Thursday, April 11, 2024

WCC NEWS: A table with space for everyone

Under the theme “That the World May Know”, the Global Christian Forum (GCF) kicks off its Fourth Global Gathering, in Accra, Ghana, on Tuesday, 16 April.
People gather in prayer at the Global Christian Forum gathering in Bogotá, Colombia in 2018. Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC
11 April 2024

Christian leaders from diverse traditions will gather for four days to deepen connections and address global concerns and challenges. The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary, Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay – joining together with a diverse range of WCC representatives from a variety of regions and church traditions – will speak at the event.

Through prayer, teachings and discussions, participants from Christian constituencies all over the world will explore how to bear witness to Christ in a world of increased polarization and unrest. The Global Christian Forum is uniquely positioned to bring all families of Christianity together at the same table to build relationships, broaden conversations, share faith stories and foster mutual respect. 

“We gather on an equal basis across denominational, regional, national, ethnic, and cultural boundaries to proclaim the love and truth of Jesus Christ to the nations, and to make a difference for God’s glory”, says Rev. Dr Casely Essamuah, who serves as Secretary to the Global Christian Forum since its global gathering in Colombia in 2018. 

Special efforts are made to include Christian communities who have traditionally chosen not to join existing ecumenical bodies, such as African instituted churches, independent churches, mega-churches, charismatic movements, and migrant churches, as well as Protestant, Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal and Evangelical churches.

Included in the programme is a visit to the Cape Coast Castle, which was the final point of departure across the Atlantic for slaves during the colonial era. This will be “an opportunity for Christians from across the world, representing various traditions to walk together through the pain of history, to listen for the voice of God who heals all wounds, and to move forward with the peace of Christ,” the programme notes.

Learn more: Fourth Global Gathering: “That the World May Know”

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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 352 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa.

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