WCC NEWS: Plans solidify for Global Ecumenical Theological Institute 2022: “Christ’s Love (Re)moves Borders”

The World Council of Churches (WCC) International Planning Group for the Global Ecumenical Theological Institute (GETI) met on 7 June to further solidify plans for GETI 2022, which will take place in two phases—online and residential—under the theme ““Christ’s Love (Re)moves Borders.” Participants gathered in prayer at the latest Global Ecumenical Theological Institute, hosted by the WCC in 2018. Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC 08 June 2021 The planning meeting is the International Planning Group’s third, and participants shared the fruits of study groups set up in 2020 to draft preparatory documents on curriculum and methodology, study materials and a prayer booklet. GETI will begin accepting applications on 1 July, aiming to draw about 170 young and emerging ecumenical theologians and educators from a broad spectrum of Christian traditions and all eight regions of the WCC to engage with one another on critical themes of our time. The online phase will be from 25 July to 20 August 2022. The residential phase will take place at the BWGV Akademiehotel in Karlsruhe, Germany, 28 August – 8 September 2022 in the context of the WCC 11th Assembly. Students admitted to the Bossey Ecumenical Institute for the academic year 2022-23 will automatically join the programme. The six themes will be: Healing Memories (Historic-Theological Track); Kairos for Creation (Eco-theological Track); Witness from the Margins (Practical-Diaconal Track); Engaging with Plurality (Intercultural-Interreligious Track); Body Politics: Body, Health and Healing (Just Relations Track); 4th Industrial Revolution & AI: Human Identity in the Context of Global Digitisation (special plenary). The culmination of the programme will be a public lecture entitled GETI Goes Public! on 7 September 2022, to which an additional 100 guests from academic institutions in Germany will be invited. Rev. Dr Kuzipa Nalwamba, professor of Ecumenical Social Ethics and WCC programme executive for Ecumenical Theological Education, encouraged young people ages 21-35 to apply, reminding them that applications open in less than one month. “GETI 2022 promises to encompass many of today’s pressing issues, and has been quite intentionally developed for young people with a passion for working towards reconciliation and unity in its multifaceted dimensions,” said Nalwamba. “The discourse on the global ecumenical themes will combine interdisciplinary approaches that I believe will harness constructive ideas that will  nurture an ecumenical vision in younger ecumenical leaders and incrementally contribute to making the world a better place.” Further details about applications opening, application guidelines and course details will be made available on 1 July 2021. GETI 2021: plans for lively learning by young theologians are underway (WCC press release of 5 February 2020) See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 350 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 550 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC acting general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca, from the Orthodox Church in Romania. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches 150 route de Ferney Geneve 2 1211 Switzerland