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Religious leaders uniting for climate peace in solidarity with refugees, boost UN conference

The moment religious leaders from around 40 faith-based organisations worldwide agreed to keep defending the individual right to seek asylum during a gathering in Geneva marked a high point on the eve of the Global Refugee Forum, the world's biggest such international gathering.They met at a one-day event on 12 December at the World Council of Churches (WCC), chaired by an Armenian archbishop and a UN diplomat who was once a Turkish legislator.

"Legend of Our Times," Sylvia Ross Talbot, dies at 89

The life and ministry of Dr. Sylvia Ross Talbot, a church leader whose ecumenical dedication included service as the WCC’s vice-moderator in the 1980s and president of Church Women United, was celebrated last weekend in Nashville, Tennessee, USA.

She died 15 May at the age of 89.

In pictures: Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Prayers for unity took on a different look and feel this year, but they weren’t stopped by widespread restrictions on face-to-face gatherings. From prayer cards to personal reflections, online gatherings to new connections, the images worldwide convey the spiritual richness of an ecumenical family that came together in prayer.

In Fiji, mindset is changing amid work to prevent violence against women

Thursdays in Black grew out of women’s movements of resilience and resistance to injustice, abuse and violence. In the Pacific region, which has some of the highest recorded rates of violence against women, churches are leading conversations to change attitudes and actions. Domestic violence is prevalent throughout Fiji. According to UN Women’s Global Database on Violence against Women, almost 2 out of 3 women aged 18-64 in Fiji have experienced physical or sexual violence from their intimate partner – almost twice the global average.

Easter at home: celebrations still bring joy thanks to creative delivery

As Christians across the world prepare to celebrate Easter shuttered in their homes, they will still find the joy of the day and feel closer to each other, thanks to creative thinking by church leaders.

From including photos of church members within webcast worship services, to placing written greetings at doorways, Easter celebrations can still safely connect people who want to celebrate the resurrection of their common Lord.

Christian-Buddhist Conference in Germany

About 65 scholars of Buddhist-Christian relations gathered in St Ottilien, near Eresing, Germany for a conference to commemorate the 100th birth anniversary of Rev. Dr Lynn A. de Silva (1919-1982), a pioneer of Christian Buddhist dialogue. Organised by the European Network of Buddhist Christian Studies in association with the World Council of Churches (WCC), the conference focused on the theme “Buddhist-Christian Encounter – A Visionary Approach”.

Church of the Lord in Nigeria called women to pastoral work from its founding

The primate of The Church of the Lord, Aladura, Worldwide, an African initiated church founded in 1925 talks with pride about how the founder had a calling from God to have women serving with men in pastoral work. Primate Rev. Dr Rufus Okikiolaolu Ositelu, metropolitan archbishop of the church visited Geneva and the WCC on 29-30 January.

#WCC70: A story of how we meet together

The adoption of consensus decision-making for WCC meetings was proposed in 2002. Dr Jill Tabart of the Uniting Church in Australia was consensus mentor as these new meeting procedures were introduced at the 9th Assembly and beyond.

Nobel winners plan next steps for banning nuclear weapons

ICAN campaigners in Oslo for the Nobel Peace Prize award were busy the day before planning for what comes next. ”Tomorrow we will have to be silent so let’s make a lot of noise today,” a facilitator told some 150 activists and supporters of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.

“I can do things better back home”

For April Robinson, hopping in a bus with 35 other Christians from across Asia – from Pakistan, to Japan, to New Zealand – and travelling four hours to West Java, Indonesia to meet with interfaith activists brought just the perspective she needed to deepen and bolster her interfaith work back home in Melbourne, Australia.