The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) met on 25 August in Geneva to explore and discuss possible areas of future cooperation.

The two organizations shared current plans and discussed possibilities for closer collaboration on thematic areas such as advocacy and peace building, the climate emergency, and membership matters.

The WEA is a network of churches in 143 nations that have joined to give a worldwide identity, voice and platform to more than 600 million evangelical Christians.

The WEA has six programmatic departments: Global Advocacy, Global Theology, Global Witness, Alliance Engagement, Church Engagement, and Public Engagement.
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The leadership and representatives of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) and the World Council of Churches (WCC) met in the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey, Switzerland to explore and discuss possible areas of future cooperation.

The 20 May meeting featured introductions to the work of the WEA and the WCC, and participants reflected together on current developments in society and churches, and on evangelical and ecumenical movements. The WCC general secretary and WEA secretary general took part.

The two organizations shared current plans and discussed possibilities for closer collaboration on thematic areas such as “public witness and peace-building in inter-religious contexts” and “theological reflection, education and formation.”

This was the second meeting with the leadership and representatives, although it was the first meeting with both heads of the organizations present and where perceptions about both the WEA and WCC were discussed.
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An international Evangelical-Roman Catholic consultation will meet in Saskatoon Aug. 31 to Sept. 4, offering the public a rare chance to learn more about the international dialogue process, and the relationship between Catholic and Evangelical Christians around the world.

The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) and the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity convened this round of international consultation in 2009. The group of 14 theologians, pastors and other leaders from Brazil, Columbia, the Philippines, Guatemala, Kenya, Spain, Italy, Germany, the United States and Canada have been discussing challenging issues that have divided Catholics and Evangelicals, including the relationship between scripture and tradition, and the role of the church in salvation.

At the international level, there have been two earlier phases of dialogue between Roman Catholics and Evangelicals. The first phase resulted in the 1984 report Evangelical-Roman Catholic Dialogue on Mission. The broad focus of the report was on the Christian mission, but it included initial treatment of a variety of theological points of tension, including the scriptures, salvation, the church, Mary and the saints, and the sacraments. A second phase of dialogue (1993- 2002) produced a report entitled Church, Evangelization and the Bonds of Koinonia.

The current round of international consultation has held meetings in São Paulo, Brazil (2009); Rome, Italy (2011); Wheaton/Chicago, USA (2012); Guatemala City, Guatemala (2013); Bad Blankenburg, Germany (2014), and finally this year’s gathering in Saskatoon.
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In the light of current global realities, representatives of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) and the World Council of Churches (WCC) met from 20 to 21 January at the Chateau of Bossey, Switzerland to explore and discuss possible areas of future cooperation. The meeting featured introductions to the work of the WEA and the WCC, and participants reflected together on current developments in society and churches, and in evangelical and ecumenical movements. They shared current plans and discussed possibilities for closer collaboration. Stressing the significance of being Christian witnesses, the meeting participants also identified various ways of responding together to the needs of communities around the world. Together the participants read the Scriptures and reflected on similar and different understandings of mission and evangelism. They prayed together and shared stories of faith. Recognizing the importance of a joint response to a suffering world, the participants agreed to continue to meet in order to identify further areas of possible cooperation.
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Discrimination, persecution and violence against Christians and churches around the world is set for further exposure after a group representing high profile Christian churches and organizations agreed to pursue together an international response on the issue.

A meeting convened by the Global Christian Forum in Strasbourg, France, including representatives from the Vatican, the World Council of Churches, the World Evangelical Alliance and the Pentecostal World Fellowship, agreed on 9 September to press ahead with a global gathering on the issue of ‘Christian discrimination, persecution and martyrdom’ for late 2015.
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During his visit with an evangelical pastor and his congregation in the Italian city of Caserta, Pope Francis apologized for the persecution of Pentecostal Christians by Italian Catholics. His remarks were greatly welcomed by evangelical leaders, who responded in a similar way. They also apologized to Catholics. The president of the World Evangelical Alliance, Rev. Geoff Tunnicliffe, said he was sorry about the discrimination that Protestants, including Evangelical Christians, also imposed on Catholics. “While we can disagree theologically, this should never lead to discrimination or persecution of the other,” he said. The Rev also added that the Pope’s step in apologizing is a great example, and should be a message to the entire world, especially for those countries where tensions between Catholics and Protestants remain. Geoff Tunnicliffe attended the Pope’s Inauguration Mass. He also visited the Vatican for the Pope’s meeting with evangelical leaders at Casa Santa Marta. The World Evangelical Alliance represents about 600 million Protestants in nearly 130 countries.
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Pope Francis has taken the first steps towards forging unprecedented bonds with evangelical and charismatic Protestant groups, CCN has learned. The Pope met for three hours June 24 with several evangelical and charismatic leaders over lunch at his residence inside the Vatican. Occurring outside of the Pope’s official schedule, the meeting had no formal agenda or secretaries present. Bishop Tony Palmer, ecumenical officer of the Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches (CEEC), said the meeting could lead towards concrete steps for a visible unity after 500 years of division. Following a discussion about religious persecution and religious liberty, the Pope and his guests discussed the creation of a global initiative specifically for the persecuted Church, according to Brian Stiller, global ambassador for the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA). In a report for Revival Magazine, Bruno Ierullo, co-chairman of United in Christ North America, who did not attend the meeting, said it marked “the beginning of a Joint Declaration between this large faction of the Evangelical world and the Roman Catholic Church.” United in Christ promotes ongoing dialogue between emerging charismatic churches and the Roman Catholic Church.
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Evangelism is the proclamation in word, deed and Christian character of the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross and through the resurrection. Evangelism lies at the core of the identity of being evangelical. We affirm that it is not possible to be truly evangelical without a radical commitment to world evangelisation; indeed, such a commitment is inherent to Christian identity itself. Evangelism is one of the three central characteristics of evangelicalism, based on the understanding that Jesus Christ is the unique Saviour of humanity and Lord of all creation and that the Scriptures are the ultimate authority in all matters of faith and conduct.

The WEA calls on all evangelicals and Christians worldwide to renew their commitment to holistic evangelism. By this we emphasize the connection between proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ in word and practicing it in our actions: both are necessary for the integrity of the gospel. Furthermore, personal conversion must result in the growth of Christian character and witness.

As with all Christian traditions, there have been times when mistakes have been made and evangelicals have struggled to link the proclamation of the gospel with acts of justice and peace. Yet in our history there have been many strong voices and lives that exemplify the holistic nature of evangelism. People such as Wesley, Wilberforce, Shaftesbury, Lester, Bediako, Kitamori, Adeyemo, Stott, Escobar and Padilla have all shown deep personal commitment to social action and individual transformation.
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Churches in Canada addressed challenging questions, with a strong interfaith perspective, while responding to the document “Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Guidelines for Conduct” in an event held at the University of Toronto on 22 November.

The document “Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Guidelines for Conduct” was launched by the World Council of Churches (WCC), the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and the World Evangelical Alliance in June. It was commended to the churches for reflections in their own particular contexts.
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Berlin Declaration on the Uniqueness of Christ and Jewish Evangelism

World Evangelical Alliance Theological Commission issues statement on Jewish Evangelism

A declaration calling for “Renewed commitment to the task of Jewish evangelism” and “Recognition of the uniqueness of Christ as the crucified, resurrected and divine Messiah who alone can save from death and bring eternal life” has been issued by the WEA Theological Commission. “The Berlin Declaration on the Uniqueness of Christ and Jewish Evangelism in Europe Today” was developed by a task force of the Theological Commission at a consultation in Berlin, Germany August 18-22, 2008. The 1200 word statement also calls for reconciliation and unity amongst believers in Jesus, respect for religious conviction and liberty that allows frank discussion of religious claims and repentance from all expressions of anti-Semitism and all other forms of genocide, prejudice and discrimination.

The consultation, which was five years in planning, was called to address current concerns about the necessity and theological basis for Jewish evangelism especially in the setting of Germany and Europe as a whole. It involved 12 scholars from the Theological Commission, key seminaries and other organisations. It also included practitioners engaged in ministry amongst Jewish people, and Christians from Germany and Messianic Jews. A total of 13 papers were presented covering biblical, theological and practical matters which provided the background for the Declaration. A spokesman for the TC said that plans are in hand for the publication of the papers as an additional resource for those interested.

The Berlin Declaration 2008 follows in the wake of earlier documents produced by the WEA on Jewish evangelism. The first was the Willowbank Declaration of 1989 which was hailed at the time as a decisive statement and continues to be referred to as a landmark document. The second was a brief statement reinforcing the validity and importance of Jewish evangelism which appeared in the New York Times in 2008, with 54 signatures (and more endorsements later). TC Executive Director, Dr David Parker, said, “With the background of Willowbank and the NYT statement, it is our prayer that the Berlin Declaration 2008 will prove to be equally useful in supporting the work of taking the gospel “to the Jew first” and also the rest of the world. We believe the European setting of our statement is particularly significant.

We hope that this declaration will encourage many Christians to see the importance and biblical warrant for this important ministry. We would like to see the Berlin Declaration 2008 circulated as widely as possible amongst those who are engaged in and interested in this ministry.”
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Evangelical theology stresses the importance of a personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ and sees the transformation of individuals as an important part of the transformation of the world. However, the notion of a purely privatized faith in which the gospel only affects individual, personal or family life but has no wider implications for society must be rejected as inadequate.
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(Prague, République tchèque — WEA/APD) Des représentants de l’Eglise adventiste du septième jour au niveau mondial et de l’Alliance Mondiale Évangélique (WEA) se sont rencontrés pour un dialogue du 8 au 11 août 2006 sur le campus du Séminaire baptiste international, situé à Prague, République tchèque. Bien que des contacts informels aient eu lieu au cours des 50 dernières années, c’était la première rencontre officielle de ces deux groupes. Les objectifs de ce dialogue étaient : d’arriver à une compréhension plus claire despositions théologiques de chacun de ces groupes ; de clarifier des malentendus ; de discuter avec franchise et sur une base biblique les points d’accord et de désaccord ; et d’explorer des domaines possibles de collaboration.
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Representatives of the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church and the World Evangelical Alliance met in dialogue August 8-11, 2006 on the campus of the International Baptist Theological Seminary, located in Prague, Czech Republic. Although informal contacts had occurred during the past 50 years, this was the first official meeting of the two groups. The purposes of the dialogue were to gain a clearer understanding of the theological positions of each body; to clarify matters of misunderstanding; to discuss frankly areas of agreement and disagreement on a Biblical basis; and to explore possible areas of cooperation.
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If believers are to follow Jesus, they must work and pray for Christian unity. But unity means vastly different things, and some efforts toward unity are more faithful to the biblical vision than others.

In May of 2001, I went to Malaysia to attend the General Assembly of the World Evangelical Fellowship (since renamed the World Evangelical Alliance, or WEA). In December 1998 I attended the General Assembly of the World Council of Churches in Zimbabwe. What I saw in these very different meetings helps us think about cohesion and cooperation between Christians—about our participation in global, national, and even local efforts at “being one.”
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1. A theological consultation between Evangelicals and Catholics took place from 7-13 November 1999. Jointly sponsored by the World Evangelical Fellowship‘s Theological Commission and the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, the meeting took place at the George Williams Campus of Aurora University, Williams Bay, Wisconsin, USA. It followed on from two previous consultations between WEF and Catholic Church representatives, held in 1993 in Venice, Italy and in 1997 at the Tantur Ecumenical Institute near Jerusalem. [Note: The World Evangelical Fellowship (WEF) changed its name to World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) in 2000.]

2. The Williams Bay meeting sought to deepen mutual understanding and respect between Evangelicals and Catholics, using the occasion to hear how each understood one another’s traditions, convictions and concerns. More particularly its aim was to face misunderstandings that put stumbling blocks in the way of the Good News being proclaimed and heard.

Four papers were prepared for the consultation. On the theme of koinonia (fellowship or communion) two papers were discussed: “An Evangelical Perspective on Church Koinonia” by Henri Blocher and “The Church as Communion: A Catholic Perspective,” by Avery Dulles. Later discussion of evangelization and common witness and their difficulties began on the basis of a paper by M. Daniel Carroll R., “The Evangelical-Roman Catholic Dialogue: Issues Revolving around Evangelization. A View from Latin America” and one by Thomas Stransky, “Religious Freedom, Christian Witness and Proselytism.”
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In 1993 there was a first meeting in Venice (Italy) for conversations between Evangelical and Roman Catholic representatives, co-sponsored by the World Evangelical Fellowship and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. The themes were Justification, Scripture and Tradition. As a follow up to it, a second meeting for conversations was held in the Ecumenical Institute of Tantur (Jerusalem), October 12-19, 1997. Participants represented different regions of the world and a variety of Christian ministries.

The main themes for these conversations — agreed upon during the Venice meeting — were issues related to the nature and mission of the Church. Representatives of each tradition presented a paper on each theme. The discussion that followed evidenced a spirit of mutual acceptance and disposition to listen to one another and pray together.

From the discussions, some points of agreement emerged, as well as areas that demand more reflection and theological work. It was felt that it is still too early to present an elaborate document. We therefore limit ourselves to list the main points on which we have come to a common understanding as well as the points that we would suggest as an agenda for the future conversations between the World Evangelical Fellowship and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, if both partners agree to do so.
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