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An interfaith message issued for Earth Day, 22 April, is calling for ambitious and urgent action to address the climate emergency, urging that “efforts to rebuild economies put people’s health before profit.”

Brought together by the South Sudan Council of Churches, women and men are sharing the pain of many years of war and associated gender-based violence in a series of workshops in Kenya and Burundi.

The latest issue of The Ecumenical Review, the quarterly journal of the World Council of Churches (WCC), focuses on “Global Manifestations of Racism Today,” with a set of articles that originated at a theological symposium organized in Japan in 2019 as part of the WCC’s Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace.

Although she loves what she is doing, there are times when bishop Sofie Petersen feels a strong desire to be someplace else than inside her cosy diocesan office in Nuuk, Greenland. Preferably outdoors, inhaling crisp, arctic air in a stunningly beautiful landscape where mighty polar bears roam and huge whales gently plough their way through the ice-scattered waters along the coastline.

“The Pacific Conference of Churches welcomes you on board our ecumenical canoe, as we sail and voyage together beyond the fringing reefs and rocks of the many issues that affect us here in the Pacific and globally, and set sail with our eyes firmly fixed on the island of hope,” said Rev. Dr James Bhagwan, Pacific Conference of Churches general secretary as he welcomed participants of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace to Fiji, on 20 January.

Young African clergy, theologians and laypersons are eager to engage with the challenging issues facing their continent and the world. This became clear in a recent essay competition for authors below 35 years by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in partnership with the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC).

A couple of days of light rain brought some relief to those resisting killer bushfires across southeastern Australia. Still, firefighters, residents and other responders were bracing themselves and preparing for more mayhem.

As he shared the perspective of an indigenous person at a side event during the 25th Conference of Parties (COP25) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Madrid, Rev. Glen Chebon Kernell, urged people to adopt a deep respect for Mother Earth.

In a daylong meeting on 24 September entitled: “Climate Emergency: Faith-based Organizations Raising Ambition - Leaving No One Behind,” representatives from dozens of churches and organizations from across the world gathered to explore their role in stemming climate change and the human suffering it is already causing.

As states gather at the United Nations for the Climate Action Summit, taking place on 23 September, the ACT Alliance, Lutheran World Federation and World Council of Churches, which together represent 580 million Christians globally, are strengthening their collective call for climate justice and immediate action.

Born in Nazareth, Galilee, Rev. Dr Saïd Ailabouni moved to the US at the age of 19 to become a physician. But he was so angry at God that he went to study theology instead, becoming a Lutheran pastor. Now he is leading the Middle East & Europe desk of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Since leaving his hometown 50 years ago, he visits his Palestinian family regularly. As the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel approaches, Ailabouni agreed to share some of his lifetime observations with the Word Council of Churches.

Twenty-seven indigenous and ecumenical youths gathered together for a five-day World Council of Churches (WCC) event this week in Japan’s third-largest, western city of Osaka. Participants gathered under the theme, “WCC Continuing Formation on Youth and Racism Awareness in Asia & Indigenous Youth Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace.”

It is a bright and crisp Sunday morning in mid-May in Ilulissat on Greenland’s west coast, more than 300 kilometres north of the Arctic circle. As usual, the sea is scattered with glittering icebergs in different shapes and sizes. This morning, like most mornings this time of the year, new formations of frozen water, calved from the Greenland icecap at the bottom of Ilulissat Icefjord, have made their way out into the Disko Bay and shaped up right in front of Zion Church, one of Church of Greenland’s two churches in use in Ilulissat. Built in 1779, this dark-brown wooden jewel is the oldest church in the country and a natural meeting place for locals.

Erhard Hermansen is general secretary of the Christian Council of Norway, which has been collaborating closely with churches in Sudan and South Sudan for nearly 30 years. Hermansen attended the South Sudan Council of Churches 2019 Assembly in late August, and shares his reflections and hopes below.

Dr Agnes Abuom is moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee. From Kenya, Abuom is a laywoman in the Anglican Church of Kenya.

Rev. Kirkland Russel, an Anglican priest from Grand Bahama, spoke with the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 2 September as slow-moving Hurricane Dorian lingered over the island, bring-ing a threatening storm surge and trauma to many people.

Young people are trailblazers, pioneers, visionaries and leaders who have the potential to create a positive, sustainable legacy for future generations on a global scale.
On 12 August, International Youth Day, youth led a TED-style talk and discussion in Geneva, with five young speakers from different parts of the world, four virtually and one live. The stories and experiences shared connected them to theme “Transforming Education,” while inspiring the audience for a call to action.

In Greenland’s fast-growing capital, Nuuk, finding an empty seat in one of its two churches isn’t always easy. Whether at Sunday worship, concerts or other activities, people tend to flock to the churches.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) are calling upon young Africans to participate in an essay contest for the African regional publication on Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace. Africans from the continent and the diaspora up to 35 years of age are invited to send their texts by 15 October 2019.

When he was asked last year to take over as vicar in the parish of Ilulissat, on Greenland’s west coast, Loqqi Fleischer was a bit anxious about how the transition from his smaller hometown Uummannaq, further north along the coastline, would work out. Nevertheless, he took on the challenge and was warmly welcomed right away in the new environment.