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“We all miss community. But young people miss community a bit more. Our vibrant social lives before the pandemic were replaced by a reality of countless days alone at home.”

Maria Sonnleithner was reflecting on young people whose mental health has been at risk amid COVID-19, even as the strain on the caring adults and churches in their lives has grown exponentially as well.

During an online meeting on 3 February, the Executive Committee of the Joint Working Group between the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Roman Catholic Church focused on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ecclesial life and ecumenical relations in different local contexts.

During its online meeting, 9-13 November, the World Council of Churches (WCC) executive committee addressed vital international developments, approved plans for 2021 and pledged support and solidarity with churches across the world at a time of multiple concurrent crises.

On 22 October at 15.00 CET, persons with disabilities across the globe will share their experiences related to COVID-19 and the transformation that has come out of it during a public webinar entitled “From Lamentation to Transformation: Persons with disabilities in the context of the COVID-19.”  

Former World Council of Churches (WCC) communications director Mark E. Beach was honoured at a commemorative prayer service on 22 September.

Christian organizations representing 2 billion people—about one-third of the world's population—have released a statement on the dire situation of migrants and refugees in Europe, and they are demanding a more compassionate approach.

The organizers of Germany’s biggest ecumenical gathering planned for 2021 have announced they intend the event to go ahead but on a reduced scale due to the COVID-19 pandemic and with strict hygiene measures.

A Declaration for the People’s Korea Peace Agreement was launched on 23 July at a global Zoom convention initiated by the National Council of Churches in Korea, along with civil organizations.

In a meeting with a format and focus dictated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the executive committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC) this week addressed vital international developments and situations.

In a meeting whose format and focus were dictated by the global pandemic, the executive committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC) this week also addressed vital international developments and situations.

The World Council of Churches executive committee met virtually on 1-3 June. The work of the committee, in three intense sessions, focused on governance matters, giving consideration to the ways of working until face-to-face governance meetings can occur again; and to finance matters, with the need to address the requirement for a revised budget for this year. In addition, two public statements have been prepared, discussed and issued, the first concerning the role of churches as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, and the second a “Statement on Racial Justice in the USA.”

Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca has been confirmed interim WCC general secretary by the executive committee at an online meeting held on 3 June. Sauca will hold the post until the WCC central committee meets in June 2021.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is mourning the death of Rev. Prof. Dr Mary-Anne Plaatjies van Huffel, a South African pastor and academic who was currently serving as the WCC president from Africa since 2013. She passed away on 19 May.

Following is the response of World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca to an open letter to the global ecumenical community on the Wuppertal Declaration, a conference message released in June 2019, when representatives from numerous countries and different denominational and faith traditions gathered in Wuppertal, Germany, to discuss the profound global ecological crisis.

Was 1920 to the ecumenical movement what the ancient used to call annus mirabilis, an amazing year? If you are confined like me you may take time to think about it. We start our ecumenical tour of 1920 one year earlier.

On Tuesday, 31 March at noon, Central European time, a panel of experienced church leaders and medical experts goes on air to address the global challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic from a medical, moral, and spiritual perspective. Moderated by outgoing World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary, Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, the televised 60-minute session is accessible via the WCC website.

Adv Rajendra Sail, a noted human rights activist and ecumenist from India, passed away on 26 January, at age 72. Sail stood out from the Christian community for his deeper engagements on human rights issues and bold steps in questioning the government on its failures to adhere to the principles of democracy and secular commitment.

A high-level delegation of the World Council of Churches (WCC), who are being hosted by the South African Council of Churches (SACC) from 7-12 December 2019, have today kicked-off their official WCC Pilgrim Team Visit to South Africa with a courtesy call on H.E. President Cyril Ramaphosa and some Cabinet Ministers, at Lakes Hotel, in Benoni.