September 3, 2009

The election of a new general secretary for the organization and the selection of the venue for its next assembly were highlights of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee meeting that ended yesterday in Geneva, Switzerland.

The Central Committee, the main governing body of the WCC between assemblies, issued a series of statements and minutes on wide-ranging religious, political and social matters important to the Council's member churches. Issues of governance and finances were also discussed.

The WCC is a fellowship of 349 churches in more than 110 countries. Member churches include most of the world's Orthodox churches as well as Anglican, Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, Reformed, united and independent churches. Their combined membership represents more than 560 million Christians.

Rev. Dr Walter Altmann, moderator of the Central Committee, said at a closing press conference that despite the heavy agenda he was satisfied with the outcome of the meeting. "It strengthened the witness of the churches and the expression of the fellowship of churches."

The WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia echoed Altmann's sense of the meeting saying: "There was a very observable way of living out the fellowship of the WCC beyond business, in worship, interaction and the way Central Committee members upheld each other."

General secretary-elect

Norwegian theologian and pastor Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, 48, was elected 7th general secretary of the WCC. He will be succeeding outgoing general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, who completes his tenure at the end of 2009. Tveit will be the youngest general secretary since Willem A. Visser ‘t Hooft who had led the WCC while it was in process of formation and following its founding assembly 61 years ago.

10th Assembly venue

The city of Busan, Republic of Korea, was chosen as venue for the WCC 10th Assembly in 2013. The host region is eager to welcome the event. "It is a really great joy to be able to invite the WCC Assembly to Korea," said Rev. Dr Park Jong-wha, chair of the international committee of the National Council of Churches in South Korea. He expressed hope that the WCC's presence could "contribute greatly toward peaceful reconciliation and reunification" for the divided peninsula. The WCC Central Committee also established an assembly planning committee.

Programmes and finances

The Central Committee reviewed the WCC's programmatic work and expressed appreciation for the work done since its last meeting. Acknowledging the unsustainability of the programmes as presently organized, the committee recommended that programmes should be restructured. Instead of reducing activities across the board, it stressed the need for prioritization and a more modest, limited and sustainable approach to programme work. Among the prioritization criteria it recommended a focus on the unique contribution of the WCC as a global fellowship of churches.

A number of recommendations related to the 2010 budget were adopted. "We anticipate further reductions in contributions in the last half of 2009," said Dean Anders Gadegaard, the moderator of the Central Committee finance committee. Gadegaard believes further reductions in 2010 income could be in the range of 5-10 percent. The 2010 budget presently stands at 35.5 million Swiss francs. Final approval for the 2010 budget would come at the February 2010 Executive Committee meeting.

Statements on public issues

The WCC Central Committee passed a series of public statements and minutes:

Pakistan's blasphemy law. The committee called on the government of Pakistan to "guarantee the rights of all religious minorities in the country." It also stated that Pakistan's Blasphemy Law has become "a major source of victimization and persecution" of religious minorities who are living "in a state of fear and terror."

Israeli settlements. The committee called on the Israeli government to freeze and begin to dismantle settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. It also encouraged a commitment to non-violence and peace negotiations, and reiterated the need for an international boycott of products and services from settlements.

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The committee urged the WCC member churches "to publicly condemn violence against women" in the DRC. It urged all parties to the conflict to put an end to all acts of sexual violence and called on the government "to end impunity for rape and to evolve effective strategies to combat sexual violence."

Caste-based discrimination. The committee called on the WCC member churches to "recognize that the continued discrimination and exclusion of millions of people on the basis of caste" is a "serious challenge to the credibility of their witness to their faith in God." Up to 260 million people worldwide are considered as "untouchable" by their own societies, contradicting the Christian belief that all are created equal in the image of God. Read more

Just finance and the economy of life.The committee noted that the global financial system has "enriched some people but has harmed many more, creating poverty, unemployment, hunger and death" and "widening the gap between rich and poor." It called on member churches "not to retreat from their prophetic role," and proposed "new indicators of progress" for the economy.

Darfur, Sudan. The committee condemned "the mass atrocities committed against innocent civilians in Darfur." It urged the government of Sudan "to assume full responsibility for the protection of its citizens" regardless of ethnicity or other affiliation and to "allow uninterrupted humanitarian assistance to reach all suffering people in Darfur."

Eco-justice and ecological debt. The committee stated that Christians have a moral obligation to promote ecological justice. The ecological debt is primarily owed by Northern industrialized countries to countries of the South on account of historical and current resource-plundering, environmental degradation and the dumping of greenhouse gases and toxic wastes.

Seeking a nuclear-weapon-free world.The committee called on churches to take advantage of several promising opportunities in the coming year to advocate for a world without nuclear weapons. It called on states with nuclear weapons to advance towards "the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals" and invited churches to support governments in creating regional nuclear weapon-free zones. Read more

Anti-Christian violence. The committee challenged WCC member churches to hear the cries of all "sisters and brothers in Christ enduring violence, threat and intimidation," to act in "costly solidarity" with them and to challenge governments to protect the lives of their citizens. It also noted a decline of religious freedom in many parts of the world and an increase of religious intolerance.

Conscientious objection to military service.The committee reiterated the WCC support for the right of conscientious objection and called on member churches to "uphold the right of refusal to bear and use arms" wherever possible. In many places churches observe challenges to the exercise of this right, which allows those whose conscience prohibits them from military service to engage in alternate means of service.

Church-government dialogue in Fiji.The committee urged the Methodist Church in Fiji and Rotuma to engage in dialogue with the interim government of Fiji. It commended the church for its careful and measured response to the actions taken against it by the interim government, which came to power following a military coup in December 2006 and has banned some church activities, arresting nine Methodist ministers.

Governance issues

A substantial document on governance issues was discussed by the WCC Central Committee, including its own role and that of the executive committee, as well as the relationship of the general secretary to these committees and the WCC officers and presidents. The document stated the need for efficient, flexible and vision-focused governance. It also addressed issues of accountability and staff policy.

Farewell to Samuel Kobia

While Kobia will continue as WCC general secretary through the end of 2009, the Central Committee bid farewell to him and his wife Ruth at a prayer service at the Ecumenical Centre and a celebration at the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey, near Geneva. Both the service and celebration had a distinct international flavour with songs from a variety of cultures, and languages from Aramaic to Swahili.

More information on the WCC Central Committee meeting: http://www.oikoumene.org/cc2009/.

World Council of Churches