The newly-appointed WCC Faith and Order Commission met face-to-face for the first time to plan its next eight years of work. Theologians from all continents gathered in Tondano, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, hosted by the Indonesian Communion of Churches.
No holidays for William Temple, Archbishop of York, early in August 1937. The ecumenical movement for the social responsibility of the churches, known as “Life and Work,” had just held its world conference in Oxford, 12-26 July, with the church struggle against emerging totalitarian states at the heart of its theme and work. Temple had drafted the final message of the conference, known for the motto “let the Church be the Church.”
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.
A compilation of the most-read stories published by the World Council of Churches (WCC) reveals a global fellowship focused on a better future even amid the grave challenges the world faced during 2021.
It’s 70 years since the World Council of Churches was founded in Amsterdam on 23 August. In addition to a commemoration service in Amsterdam on 23 August, the WCC, its member churches and partners are planning a variety of events to move forward on our ongoing Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace, and at the same time honour and learn from these 70 years of ecumenical endeavour. Dr Abuom, from the Anglican Church of Kenya, is the moderator of the WCC Central Committee. She is the first woman and the first African in the position in WCC’s history. In an interview, she reflects on the evolution of the WCC in the past 70 years.
Church and political leaders have marked the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s Reformation in Wittenberg, Germany where on 31 October 1517 he published his 95 Theses denouncing church abuses.