Search results

There are indications of a “pattern of invisibility” of refugees and migrants themselves in news reports on asylum and migration in European media, according to a new report presented in Brussels on 16 November.

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit spoke on 12 November in Bonn, Germany before the synod of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), where he offered greetings and expressed appreciation for the EKD’s commitment to justice and peace.

The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, revealed in October that at the end of 2016 the number of people displaced from their homes due to conflict and persecution was a record 65.6 million, with 22.5 million of them refugees.

Borders – physical, political, attitudinal – which deny people their human rights, dignity and life are counter to the gospel which calls us to protect and welcome migrants and refugees. This was the recurring theme of an international conference on migration and reception, “Living and Witnessing the Border”, held 30 September – 2 October in Palermo.

Meeting on 12-15 September in Lisbon, Portugal, the Joint Working Group (JWG) of the WCC and the Roman Catholic Church focused its work on peace-building and the concerns of migrants.

Rising populism, racism and xenophobia - how can churches act against this tide?

Practitioners, ecumenical officers, and representatives of mission and church-based humanitarian agencies came together in Geneva from 1-3 September to formulate an answer.

In an audience with Pope Francis in the Vatican, World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee moderator Dr Agnes Abuom and WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit discussed how Christian unity is vital in bringing a true sense of justice to issues the world is facing today. The meeting also focused on how deepening relations in the one ecumenical movement.

On 5 July, the first Syrian and Iraqi refugees arrived legally in France from Lebanon in what marks an expansion of the Humanitarian Corridors project founded by by the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy (FCEI), the Sant’Egidio religious community and the Italian government.

“We’ve seen in the case of refugees, how the church takes a strong standpoint in welcoming those who have fled. But it isn’t always so easy in the congregations. There are many who feel fear, as we receive not only refugees but sometimes also people of other faiths. In this case, we can see a gap between what the church says, and what is actually lived.”

Berlin. Former United States president Barack Obama joined German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin in front of tens of thousands of people on 25 May, the first full day of Germany’s biggest Protestant gathering, the Kirchentag, or “church festival”.

“What contribution can those involved in the interreligious work of the churches offer in the current challenges faced in Europe at the present time?” This was the primary question addressed during a 29-31 March meeting of people working as interreligious officers for various churches in Europe and church-related organizations.