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The Kanak concept of “Do Kamo: the authentic human in a permanent becoming”, emphasizes that true human nature is not a fixed state—not something one is born with, but rather an ongoing process of maturation. This is a metaphor for personal growth and transformation, as individuals let go of their past selves and embrace their true identities. This transformation symbolizes shedding our primitive natures and embracing the qualities and potentials of a Do Kamo.

In my reflection for this blog on 25 September 2023, I shared with you news about the 1500th Centennial Jubilee of Mor Philoxinous of Mabough. I would like to detail some activities that took place at the Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch during 2023 in honour of this great saint Mor Philoxinous of Mabough. 

In the academic year of 2023-24, students from the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey experienced a transformative and historic visit to Rome, graciously hosted by the Roman Catholic Church's Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity. This pilgrimage became a pivotal chapter in our lives, revealing abject insights into the significance of ecumenism as a catalyst for fostering unity among Christians.

I remember how it felt. The slightly unreal feeling when I was asked if I could be part of the delegation that would visit Rome and the Pope during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

On a recent morning walk right before dawn, I could still see the stars. I saw the Polaris Star, or North Star, which is the brightest star in its constellation. It reminded me of the Underground Railroad and the network of people in North America who led Black people from southern bondage to northern freedom by following the North Star. 

What an incredible time to be living in! While skepticism and eco-anxiety tend to be the results we most see nowadays as we grow aware of the dimensions of the climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity and the socio-environmental crisis, for me I can't help but feel the daring and stubborn Christian hope as I grow increasingly committed to ecumenical care for creation. 

A reflection originally shared at the "Working Together" meeting between the World Council of Churches and specialized ministries, convened 3-4 May in Bossey, Switzerland. 

Is not this the fast that I choose:

to loose the bonds of injustice,

to undo the thongs of the yoke,

to let the oppressed go free,

and to break every yoke?

Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,

and bring the homeless poor into your house;

when you see the naked, to cover them,

and not to hide yourself from your own kin? - Isaiah 58:6-7

To understand Isaiah’s message about true and false fasting, let’s take a minute to remind ourselves of the role and intention of fasting in the context of our Christian faith. This is vital, as fasting is one of the spiritual disciplines in the Christian faith that is no longer practised universally.

As many celebrate Valentine’s Day, the WCC invited reflections on the power of love. Below are four reflections, all from people somehow involved in or leading, in their local contexts, a Thursdays in Black campaign for a world free from rape and violence. They share the joys, the pain, and the ever-changing perspective on what love is—and what it can become.

On the occasion of the upcoming World Interfaith Harmony Week 2023, which is observed annually from 1-7 February at the United Nations, my thought goes to the urgent call for biodiversity protection from the COP15 held in Montreal, from 7-19 December 2022.

Permacrisis—defined as "an extended period of instability and insecurity”—has been chosen as Collins Dictionary's word for the year 2022. It is a depressingly accurate word encapsulating what the world is experiencing as we move into 2023.

At the meeting for Bossey alumni, I represented the “oldest” alumna of the 1978/79 term, and it was good to see what a chance Bossey studies and encounters not only continue to give but increase for further ecumenical involvement and for carrying ecumenical messages. Today the studies at Bossey are well institutionalized and established at the University of Geneva. My own former classmates were not present as alumni: The Methodist Bishop Sally Dyck (USA) is again represented in the WCC central committee and was busy at that moment.

As a Pentecostal, I have “dreamed dreams” and had visions aplenty, but often it has been the WCC that brought those dreams and visions to life. What is found in this report fulfills a vision that I took with me to Geneva in 1989 in a meeting with then-general secretary Emilio Castro. During that visit, I called on the WCC to bring together 120 Pentecostal scholars from around the world to the WCC 7th Assembly known as Canberra ’91.

It was one of the first days of the 11th assembly when I met an old Bossey friend. We had not seen each other for 24 years, although it felt we met yesterday. We shared memories of our Graduate School of Ecumenical Studies in Bossey in 1998 and remembered the names of our friends. We spoke about Bossey as a life-changing experience for both of us.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) was able to gather believers from different parts of the world for its 11th assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany. The assembly proved to be one of love and unity.

From the gateway to the eastern Mediterranean and its pearl, Beirut, an ecumenical delegation came to the Middle East in order to visit spiritual leaders who historically constituted the pillars of ecumenical work.