that responds to the current political situation in the Holy Land.

Rev. Robina Winbush, a World Council of Churches (WCC) Central and Executive Committee member known for her fierce advocacy for justice, died suddenly on 12 March.

The World Council of Churches (WCC), the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), ACT Alliance and the German Protestant development service Bread for the World are appealing to world leaders to take swift and coordinated action to limit global warming to 1.5°C degrees as a humanitarian and ethical obligation.

Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser has been on an ecumenical journey for most of his adult life, which spans 80 years. The former WCC general secretary relates some of this pilgrimage in his newest publication, “The Challenge of Transformation: An Ecumenical Journey.” On 5 February, shortly after Raiser’s birthday, ecumenical experts from different generations, confessions and continents met in Geneva to discuss the newest publication by the man who led the WCC from 1993 to 2003.

In a statement issued 6 December, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit expressed grave concern over President Trump’s announcement that the United States will recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Together with the heads of the Coptic, Syrian, Armenian and Indian Orthodox Churches, the Evangelical Church in Germany celebrated on Saturday evening in Berlin an ecumenical prayer for Christians in the Middle East. The jointly prepared service was the highlight of a historic visit. For the first time, Pope Tawadros II, Patriarch Ignatius Afrem II, Catholicos Karekin II and Catholicos Baselios Morthoma Paulose II visited together in Germany to inform political and church representatives on the bad and sad situation in the region of origin of Christianity.

In a 25 August speech at the Wittenberg Ecumenical Assembly, WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit reviewed the work of the ecumenical movement in 2017, describing the present as “an extraordinary ecumenical chance at this point in history.”

Around 60 participants from Christian churches all over the world gathered in Beit Sahour for peace consultations two weeks ago.

Rev. Dr Sharon Watkins, chair of the board of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC), spoke at the National Press Club (USA) on 21 June as part of a coalition of Christian leaders expressing opposition to federal budget cuts in the USA that would harm people living in hunger and poverty.