The Prophetic Witness for Life, Justice, and Peace Conference and Seminars concluded in Johannesburg on 16 June, marking a moment of reawakening and recommitment for church leaders and partners across southern Africa. Participants pledged to transform the insights and prophetic calling of their gathering into tangible action within their congregations, communities, and countries.
In January 2025, I spent time with churches in Bolivia making an appeal for the church to become a healing community. For countries like Bolivia, with several health problems and lack of access to basic healthcare needs, the divine calling and pastoral care mandate for health and healing is unavoidable.
As nearly 500 people gathered in-person and online for the 11th Annual Symposium on the Role of Religion and Faith-Based Organizations in International Affairs, they spoke of “finding the sun”—a symbol of a future that is both possible and profoundly just—together.
As part of his visit to India from 8 to 14 February, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay visited diaconal and educational work of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church and led two Bible study sessions at the Maramon Convention.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) received Finnish ambassador Jan Wahlberg to discuss peace-building, with a special focus on Colombia, the Middle East, and Africa. WCC staff and Wahlberg also reflected together on inter-religious dialogue, climate justice, and mental health.
The mountaintop is a holy place. The valleys below are distant, and the weight of daily life feels momentarily lifted. In scripture, it’s where humanity and the divine meet: Moses conversed with God amidst fire and cloud on Sinai; Elijah heard the still small voice on Horeb; Jesus transfigured in the presence of his disciples, his face shining like the sun.
On the 50th anniversary of the 1973 Chilean military coup, Marta Palma, former staff of the World Council of Churches (WCC), remembers the WCC’s extensive support for Chilean churches and communities during one of the darkest periods in the nation’s history.
As interfaith leaders and diverse communities gathered in Zambia from 25-27 November, they emerged with the clear message that providing correct information about HIV is a crucial role for churches.
Director of the World Council of Churches Commission of the Churches on Health and Healing Dr Manoj Kurian addressed the Conference on Pastoral Psychiatry in Moscow, which gathered 22-23 November.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) shared insights with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN) on 21 November, with Dr Manoj Kurian, director of the WCC Commission of the Churches on Health and Healing, offering an online half-day session addressing mental health awareness and the impact of trauma on mental health.
Report of the WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay at the WCC executive committee meeting convening in Paralimni, Cyprus, 21-26 November 2024.
The World Council of Churches in partnership with the Christian Conference of Asia organised a conference in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from 14-16 November, on “Reversing the HIV Epidemic in Asia: Faith-Based Engagements.”
The World Council of Churches (WCC), in collaboration with UNAIDS and national resource persons, conducted capacity-building programs on HIV, mental health, and human rights during the annual youth assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia from 31 October to 3 November in Ondangwa. Nearly 500 youth participated in the assembly.
