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In a letter to Sen. Maynard Alfred, chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs & Trade of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the World Council of Churches (WCC) urged the nation to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

The World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee, which is meeting 15-21 June, invited its fellowship and all people around the world to celebrate 70 years since the creation of WCC.
“In our anniversary year, we affirm that we will continue to move together on a journey that has its beginning in the call of God to a pilgrim people and its end in the unity of the whole creation,” reads a message from the WCC Central Committee. “We have seen more clearly what unites us.”

In a plenary session on “The Living Fellowship” at the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee meeting on 20 June, the WCC marked achievements from its past 70 years in working for Christian unity and action, and also looked ahead at challenges.

As the leaders of North and South Korea formally vowed to end the war and work toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the World Council of Churches (WCC) celebrated this moment as an affirmation of long-held ecumenical hopes and dreams for peace and reconciliation among the Korean people.

"Churches can play a fundamental role in building peace in Colombia," said Colombia president Juan Manuel Santos, on 28 February, during his keynote speech at a public forum promoted by the World Council of Churches (WCC), in Cartagena, Colombia.

A group of German ecumenical activists including former WCC general secretary Konrad Raiser has criticised the German government for its failure to support the United Nations treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons. “It has become clear to many people in recent months that nuclear weapons do not offer lasting security and protection, but remain a continuing threat to humanity and creation,” the ecumenical activists said in an appeal published in Berlin on 20 February, referring to the stand-off between the United States and North Korea.

This week world leaders are gathered in Davos under the very theme of “Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World”. They do so at a time when we see poverty amongst plenty; hunger and thirst in the midst of abundance; shocking disparities in the quality of life between neighboring communities: real problems that the world has the potential and the possibilities to resolve.

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, will participate in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos from 24-26 January, 2018. If you are interested in more information or in arranging an interview with Dr Tveit, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

In a message to the World Economic Forum, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit said he can think of no greater antithesis to a vision of shared life and responsibility than the continued existence of and political and social support for nuclear weapons.

"I think it is wonderful that ICAN won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, we really need this when we see what today’s superpowers are doing. We all want peace on earth!"

This year it is five hundred years since the Reformation. This has been commemorated throughout the year. A lot has happened in the world. The Reformation is ongoing in churches around the world. Discussions are constantly held about how a church should be today and how to reach out with the gospel. WCC News meets Bishop Helga Haugland Byfuglien this year, one of the most experienced and prominent women among Lutheran bishops in the world.

Det er 500 år siden reformasjonen, og det har vært viet oppmerksomhet hele dette året. Mye har skjedd globalt; reformasjonen pågår kontinuerlig i kirkene rundt om i verden, og det føres samtaler om det å være kirke i dag og å nå ut med evangeliet. WCC News møter i år biskop Helga Haugland Byfuglien, som er en av de mest erfarne og ledende kvinnene blant verdens lutherske biskoper.