People attending the Global Christian Forum heard the words of World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay on the opening day of its fourth global gathering, held this week in Accra, Ghana, under the theme "That the World May Know.”
Churches and Christian communities worldwide are invited to use the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2025 resources to pray together for the unity among churches throughout the year.
World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay extended birthday greetings to Bishop Brian Farrell, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, commending Farrell for more than two decades of service with the dicastery and congratulating him on his retirement.
Twenty-four students and seven teachers from the Focolare Movement joined the World Council of Churches (WCC) for Ash Wednesday prayer services, and for an introduction to the ecumenical movement.
In an annual audience during the ongoing Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Bishop Bo-Göran Åstrand of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland gifted a pair of gloves to Pope Francis, described as “a modest gift, to warm the Pope’s hands in an otherwise cold world.”
As the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity opened on 18 January, a special prayer held at the Ecumenical Centre and online delved deeply into questions about love for our neighbor.
The world’s largest prayer gathering—the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity—is set to open with an array of inspiring resources, from liturgical materials to colorful social media cards.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) is planning a World Conference on Faith and Order in 2025 to mark the 1700th anniversary of the first Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in 325, a key moment in the history of Christian faith and for the ecumenical journey today.
Who could have been the author of a paper on the relation of prayer to Christian unity published by the movement for a world conference on Faith and Order in its early years?
An ecumenical team from Burkina Faso facilitated by the local Chemin Neuf Community has been the convener for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2024 drafting group. The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Vatican have now published the material in several languages.
A World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation led by WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Pillay visited New York City and Washington, DC this week, meeting with United Nations representatives, the Papal Nuncio, the National Council of Churches in North America, other church leaders, and ecumenical organizations and state officials.
A World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation, led by WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, is visiting the USA this week, traveling to New York City as well as Washington, D.C. to bring together ecumenical leadership.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) has remembered the contribution of the Rev. Dr Reinhard Groscurth, who served the council’s secretariat on Faith and Order, and was the editor of many publications on the ecumenical movement and church unity.
As churches in the southern hemisphere closed the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on 28 May, they brought final reflections to this year’s theme of “Do good; seek justice (Isaiah 1:17).”
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is celebrated in the southern hemisphere from 21-28 May. Below, Rev. Canon Michael Wallace, vicar for the Dunedin North Anglican Parish Te Pāriha o Ōtepoti ki te Raki, reflects on his hopes for observing the special week in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Churches in the southern hemisphere will observe the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on 21-28 May, the week between Ascension and Pentecost. This year’s theme is “Do good; seek justice (Isaiah 1:17).”
Rev. Dr Odair Pedroso Mateus began to teach at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute in 2004 and joined the World Council of Churches (WCC) in 2007. Most recently he served as WCC interim deputy general secretary and Faith and Order director. Below, he reflects on his fondest memories, accomplishments, and hopes.