The World Council of Churches (WCC) has strongly criticised the G8 proposals for solving the debt crisis in a statement released during a press conference here on Wednesday, June 9. In the statement, WCC general secretary Konrad Raiser with Sam Kobia, director of the WCC cluster “Issues and Themes” called on G8 leaders to adopt a more radical approach at their meeting beginning in Cologne, Germany, on June 18. … Read more »… À suivre »
When theologians from nearly all Christian traditions – Protestant, Orthodox and Roman Catholic – and more than 20 nations gather in Toronto this month, they hope to shed some light on some of the oldest and most difficult issues facing the church of Jesus Christ.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Faith and Order Standing Commission will meet June 15-24 on the campus of Emmanuel College to explore such issues as the nature of the church, different understandings of baptism, how ethnic and national identities relate to the universal Christian faith, and who may be ordained to the ministry of the church.
The WCC‘s 336 member churches confess a common faith in Jesus Christ as Son of God and Saviour, and testify together to the Holy Trinity of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They are united in their commitment to proclaim Christ’s gospel to all, and to work for God’s justice and reconciliation in the world. … Read more »… À suivre »
[WCC News] The Special Commission on Orthodox participation in the World Council of Churches (WCC) will meet from 6 to 8 December in Morges, on Lac Léman, Switzerland. At its inaugural meeting the Commission will deal chiefly with matters of planning and procedure for the series of its Protestant-Orthodox discussions to be held over the … Read more »… À suivre »
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pe 1:3). Christ is Risen! This year this joyful exclamation will be simultaneously pronounced by … Read more »… À suivre »
WCC Press Release In an Easter message to member churches, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia expresses his hope that “Christians throughout the world will join in prayer and celebration” as they celebrate Easter on the same date this year, an occurrence he considers a “real gift and blessing”. Though … Read more »… À suivre »
WCC News flash What should we do after seeing Mel Gibson’s film ‘The Passion of Christ’? That is the question being asked by Rev. Dr Hans Ucko, who specializes in Christian-Jewish dialogue at the World Council of Churches. He discusses the impact of our reactions to this controversial film in an opinion piece published in … Read more »… À suivre »
Now available in electronic and printed format, the WCC Annual Review 2005 is an illustrated account of WCC programmes and activities over the year. The Annual Review also contains key information on WCC member churches, governing bodies, finances, publications and other resources. … Read more »… À suivre »
Church leaders and inter-church organizations around the world have been speaking out about the current crisis in the Middle East, and despite differences in perspective, are urging an immediate ceasefire. … Read more »… À suivre »
“Why such awful destruction?” was the question heard over and over again by members of an ecumenical pastoral delegation in relation to Israel’s attacks on Lebanon.
“Pourquoi une destruction si épouvantable?” C’est la question que les membres d’une délégation pastorale œcuménique n’ont cessé d’entendre à propos des attaques israéliennes contre le Liban.
Chargée par le Conseil œcuménique des Eglises (COE), la Conférence des Eglises européennes (KEK), la Fédération luthérienne mondiale (FLM) et l’Alliance réformée mondiale (ARM) d’exprimer la solidarité du monde œcuménique envers les Eglises et les populations touchées par le conflit au Moyen Orient, la délégation est rentrée avec pour mandat de transmettre à la famille œcuménique internationale les espoirs et les attentes des Eglises du Liban, de Palestine et d’Israël. … Read more »… À suivre »
[WCC News] The newly-elected moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee speaks in this interview about the beauty of the ecumenical vision and the enthusiasm it engenders, the scandal of divisions between Christians, and his dream of churches which allow themselves to be renewed so as to experience the unity of the … Read more »… À suivre »
The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) is ready to join the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Vatican in supporting a code of conduct to guide activities seeking converts to Christianity. … Read more »… À suivre »
A unique gathering of high level church leaders to start Tuesday, 6 November near Nairobi, Kenya, features the broadest range of Christian traditions ever represented at a global meeting, allowing for a discussion of unprecedented ecumenical breadth on what Christians are called to do – together if possible – in the world today.
The 6-9 November gathering, called the Global Christian Forum, brings together about 250 high level representatives of all the main Christian traditions and of their global organizations at the Jumuia Conference Centre in Limuru, near Nairobi.
The Forum’s stated purpose is to create a new, open space in which a broad range of Christian churches and interchurch organizations can gather in a multilateral setting to foster mutual respect and explore and address together common challenges. It aims to include all streams of Christianity, including those which have not been in conversation with one another. In Limuru about half of the participants will be Evangelicals and Pentecostals.
Over four days, with the theme “Our Journey with Jesus Christ, the Reconciler,” participants will discuss how best to promote dialogue and co-operation on issues of Christian unity and common witness to the world. They will debate proposals for the future of the Forum, and it is hoped that a “Letter to the Churches” will summarize the results of the meeting. … Read more »… À suivre »
“Church unity is like riding a bicycle. We will fall unless we go forward.” This affirmation was posed as a challenge by Korean missiologist Wonsuk Ma to participants at the Global Christian Forum taking place on 6-9 November in Limuru, near Nairobi, Kenya.
In a keynote address delivered on the second day of the forum, Ma analyzed Christian developments in unity and mission over the last century. He affirmed that in Christian mission, the seemingly contradictory emphases on “life before death” and on “life after death” – which have separated “mainline” and “evangelical” Christians for decades – are actually complementary and in need of each other.
Read the complete article on Dr. Ma’s address to the Global Christian Forum on our website. … Read more »… À suivre »
Pentecostal theologian and scholar Cheryl Bridges-Johns proposed a radical reinvention of the ecumenical movement in a keynote address delivered on the third day of the Global Christian Forum which takes place 6-9 November in Limuru, near Nairobi, Kenya.
Bridges-Johns, a professor at the Theological Seminary of the Church of God in Cleveland (Tennessee), US, sparked a vivid discussion with her lecture, which elaborated on a statement from the 1961 New Delhi assembly of the World Council of Churches: “the achievement of unity will involve nothing less than a death and rebirth of many forms of church life as we have known them”.
Read the complete article for further details of Prof. Bridges-Johns’ address, as well as links to additional resources on the Global Christian Forum. … Read more »… À suivre »
Designer babies, nanotechnology, and genetically modified crops were a few of the topics covered at a Dec. 2-5 consultation in Johannesburg, SA. The Global Consultation for Genetics, New Biotechnologies, and the Ministry of the Church gathered 45 church representatives, scientists, young people, indigenous people, disabled people, and theologians to talk about biotechnology, defined as the industrial use of microorganisms or biological substances. … Read more »… À suivre »
Although prayer is certainly at the heart of Christian life, praying together is not an easy exercise for churches within worldwide Christendom. Even today, common prayers are exceptional events rather than part of the daily life of the churches. But at least once a year it has become “normal” for many churches and congregations to pray together during the annual celebration of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. In 2008, the 100th anniversary of this most meaningful ecumenical initiative is being celebrated around the globe. … Read more »… À suivre »
[WCC News] A number of major international Christian youth movements and organizations called for stronger efforts towards unity in a joint statement issued on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Addressed to the heads of the Roman Catholic Church, the World Council of Churches, Christian World Communions and Regional Ecumenical Organizations, the statement asks them to “share ecumenical dialogue with young people” and expresses the commitment of the signatories to “raise awareness of the importance of Christian unity among young people”. … Read more »… À suivre »
Bossey totem pole returned to the earth
[WCC News] After 25 years standing vigil at the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey, a totem pole was returned to the soils of the earth Sunday at a ceremony attended by many of those taking part in this week’s Central Committee meetings.
The totem was presented as a gift of the churches of Canada at the WCC‘s Sixth Assembly, held in Vancouver, as a way to raise the profile of indigenous people. Time and weather took its toll on the nearly 50 foot-tall totem since its placement at Bossey, and it had become unstable.
Following advice from the First Nations of Canada, the WCC decided to hold a respectful ceremony to remember the gift and the work of those who carved it. Rev. Carmen Lansdowne, a Central Committee member from the United Church of Canada and member of the indigenous people of western Canada, was asked to lead the ceremony. A small, permanent display will continue to tell the totem’s story. … Read more »… À suivre »
Orthodox women: church participation improved but concerns remain
[WCC News] Over the last decade, Orthodox women reached significant milestones regarding their participation in church life, but many of their concerns have not yet been fully addressed, an international gathering of Orthodox women stated.
A long decade has passed since the last inter-Orthodox women’s consultation took place in Istanbul, Turkey in 1997. In the intervening years, the participation of Orthodox women in the life of the church has improved. Significant milestones range from the recognition of women’s issues by church structures to women’s participation in some church ministries and decision-making processes.
Many of the concerns of women, however, have not yet been fully addressed within the life of the church. A list of them includes: access to and funding for theological studies and subsequent employment opportunities within the church; supporting and equipping women for pastoral care and other church ministries; broader participation in church decision-making processes; taking a new look at prayers and practices associated with women’s biology.
These were amongst the main findings of a five-day long consultation, which brought together some 45 women from Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and North America. Meeting from 8-12 June in Volos, Greece, they discussed the participation, ministry and concerns of Orthodox women in the church and in the ecumenical movement.
Participants at the consultation recommended undertaking a full assessment of the current situation and needs of Orthodox women, given the many changes that have taken place over the last decade, as well as the development of a framework for future action. “We see the need to identify, together with our church leadership, the ways and instruments to implement decisions and recommendations of women’s consultations in our churches”, the participants stated in a report on the deliberations.
The consultation took place at the Volos Academy for Theological Studies and was sponsored by the World Council of Churches Programme for Women in Church and Society and hosted by the Diocese of Dimitrias.
Resources
• Full text of the Report of the Inter-Orthodox Consultation
• WCC Programme for Women in Church and Society
• Diocese of Dimitrias, Church of Greece (in Greek)
• Volos Academy for Theological Studies (partially in Greek) … Read more »… À suivre »
Read the 2015 joint statement of the Evangelical-Roman Catholic dialogue in Saskatoon, Called to Common Witness
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“Why such awful destruction?” was the question heard over and over again by members of an ecumenical pastoral delegation in relation to Israel’s attacks on Lebanon.