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Religious leaders are participating in online training on male engagement in Zimbabwe, 12-16 July. The participants are drawn from diverse faith communities and will come up with action plans to enhance their work with boys and men.

H.E., Most Rev. Serafim (Kykkotis) of Zimbabwe is the metropolitan of the Archdiocese of Zimbabwe in eastern Africa, part of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa. He serves on the World Council of Churches (WCC) executive and central committees, and also on the WCC Climate Change Working Group.

Victoria Falls is known locally as Mosi-oa Tunya ("The Smoke that Thunders") due to the power of the water from the Zambezi River that often flows across one of the great wonders of the world. Today it is a mere trickle.

More than 100,000 people are still stranded from massive flooding caused by a devastating cyclone and heavy rainfall in Mozambique and neighbouring southeastern African countries. As the numbers of victims and people displaced are still unfolding, churches in the region are calling everyone to join in prayers for the wellbeing and protection of those affected.

I have experienced many good stories with the WCC, but unfortunately disappointing ones as well, says Rev. Dr Margot Käßmann, Lutheran theologian and former chairperson of the Council of the Evangelical Church in Germany. She was a member of the WCC Central and Executive Committees for many years, until her resignation in 2002. The story she contributed for the WCC 70th anniversary commemoration looks back to the 1998 WCC Assembly in Harare, which marked the end of the Ecumenical Decade of Churches in Solidarity with Women.

Speaking to a gathering of key church leaders in Harare, Zimbabwe on 1 July ahead of a 30 July election of parliament and a new president, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit brought greetings from the WCC and assured those gathered of the support and prayers of the ecumenical fellowship.

In November last year the 37-year rule of President Robert Mugabe came to an end. Two months later, the mood among Zimbabweans can be described as cautiously optimistic and there is a sense of hope for a better future. General elections are scheduled in July, which will determine the political direction of this once prosperous country.

More than 130 theological educators from southern Africa met at the Association of Theological Institutions in Southern Africa Conference at the University of Zimbabwe, 18-22 July.

A delegation of church leaders from three continents led by the general secretary of the World Council of Churches was invited on a solidarity visit to Zimbabwe 17-20 May. The purpose of the visit was to show support for the churches in Zimbabwe in their peaceful efforts for the well-being of the people of Zimbabwe, and their work for a national dialogue with the government, political parties and other organizations.

Last week the Zimbabwe Council of Churches and its 26 member churches took another step forward towards a united fellowship by agreeing on a clear set of priorities. Five areas of special importance for the process of nation building have been identified and were discussed with church leaders during a solidarity visit led by the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit last week.

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit arrived in Harare, Zimbabwe yesterday leading a delegation of church leaders from Europe, Africa and North America.

Church leaders in Zimbabwe expressed their concern for their country’s political, social and economic meltdown that has caused increasing civic unrest and violence over the past month.

The Central Committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC), at its meeting in Trondheim, Norway, 27 June 2016, has elected a new executive committee with 11 new members.

The African continent bears witness to the tragic consequences of the manipulation of religion to incite violence. Yet it is also the home of untold instances of the power of religious leaders and actors to exert a positive influence, said panellists at an international meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, today.