Search results

On the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay lamented the destruction of so many lives and called for an immediate end to the conflict.

The tenth rendition of the Annual Symposium on the Role of Religion and Faith-based Organizations in International Affairs was held on 23 January in New York City, drawing more than 700 registered followers online;

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay opened the 10th Annual Symposium on the Role of Religion and Faith-based Organizations in International Affairs on 23 January in New York City, with reflections on the theme “Human Rights and Dignity: Towards a Just, Peaceable, and Inclusive Future.” 

The tenth edition of the Symposium on the Role of Religion and Faith-based Organizations in International Affairs will take place on 23 January online, and will explore the theme “Human Rights and Dignity: Toward a Just, Peaceable, and Inclusive Future.” 

Sharing hopes and challenges for the search for peace on the Korean peninsula, members of the Ecumenical Forum for Peace, Reunification & Development on the Korean Peninsula (EFK) gathered for an informal meeting this week.

Peter Prove, director of the World Council of Churches Commission of the Churches on International Affairs, spoke on a nuclear weapons-free world during “The Audacity of Peace” gathering in Berlin.

Vandalism targeting churches, cemeteries, and Christian properties in addition to physical and verbal abuse against Christian clergy have increased in the past months in the Holy Land, amid ongoing political tensions within Israeli society.

A webinar on 25 May, “Exploring the nexus between racism, xenophobia and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and African Union (AU) free movement protocol,” marked Africa Day by focusing on the potential of faith communities, especially Christians, in bridging the gaps that continue to frustrate the free movement of people and goods around the continent.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has offered input for the articulation of the UN’s “New Agenda for Peace," a process intended to update the world body’s approach to peace and security in the current global context. In its submission – which is inspired to a significant extent by the WCC 11th Assembly statement on “The Things That Make For Peace”– the WCC focused especially on the need for greater financial and practical support for peacebuilding at national and local levels, rather than for division and military confrontation.

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed concern and sadness upon hearing about alleged actions taken against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) against the background of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed deep concern about increased violence in Jerusalem and the West Bank. 

In an 8 July letter sent to President Joe Biden, World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca appealed for Biden’s attention to the plight of churches and Christians of the Holy Land.

Biden is scheduled to visit Israel, the West Bank, and Saudi Arabia on 13-16 July.

Ekaterina E. wears the human face of statelessness every day.“Statelessness is about expulsion from the human community” she says, “for me personally, being stateless means I have been separated from my mother for nearly 30 years now.”

On 20 June, World Refugee Day, a World Council of Churches (WCC) webinar will focus on statelessness and the recently addopted “Interfaith Affirmations on Belongingness.”

The World Council of Churches (WCC) and Religions for Peace will issue on 9 May a joint message on statelessness, “Belonging—Affirmations for Faith Leaders”.

The document is one of the most recent fruits of WCC work that has been ongoing for more than a decade around the issue of statelessness. It is currently available in English, French, Spanish and Arabic.