Joint Consultative Group between the WCC and Pentecostals

Many of the churches that have not traditionally been involved with the ecumenical movement or the World Council of Churches (WCC) are related to the Pentecostal or evangelical traditions or counted among African-instituted churches and other independent churches. These churches share specific theological emphases and understandings of scripture, along with their vitality and rapid growth.

The Joint Consultative Group between the WCC and Pentecostals was created following a decision of the WCC Assembly in Harare 1998, in order to search for better ways of understanding one another, to look for new opportunities for mutual learning and action, and to share experiences of Christian witness.

The first two rounds of consultation, reporting to the WCC Porto Alegre Assembly in 2006 and the Busan Assembly in 2013, focussed on a convergence agenda – addressing the nature of the church.

For its third round of dialogue, leading up to the 11th Assembly at Karlsruhe in 2021, the group determined that a study of discipleship and formation would allow the group to move to a learning agenda in which an exchange of models can strengthen the churches’ witness in the world.

The Joint Consultative Group is comprised of eight members representing the WCC constituency (from member churches belonging to different traditions or confessions) and eight representing Pentecostal churches that are not members of the WCC. Group nominations also seek diversity in terms of regional, gender, age and ordination status.