As people of faith representing diverse traditions, united in our common belief in the sanctity of life and the pursuit of justice, peace, and human dignity, we commend the States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) for your historic commitment and leadership in working toward a world without nuclear weapons. Each signature and ratification affirming this Treaty is an act of courage and beacon of hope, and we applaud you.
Faith leaders and advocates worldwide came together on 6 November for a transformative Talanoa Dialogue, organized virtually by the Interfaith Liaison Committee to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, cochaired by the World Council of Churches (WCC). The dialogue provided a vital space for interfaith communities to explore shared goals in preparation for COP29, fostering unity around an urgent call for action on climate justice, compassion, and resilience.
In a visit to London, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay had deep conversations with specialized ministries partner Christian Aid, focusing on how the global ecumenical movement is rooted in local connections that bring hope, help, and healing.
World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay is visiting Christian Aid from 7-9 May to explore ways to strengthen collaboration for peace-building.
“I have cerebral palsy spastic quadriplegia, meaning all of my limbs are severely affected by my cerebral. However, I am not defined by my cerebral palsy. There's much more to me than my cerebral palsy,” Julius Van Der Wat, a member of the Dutch Reformed Church in Pretoria, South Africa, told a recent churches’ disability conference in South Africa.
Churches should promote disability studies in theological institutions and recruit persons into ordained ministry, youth with disabilities urged after attending the 12th General Assembly of the All Africa Conference of Churches in Abuja, Nigeria.
Lecture of the World Council of Churches central committee moderator Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm delivered at the Kitzingen deanery, a regional church district near Würzburg, Germany.
Lindsey Fielder Cook, representative for the Human Impacts of Climate Change Programme for the Quaker United Nations Office, shared the ways in which ecumenical work gives her strength in her work for climate justice.
With over 3,500 participants from all over the world, opportunities for “encounter” are rich and continuous at the 11th Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) taking place in Karlsruhe, Germany. Intentional gatherings – from small “home” groups to regional meetings also help to connect participants and bring different perspectives to the concerns and hopes being raised under the Assembly theme, “Christ’s love moves the world to reconciliation and unity”.
In South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the peace and reconciliation work of pastors, priests and lay Christians remains critical for the people, as the global church and ecumenical groups amplify their concerns over the complex but separate conflicts in the two African countries.
Churches in Africa and disabled persons organizations are condemning the use of disabled children as beggars and slaves, amid media reports of cross-border smuggling of the children between Kenya and Tanzania.
„Wir sind aufgefordert, uns Gedanken über den Zentralausschuss des Ökumenischen Rates der Kirchen (ÖRK) und die 11. ÖRK-Vollversammlung zu machen“, sagte Janet Scott vom Friends World Committee for Consultation der Quäker zur Eröffnung der konfessionsspezifischen Sitzung der Brüder-Unität und der historischen Friedenskirchen am ersten Tag der Zentralausschusstagung in der letzten Woche. „Als historische Friedenskirchen war es schon immer unser Ansatz, darüber nachzudenken, wie wir Frieden fördern können.“
“We are asked to reflect on the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee and the WCC 11th Assembly,” said Janet Scott, Friends World Committee for Consultation, as she prepared to facilitate the confessional meeting of the Moravian and historic peace churches on the first day of the central committee meeting. “Our historic peace church way to reflect is to consider how to further the cause of peace.”
A letter signed by 115 organizations, representing five world faith traditions, called on World Trade Organization member countries to act before year’s end to waive Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights rules.
Time is running out. As the COP26 negotiations reach a critical moment, members of the global faith community, led by our sisters and brothers from the Global South, call for urgent and ambitious action to deliver justice for the most vulnerable people and communities.
A webinar on moral discernment, held in June, presented a new study document approved by the World Council of Churches Faith and Order Commission earlier this year.
A third and final webinar on moral discernment, scheduled for 15 June, will present the new study document approved by the World Council of Churches Faith and Order Commission earlier this year.
