WCC news: “Midpoint on the Pilgrimage” event brings shared reflections and insights

An event organized by the Council of Christian Churches in Switzerland and the Protestant Church in Switzerland, entitled “WCC 2022–2030: Midpoint on the Pilgrimage – Impulses for Ecumenical Work in Switzerland,” was held online 2 March. 31 August 2022, Karlsruhe, Germany: Participants carry the Bible into the opening prayer service of the 11th Assembly of the World Council of Churches, held in Karlsruhe, Germany.  Photo: Paul Jeffrey/WCC 3 March 2026 The event marked the midpoint between the World Council of Churches (WCC) 11th Assembly in 2022 and the next assembly in 2030. It brought together people engaged in ecumenical work in Switzerland for shared reflection on developments since the WCC 11th Assembly, and on impulses for the coming years.  The programme included a keynote from the moderator of the WCC central committee, Bishop Prof. Dr Heinrich Bedford‑Strohm, who spoke on the theme of the WCC 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe, “Christ’s love moves the world to reconciliation and unity.”  Bedford-Strohm acknowledged that it’s clear that this phrase is not a visible empirical truth.  “But the people from the churches of the world who gathered in Karlsruhe and adopted this motto were united by the deep conviction of their Christian faith that it is not yet an empirical truth,” he said. “They trusted that God's ways with this world do not lead into darkness, but into a new heaven and a new earth.” Bedford-Strohm also emphasized the ongoing Ecumenical Decade of Climate Justice Action (2025-2035), and how climate-related concerns expressed during the WCC 11th Assembly led to the launch of the decade three years later, in 2025. “There was a clear awareness that the next ten years would determine whether the destructive consequences of climate change could be kept at a tolerable level,” he said. “The assembly had also taken into account the events of the past year, which had sadly confirmed that many voices from the past who had warned us of invisible impending natural disasters had been right.” Bedford-Strohm concluded by reflecting on the global church. “There is probably no institution in which being rooted in local communities while at the same time having a universal horizon is as much part of its DNA as it is in the case of the church,” he said. “It is the concrete experience of living life to the fullest in local relationships, combined with a sense of universal brotherhood and sisterhood, that leads me to believe that the church plays a crucial role in healing the world.” Rev. Sarah Bach, member of the WCC Commission on Climate Justice and Sustainability, presented the Ecumenical Decade of Climate Justice Action. Dr Emma van Dorp, member of the WCC Young People in the Ecumenical Movement Commission and WCC Commission of the Churches on Faith and Order, presented an update on the 6th World Conference and the role of young theologians. Rev Christoph Schuler presented the work of the WCC central committee during its meeting in Johannesburg in June 2025. Marianne Ejdersten, WCC director of communication, moderated a session entitled “Digitalization & AI in the Ecumenical Movement – Opportunities, Risks and Guidelines.” WCC 11th Assembly 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