WCC NEWS: WCC central committee moderator reflects on church unity, climate justice

World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee moderator Bishop Prof. Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm offered an address to the WCC executive committee, which is convening in Hangzhou, China from 20-25 November.  WCC central committee moderator Bishop Prof. Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm addressing the WCC executive committee meeting in Hangzhou, China, 20 November 2025. Photo: Marianne Ejdersten/WCC 20 November 2025 “Our executive committee meeting here in China comes at a time when we look back to an exceptional year,” he said. “It was exceptional in its spiritual depth. It was exceptional in its ecclesiological importance. It was exceptional in its public significance. And it was certainly exceptional in the efforts that it demanded from so many people.” Bedford-Strohm’s address centered on unity of the churches and climate justice action. “Both are central to our Pilgrimage of Justice, Unity, and Reconciliation,” he said. “Unity of the churches does not require an entirely common ecclesiology but a consensus that our different ecclesiologies do not have to separate us in the essential dimensions of our faith in the triune God.” He also reflected on the Ecumenical Decade of Climate Justice Action. “We must be very clear that the decade is only as forceful as churches and their parishes all over the world make it,” he said. Bedford-Strohm urged churches engage in public discourse wherever possible. “In democratic states, politicians who strive to be elected or reelected, need our support for their engagement in climate justice,” he said. “Especially where the necessary ecological transformation might entail hardship for a certain while, the churches have an important task of making clear that this transformation is a moral duty.” Too often, he said, the word of churches are too self-referential. “We must bring our well-considered statements in dialogue with those who are sometimes caught in the day-to-day politics and all the dilemma situations connected with it,” he said. The WCC executive committee, convening at the invitation of the China Christian Council, is a pilgrimage encounter with the people and churches in China, exploring the theme “Christ, culture, and context.” The business agenda includes approval of 2026 plans and budgets, followup on central committee outcomes from June 2025, and monitoring implementation of WCC strategies.  Moderator's address at the WCC executive committee in Hangzhou, China WCC executive committee opens in Hangzhou, China (WCC news release, 20 November 2025) Vibrant church in China welcomes WCC leaders (WCC news release, 20 November 2025) WCC shares congratulations on Amity Foundation’s 40th anniversary (WCC news release, 18 November 2025) Photo gallery: WCC executive committee meeting in China 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 356 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. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches Chemin du Pommier 42 Kyoto Building Le Grand-Saconnex CH-1218 Switzerland