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The National Council of Churches in Korea, in its 2025 Easter prayer, expresses a vision of the whole world walking in the path of new life.

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, in a video message, invites all to support the vision for a common Easter date among Christians from all church traditions. 

In a message for Easter 2025, and on the second anniversary away from Episcopal Anglican Cathedral Khartoum due to the war in Sudan, Most Rev. Ezekiel Kondo, archbishop and bishop of Khartoum, reflected that many are celebrating Easter away from their loved ones. 

Dr Suhaila Tarazi, director of Al Ahli Arab Hospital (Ahli) in Gaza City, shared her reflections during Holy Week—the dire situations facing the patients, what gives her hope, and her Easter message to all people of goodwill across the world. 

A US District Court judge has denied a preliminary injunction motion in Mennonite USA v. DHS, the sensitive locations lawsuit in which the Church of the Brethren is one of 27 plaintiffs.

Rogelio Rivera, his wife Suyapa Villeda and their family have transformed their small farm, La Bendición, into a thriving, sustainable homestead in La Sierra, Honduras. Through the Produce Verde project, they’ve embraced new farming techniques, diversified their crops and shared resources to strengthen both their livelihood and their community.  Cultivating a Life Rooted in Gratitude and Hard Work  “Thank God ... Read More

Pedro Pablo Gutiérrez and his family have transformed their small farm in Las Varas, Honduras, into a thriving, self-sufficient homestead with the support of the Produce Verde project. Through teamwork, sustainable farming practices and community sharing, they’ve created a life rooted in resilience, health and generosity.  A Day in the Life on the Farm  Every morning, Pedro Pablo Gutiérrez begins ... Read More

[Melbourne Anglican]  Zaki Haidari was only 17 when he fled persecution in Afghanistan. He is now a refugee rights campaigner with Amnesty International Australia, a key contributor to Melbourne’s Palm Sunday March for Refugees. Zaki sought asylum by sea in 2012. He was trying to find a safe country. The Taliban was committing mass murders among the Hazara community to which Zaki belonged. Hazara voices were silenced, and there was no freedom of movement. “The decision wasn’t easy,” he said. “Leaving your country, your family and friends, the place you grew up.” On arriving in Australia, Zaki was denied work rights for three years. There was no funding for him to study or learn English. “It was a bit harsh on me being that age and not having any rights…rights I strongly believe every human being deserves, rights to education…to have freedom to find employment and sustain yourself,” he said. Zaki said refugees were required to sign a contract with the immigration department not to speak publicly about their experiences. He said this silencing was similar to the silencing of the Hazara people in Afghanistan. But Zaki chose to speak out. As a result, he received a scholarship to study English and went on to complete diplomas in information technology and graphic design. On a surprisingly warm Palm Sunday, masses of people gathered to march in support of asylum seekers like Zaki. Led across Princes Bridge by Riff Raff Marching Band, grandparents, students, children, and faith and community organizations made their voices heard, calling on Australia to welcome refugees with justice and kindness. Grandmothers for Refugees member Sue was thinking of the refugees stranded in Papua New Guinea. “They have done nothing wrong except claim refugee status,” she said. Medical Students for Refugees representatives Farah and Julia were marching to call out the poor healthcare available to refugees. “As future healthcare professionals we’re taught not to do any harm, and healthcare is a human right,” Farah said. “As medical students we’re here to rally for the rights of refugees.” Julia said they represented a body of medical students who supported health equity for all refugees and asylum seekers. St. Mary’s North Melbourne parishioner Michael said he believed in justice for refugees. “If you want to make things better…first you pray for it, and then you act on it,” he said. “That’s how prayer works.” The dean of Melbourne, the Very Rev. Andreas Loewe, reflected in his address to the march that St. Paul’s Cathedral’s commitment to welcoming refugees had transformed the community. “Our congregation grew more international, with members from across the globe, displaced people, migrants, those who fled persecution for their faith,” he said. Loewe said the congregation changed and grew from listening to the stories from the refugees, hearing their traditions and supporting one another with their gifts. “As a cathedral we’re significantly enriched,” he said. “This exchange is something we want to see in our nation as well.” Former United Nations assistant secretary-general Gillian Triggs said she was pleased to be a part of the Palm Sunday march, which emphasized welcoming the stranger. She said there was an increased global willingness to deny the legal standards of the Refugee Convention. Triggs said faith groups were vital to the U.N.’s work with displaced people. “They don’t go away when the money runs out,” she said. “They’re always there in the community, and they’re the ones that deliver a lot of the humanitarian responses.”

[Church in Wales] Two ministry areas in Mid Wales are working together to bring the Easter story to their communities. A joint project by the Black Mountains and St. Catwg ministry areas is taking modern art paintings that tell the Easter story, usually seen in art galleries or cathedrals, and placing them in shops, cafés and pubs in towns and villages along the rivers Usk and Wye. The paintings tell the traditional Easter narrative but with a twist – every picture is set in modern London. By taking part in the project, businesses in Crickhowell, Talgarth, Llangors and Hay-on-Wye are enabling the public to see these dramatic Passion pictures in everyday settings. Locations for the 15 pictures, painted by Mark Cazalet, include London Underground tube stations, a scrap yard and the streets outside Wormwood Scrubs prison. The works depicting the trial, humiliation, torture, crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus can be seen until Good Friday in two pubs, two butchers’ shops, cafes, a bookshop, a college office, a petrol station forecourt and an architectural salvage yard. Fr. David Wyatt, priest at Hay-on-Wye, has four paintings in the busy market town, including the opening scene depicting the trial of Jesus. This picture is hanging in one of the town’s barbershops, another painting is in a butcher’s window and one is shown in a local pub. “The placing of the Passion of our Lord into contemporary backdrops, familiar to many, is quite striking and effective. Being offered an opportunity to reflect is an important part of a good Lent,” he said. The project is the initiative of the same team who brought camels to Brecon on Christmas Eve in 2023 in a live public nativity. “We’re hoping that people will see Jesus and the traditional Easter story in a clear and fresh way while out shopping and relaxing in their local towns and villages,” said the Rev. Anna Bessant, who has helped to bring the Easter paintings project to life and looks after churches around Llangors Lake. “The paintings are very immediate and shocking and, because the scenes are set in modern Britain, we hope it will move people to think about the relevance of Easter today and encounter the story of God’s transforming love.” The project also offers a re-telling of the traditional Easter story in a simple way, to allow people who are not familiar with Jesus’s journey an opportunity to discover more about the Christian faith. In Talgarth, the window of the butcher W. J. George’s is displaying one of the paintings until Good Friday. Georgina George, who runs the Deli Pot in Talgarth’s village butcher shop, said, “It’s a privilege to be hosting one of these important pictures. We’re delighted to be telling part of the story here in Talgarth, and people can see some of the other paintings just a few yards away at the Black Mountain College office and in the cafes.” The 15 paintings together are called “West London Stations of The Cross.” The picture called “Women of Jerusalem Weep” shows Jesus travelling to his death surrounded by soldiers among market stalls on Portobello Road in West London. Until Good Friday it is on display at Llangynidr’s Walnut Tree Café. “Our business is mainly run by women, so it’s very apt for us to be hosting this painting,” Claire Preece, who runs the café, said. “It’s a pleasure to be taking part in telling the Easter story in the area, collaborating with local businesses and churches. Walnut Tree Café customers are intrigued by this painting and the meaning behind it. It’s certainly different from lots of the artwork usually found in cafes in the Usk Valley.” The paintings have been loaned to the project by John and Liz Gibbs. Richard Parry from the New Library, Llantwit Major, who is working with the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon ministry areas this year to bring the project to life, organized a similar project last year in pubs and cafes on the south Wales coast. Richard said, “These paintings in Powys are very important. They remind us of the everyday compassion of people on pavements in the face of cruel violence in the world. As we re-visit the Easter Passion and Resurrection of Jesus, we look directly into the heart of the Christian faith. This project deals with our modern predicament today and links it to the Passion, degradation and transformation of the Easter story.” All the paintings remain on display in Powys cafes, pubs and shops until Good Friday, April 18, when the full 15 will be brought together for public viewing as a public offer at the small Celtic church at Llanywern, near Llangors Lake, starting on Saturday, April 19. A full list of the pubs, shops and cafes displaying the paintings can be found here.

[Episcopal News Service] The Very Rev. Sandye Wilson, interim dean of the Cathedral of All Saints in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, died on April 15. An announcement of her death was made by the cathedral on its Facebook page on April 16. Wilson, who was also vice chair of the Church Pension Fund board of trustees, announced on March 19 via Facebook that after two surgeries, she had been diagnosed with stage 3 serous endometrial cancer and would undergo about six months of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. On April 4, she posted that she had completed her first round of chemotherapy. Serous endometrial cancer occurs in about 10% of all cases of endometrial cancer but represents 40% of deaths. “Sandye will be remembered for her unwavering service and commitment to The Episcopal Church. She was a dedicated member of The Church Pension Fund Board of Trustees and held many roles over the past decade, most recently as a Vice Chair of the Board. We will dearly miss her leadership, witness, intelligence, passion, humor, and friendship,” Mary Kate Wold, CEO AND president of The Church Pension Fund, said in a statement. Wilson was elected to the fund’s board at the 78th General Convention in 2015 and was reelected to a second term in 2022. In addition to serving as a vice chair, she served as a member of the Benefits Policy Committee, the Compensation, Diversity, and Workplace Values Committee and the Executive Committee. Wilson’s ministry in The Episcopal Church spanned more than 40 years. Ordained as a priest in 1980, she served congregations in the dioceses of Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Newark and New Jersey. She also served as chief operating officer of Saint Augustine’s University, a private historically Black university in Raleigh, North Carolina, one of two HBCUs still associated with The Episcopal Church. She was a longtime deputy to General Convention, a member of Executive Council and former president of the Union of Black Episcopalians. Tributes to Wilson quickly appeared across social media. Missouri Bishop Deon Johnson on Facebook described Wilson as someone “whose indelible mark on countless lives will long be cherished.” He added, “She has been a guiding light, a faithful friend, a dedicated companion and a catalyst for good trouble to so many in this church and beyond. She now rests with the ancestors and saints in the realms of eternal light.” Notice of her death also was shared by the Union of Black Episcopalians, who called Wilson a “UBE pioneer.” The Rev. Susan Russell, canon for engagement across difference for the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, California, posted, “If you Google ‘force of nature,’ Sandye Wilson’s photo would rise to the top.” Russell said that like others she was grieving Wilson’s death “while giving thanks for her bright light and powerful witness to a church she loved too much not to challenge it to be better than it was willing to settle to be.” No announcement has yet been made regarding funeral arrangements.