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The Watchword for the week: Jesus says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.” Revelation 21:6 This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. We […]

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is mourning the loss and celebrating the life of Dr Thomas Wieser, a member of the United Presbyterian Church in the US, who was originally from Basel, Switzerland.

[Church of England and the Scottish Episcopal Church] A group of Church of England bishops, as well as the primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, have joined Jewish, Muslim and other Christian leaders in signing a joint letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling for a more compassionate and respectful tone in the national conversation around migration after he announced plans to reduce immigration to the U.K. The letter, coordinated by HIAS+JCORE, a United Kingdom-based Jewish organization that advocates for racial justice and refugee rights, expresses deep concern that current political rhetoric risks “strengthening those who would divide us” and undermines the U.K.’s proud tradition of offering sanctuary to those in need. Fifteen Church of England bishops signed, representing the dioceses of Bristol, Chelmsford, Gloucester, Guildford, Leeds, Leicester, Lichfield, Lincoln, London, Manchester, St. Albans, Sheffield, Shrewsbury, Southwark and Winchester. Scottish Primus Mark Strange said, “I back the call in this letter for the Government to ‘affirm those things that would bring us together.’ To govern is to choose, and this government has a responsibility to choose ‘fair policies that balance the needs of host communities with real opportunities for people restarting their lives after fleeing war, conflict and persecution.'” While acknowledging public concerns around migration, the signatories stress the need for a response that is “principled and lowers the temperature of the debate, respecting the dignity of all who make up our nation.” The full text of the letter is available here.

As Pope Leo XIV presided over the Mass of Inauguration on 18 May, he urged the world to walk toward God and to love one another—a message that resonated deeply with the World Council of Churches (WCC) leaders who attended the mass as well as a private ecumenical audience with Pope Leo on 19 May.

A webinar on 21 May, entitled “From Occupation to Annexation: Legal perspectives and the implications of current political realities for the occupied population,” will kick off a new World Council of Churches (WCC) campaign, “Stop annexation, end the occupation.”

On the occasion of the 140th anniversary of the 1884–85 Berlin Conference that institutionalized the colonial partitioning of Africa, former World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Konrad Raiser delivered opening remarks at a landmark ecumenical gathering in Berlin. 

Reports from the moderator and the director of the World Council of Churches Commission of the Churches on International Affairs summarized the history of the Conference on Life and Work and looked forward at the commission’s upcoming discussions of emerging global trends. 

A “Life and Work” centenary conference opened on 18 May in Athens, with participants seeking a fresh commitment to unity of the church and of all humanity.

The Universal House of Justice has announced plans for a new national Bahá’í temple to be established in the Philippines.

As the international conference “Berlin 1884–1885 and Anti-Black Racism: In Search of a Shared Anti-Racist Ecumenical Vision” opened on 18 May, those gathered in-person and online acknowledged that the deep wounds of colonialism carved 140 years ago are by no means healed.