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Staff Planning Days take place in March and October each year.
After each staff team was asked to review plans and priorities in response to questions issued by the WCC general secretary, the Staff Planning Days will allow staff to draw together in a Pilgrimage of Justice, Reconciliation, and Unity as a direction, an invitation, and a methodology to strengthen companionship and steer direction.
With a daily prayer and Bible studies, the WCC staff will experience a common spiritual journey with the start of Lent. Morning prayers will be preparation for International Women’s Day on 8 March with WCC’s ecumenical partners.
On 3 March, as part of the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle, the WCC prayed with and for the people and churches of the Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.
Rev Dr Hedda Klip, pastor of the Protestant Congregation in Voorhout, Netherlands, offered a reflection, from a Dutch perspective, on the upcoming World Day of Prayer, being held 7 March under the theme “I made you wonderful,” after Psalm 139:14. The materials were prepared by women from the Cook Islands.
There is hope in this psalm, Klip said. “There is no place in our soul, even in the deepest depression, where God can’t reach us, even though in such times it is hard to feel any light, any hope,” she said. “We are all connected to God, all the time, in our souls.”
As they continue their gathering this week, WCC staff will also share skills and knowledge to strengthen collaboration in their work, welcome new colleagues, and build community.
The agenda includes different “building blocks” – spiritual life, plenaries, workshops, and community building. Time is provided for teamwork and collaboration of departments.
A reflection to mark the start of Lent will be given by Rev. Dr Katrin Hildenbrand, pastor of the German Lutheran congregation in Geneva. On 6 March, sisters from the Grandchamp Community in Neuchatel will join the WCC staff for a pilgrimage encounter and prayer in the chapel of the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey.
