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As goodwill ambassador, Rev. Martina Viktorie Kopecka breathes fresh spirit into reconciliation in Czech Republic

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.

Rev. Prof. Dr h.c. Cornelia Füllkrug-Weitzel: “Respect for the life and dignity of women needs to be promoted by all churches”

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. Rev. Prof. Dr h.c. Cornelia Füllkrug-Weitzel is retiring as president of "Brot für die Welt" and "Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe" after leading the German charity for 20 years.

Morning Prayer for Wednesday, 2 December 2020

O Lord, you understand the pain and trauma of being sold by those close to you

This week, the first week of Advent, in the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle, we are praying with the people and churches of Myanmar and Thailand.

2 December is the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery. In a time of physical distancing, let us unite our hearts and minds as we prayerfully seek to overcome Sexual and Gender-Based Violence together.

Prayers were prepared in cooperation with the World YWCA.

Ecumenical movement

Morning Prayer for Tuesday, 1 December 2020

God, you are our safe place to hide

This week, on the first week of Advent, in the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle, we are praying with the people and churches of Myanmar and Thailand.

1 December is World AIDS Day. In a time of physical distancing, let us unite our hearts and minds as we prayerfully seek to overcome Sexual and Gender-Based Violence together.

WCC Programmes

In wake of earthquake, WCC offers solidarity and prayers for Turkey, Greece

Upon news that a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck in the Aegean Sea off the coasts of Turkey and Greece on 30 October, World Council of Churches interim general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca called for prayers, and expressed solidarity with churches and responders who continue to help hundreds of injured and traumatized people.

Healing Together

A Facilitator’s Resource for Ecumenical Faith and Community-Based Counselling
Fulata Lusungu Moyo

Up to 80 percent of Africans are estimated to be traumatized as a result of violence, poverty, disease, natural disasters, and other causes. As a continent where the majority of the population are young people, Africa’s adolescent population is particularly affected. Along with common causes of trauma, youth also experience many other struggles related to growing up. But this trauma often goes unaddressed, not only because sexual and gender-based violence become normalized, but also because of the lack of specific services and awareness. 

This book addresses this lack. It is an important gift to enhance the role of churches to provide wholeness.

Hope prevails in times of crisis in Lebanon

The fatal blast in Beirut last month became yet another blow to an already plagued country. In recent months, a financial crisis with a free-falling currency and rising unemployment has further undermined the Lebanese economy. Add to that one million Syrian refugees and the COVID-19 pandemic, and the contours of a fragile nation facing monumental challenges emerge.

Joint Interfaith Statement on the 75th Anniversary of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

As a wide coalition of faith-based communities from around the world, we have committed to speaking
with one voice that rejects the existential threat to humanity that nuclear weapons pose. We reaffirm that the presence of even one nuclear weapon violates the core principles of our different faith traditions and threatens the unimaginable destruction of everything we hold dear.

Ecumenical movement

Statement on situations of concern in Nigeria

The Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches, meeting by video conference on 20-24 July 2020, takes special note of a number of situations of concern that have been brought to its attention in Nigeria. Nigeria is one of the WCC’s priority countries in the context of the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace, and Africa’s most populous nation, with many diverse communities of faith, and a vibrant church and ecumenical life.

Executive committee

Declaración sobre las situaciones preocupantes que se viven en Nigeria

El Comité Ejecutivo del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias, reunido por videoconferencia, los días 20 a 24 de julio de 2020, toma especial nota de una serie de situaciones preocupantes que han sido señaladas a su atención en relación con Nigeria. Nigeria es uno de los países prioritarios del CMI en el marco de la peregrinación de justicia y paz, además de la nación más poblada de África, con una gran diversidad de comunidades religiosas, y una dinámica vida eclesial y ecuménica.

Executive committee