During an ecumenical morning prayer held 15 May, the World Council of Churches (WCC) staff and partners observed the UN International Day of Living Together in Peace, holding in prayer many nations across the world facing challenges to living together in harmony.
On the International Day of Living Together in Peace declared by the United Nations, members of the World Council of Churches (WCC) fellowship from countries troubled by war and conflict gathered to pray for sustainable peace in the world.
What have we achieved in building a just community of women and men? What must we still do? How can we strengthen ecumenical collaboration in reading the signs of our times in order to map the future direction of our work?
While violence against women is rampant in situations of war and oppression, women often take the lead standing up against injustice. The courage shown by mothers and grandmothers of the disappeared during Argentina's Dirty War period (1976-83) is an example and a challenge for us today.
Manuel Quintero is retiring after eight years of service as the international programme coordinator for the WCC Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). He took time to reflect on the mission of EAPPI, particularly within its current context, as well as aspects of the programme that have been dear to his heart.
Forty years after the Soweto uprising, leaders of churches in conflict-torn countries gathered in South Africa to study the ways of peace and reconciliation.
On the world scale of countries with plentiful water, Brazil comes out in the top league. It has 12 percent of the world’s fresh water supplies. Yet Magali do Nascimento Cunha does not see her country scoring so well when it comes to water and sanitation distribution.
When Fernando Enns thinks of water in a German context, he is reminded of thousands and thousands of refugees who have come to the country fleeing the conflict in Syria.
WCC support for churches’ struggles during the years of dictatorship in Argentina was praised by Aldo M. Etchegoyen, bishop emeritus of the Evangelical Methodist Church of Argentina.
Youth representing ecumenical networks have been vocal in addressing social, economic and environmental issues at the World Youth Day, a Roman Catholic Church event, which gathered more than a million participants in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The moderator of the WCC Central Committee addressed a plenary session at the general assembly of the Latin American Council of Churches on 23 May in Havana, Cuba.
