Carla Khijoyan, World Council of Churches (WCC) programme executive for the Middle East, shares her journey of how the Emerging Peacemakers Forum was initiated. She was formerly the WCC programme executive for Youth Engagement in the Ecumenical Movement.
Pastor Joachim Leberecht, from Herzogenrath/Germany, has won the international Menno Simons Sermon Award from the Center for Peace Church Theology (University of Hamburg) together with the Mennonite congregation Hamburg-Altona.
As Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay was installed as the ninth general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), he reflected on how much the day means to him, and he sought prayers from the worldwide fellowship and from all people of good will as he continues his work.
Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, the new general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), reflects on the challenges 2023 may bring, how he will relate to WCC member churches, how he plans to include and inspire youth in the ecumenical movement, and what prophetic leadership means to him.
Dr Agnes Abuom, immediate past moderator of the World Council of Churches central committee, took time to reflect on the deep meaning of her WCC leadership role, and to share Christmas greetings with the fellowship as she moves on to serve as a lay canon with the Anglican communion in Kenya.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee elected Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay as the ninth general secretary at its 17 June meeting. Below, Pillay reflects on his longstanding passion for ecumenism and his expectations for the WCC 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe.
There’s a reason why Orthodox theologian and human rights lawyer Natallia Vasilevich prefers to speak of the role of Christians rather than the role of churches in Belarusian society.
Brother Guido Dotti, from the Monastic Community of Bose, Italy, is a member of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Theological Study Group of the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace. Below, he reflects on a special commemorative calendar, on his experiences with Pilgrim Team visits, and on his hopes for the WCC 11th Assembly.
H.E. Metropolitan Serafim Kykotis, a member of the World Council of Churches Working Group on Climate Change, participated in COP26. Following is a conversation about “ecological metanoia,” a concept about which the metropolitan has been praying and thinking.
World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca offers reflections upon receiving the Bridge Builder Award for building bridges of understanding between people, nations, and communities at national and international levels. The award is presented by the Jury of the 14th August Committee Norway together with The Oslo Center.
This week, with the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle, we pray for the churches and people of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Slovenia.
Prayers were prepared in cooperation with the Lutheran World Federation.
Rev. Martina Viktorie Kopecka, a priest in the Czechoslovak Hussite Church, is moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) ECHOS Commission for young people. She also serves on the WCC executive and central committees. In February, she was named a goodwill ambassador by H. E. Tomáš Petříček, minister of foreign affairs of the Czech Republic, a role she will serve for one year. Below, she reflects on her hopes and plans for sharing stories from the Czech Republic with the world, bridging divides in her home country, and, ultimately, bringing about new expressions of Christian love.
Our series of interviews with Thursdays in Black ambassadors highlights those who are playing a vital role in increasing the impact of our collective call for a world without rape and violence. Prof. Dr Azza Karam is Secretary General of Religions for Peace.
WCC News met online with Dr Agnes Abuom, moderator of the World Council of Churches central committee, and she offers reflections on the impact of COVID-19, what gives her hope, and the future of the ecumenical movement.
It is easy to feel despair of the unjust situation for the Palestinians, who are experiencing daily humiliation, annexation of land, growing settlements, land grabbing and poverty. This year Palestine has been illegally occupied for 53 years. But there are also many people in Palestine cultivating hope, faith and love for transforming the situation.
Bishop Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, chair of the council of the Evangelical Church in Germany, and Cardinal Reinhard Marx, Archbishop in Munich and former president of the German Bishops’ Conference, were awarded the 2020 Augsburg Peace Prize for their “unconditional will to live together in peace.”
Rev. Inácio Lemke is president of the National Council of Christian Churches of Brazil (CONIC). He is an ordained pastor of the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil. This interview is part of a series dedicated to the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.