WCC Media advisory: Application for global media accreditation to WCC Sixth World Conference on Faith and Order in Wadi El Natrun

Accreditation for global media is now open for The WCC Sixth World Conference on Faith and Order, to be held in Wadi El Natrun, Egypt, 24-28 October 2025.  01 September 2025 Media accreditation for local media to be open in September. For practical reasons, only a limited number of media will be allowed on site. The cohost for the conference is the Coptic Orthodox Church, marking the first time such a conference is hosted by an Oriental Orthodox church.  The Sixth World Conference for Faith and Order, being hosted at the invitation of His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, will convene under the theme “Where now for visible unity?” This will be the sixth such conference in a century, with previous gatherings held in 1927 (Lausanne, Switzerland), 1937 (Edinburgh, Scotland), 1952 (Lund, Sweden), 1963 (Montreal, Canada),1993 (Santiago, Spain) and 2025 (Wadi El Natrun, Egypt). The conference is academic in nature, featuring research papers reflecting the viewpoints of their authors. The conference will be an opportunity to bring together church leaders and theologians of different traditions as well as to involve a new generation of ecumenists at a time when the world faces climate catastrophe, the threat of pandemics, war, and economic concern – challenges requiring a fresh engagement of the churches with one another on core issues of faith and mission that both unite and continue to divide them. Media accreditation is mandatory for onsite access to daily media briefings, seminars, keynote addresses and other events during the conference. For those not able to attend onsite in Wadi El Natrun, media briefings can be followed online with the opportunity to ask questions directly to panels. Media accreditation is required for that as well.  In accordance with the WCC media policy, no subsidies or allowances are available. A detailed programme of the conference will soon be available and published on the WCC event site.  It will also be communicated via a news release.       Apply for accreditation by filling out the application form. A Global Ecumenical Theological Institute (GETI) held in conjunction with the conference will offer space for a new generation of younger and emerging ecumenical theologians and educators to engage with the work of Faith and Order. More information about the WCC Sixth World Conference on Faith and Order, as well as news releases and other information, can be found at the WCC Press Centre. For further questions and inquiries, please email: media@wcc-coe.org Only the WCC itself, as the organizer, is authorized to accredit media to the world conference. Accreditations by other organizations are not valid. Looking forward to receiving your application and seeing you in Wadi El Natrun, or online.   Application form 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

WCC Media advisory: Funeral service of Archbishop Anastasios of Albania

World Council of Churches (WCC) Communication, in collaboration with the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania, invites media to cover the funeral service of Archbishop of Albania, Anastasios. Anastasios Yannoulatos, Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës, and All Albania, died in Athens, Greece, on 25 January 2025. Photo: Aleksander Wasyluk/OrthPhoto.net 29 January 2025 WHERE: Cathedral of Resurrection of Christ (Rr. Ibrahim Rrugova, Tirana) WHEN: Thursday, 30 January, 11 a.m. CET Archbishop Anastasios was an honorary member of the Academy of Athens and a former WCC president, with more than six decades in the ecumenical movement. He also served as moderator of the WCC Commission on World Mission and Evangelism, and as a member of the WCC central committee. WCC moderator Bishop Prof. Dr Heinrich Bedform-Strohm will deliver a funeral tribute in the cathedral, along with His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the locum tenens archbishop of Albania Metropolitan Ioannis of Korçë and heads of states. Livestream of the funeral service will be provided - more details to be announced soon. Media may contact the Press Center Secretariat by submitting a pdf file with the following information: a) a document including full name, press ID (with photo), email address, and mobile phone/WhatsApp number. b) a certification from the media organization they represent, confirming their assignment. Contact for international media: WCC communications officer Xanthi Morfi, Xanthi.Morfi@wcc-coe.org (present on site) Secretariat contact details: Email: AApresscenter@gmail.com, WhatsApp: 00355697868485 Miss Angela Laska, Miss Ana Berbati Official Press Office Representatives (physical contact only): Rev. Fr. Grigori Pelushi (English) Ms. Valbona Duri (Albanian) Msc. Andi Rembeci (Greek) Accreditation will be issued by the Press Centre, located on the left side of the entrance to the Cathedral of the “Resurrection of Christ” in Tirana (follow the signage on site) *Unauthorized media personnel will not have access to the interior of the church. During the service, the use of mobile phones and video recording devices is strictly prohibited. Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana dies at 95 (WCC obituary, 25 January 2025) Photo gallery: Archbishop Anastasios 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 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. 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

WCC media advisory: Press conference will address a challenging climate, political polarisation

As the ACT Alliance holds its General Assembly in Yogyakarta, faith leaders and actors, international and Indonesian speakers will comment on the growing humanitarian emergencies and the challenges linked to the ongoing climate breakdown and the role of civil society, including faith-based actors, in tackling these crises amid growing polarisation and reduced funding. Photo: Gregoire de Fombelle/WCC 28 October 2024 Speakers will include senior representatives of ACT Alliance, the World Council of Churches, ACT Alliance members, and Indonesian civil society and churches.  They will explore the role of polarization in inhibiting climate justice, and what civil society and faith-based actors are and can do to improve the situation. Speakers:   Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, general secretary, ACT Alliance  Erik Lysén, moderator, ACT Alliance Governing Board and director of Act Church of Sweden  Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, general secretary, World Council of Churches  Alissa Wahid, national director, Gusdurian Network Indonesia  Arshinta, director, YAKKUM Development and Humanitarian Programs  Brigita Ra Sekar Laras, Sustainability, Humanitarian and Inclusion, Yakkum Emergency Unit  Rev. Jacky Manuputty, general secretary, Indonesian Communion of Churches Where: Royal Ambarrukmo Hotel and online  When: 29 October, 13h00-14h00, Indonesia time   Why: Faith actors and civil society represent a positive voice and presence to counteract the challenges of polarization on responding to the climate emergency, particularly as it pertains to meeting the needs of the most vulnerable people and communities around the world.  Press conference: A challenging climate: how political polarisation is contributing to climate breakdown - ACT Alliance news release, 28 October 2024 ACT Alliance interview with general secretary Rudelmar Bueno de Faria 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 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. 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

WCC MEDIA ADVISORY: Invitation to media

With this media invitation, it is our joy to invite you to attend the installation of Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay as the 9th general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) during the afternoon of Friday, 17 February 2023. Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, WCC general secretary. Photo: Peter Williams/WCC 14 February 2023 The event will begin at 14:00 CET, Friday, 17 February with a prayer service in the Ecumenical Centre Chapel at which the general secretary will preach. The celebration will continue in Visser ‘t Hooft Hall at 15;15 with greetings from churches and partners.  Media are also able to attend online.   Interpretation available online into Spanish, French and German. Please respond ASAP, at the latest 16 February at 15h00 CET.  We have limited number of seats in the chapel. The WCC has invited Swiss church leaders, Geneva civic leaders as well many Geneva-based UN and governmental partners. Also attending will be the leadership of Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa, the South African Council of Churches, as well as family and friends of the general secretary. Bishop Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, WCC moderator of the central committee, wrote in the invitation “The celebration is an opportunity to seek God’s blessing for a new term of leadership and to give thanks for the WCC fellowship of member churches’ continued witness for justice, reconciliation, and unity.” Media are able to be present and report on the installation. Media are also invited to request an interview with the WCC general secretary, although not on the same day, but for the following weeks. Press photos will be available at the installation. For more information and interview requests, please contact WCC Communication media@wcc-coe.org or call WCC Communication Department:  +41 22 791 61 11 Marianne Ejdersten, WCC Communication director Email: mej@wcc-coe.org + 41 79 507 63 63 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 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. 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

WCC MEDIA ADVISORY: Mandatory media accreditation for the WCC assembly

Media accreditation to the World Council of Churches (WCC) 11th Assembly, to be held in Karlsruhe, Germany, 31 August – 8 September 2022, remains open. Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC 05 July 2022 The WCC will run both onsite and online press centres throughout the assembly and provide easy access for accredited media to press conferences, press briefings and other media services, as well as assembly documents and other material. It will thus be possible to cover the assembly, conduct interviews and participate in real-time press briefings, without being physically present in Karlsruhe. Regardless of whether you plan to be there in person, or participate from a distance, media accreditation is mandatory. For accreditations, please fill out accreditation form and return it to the WCC media inbox: media@wcc-coe.org.   Although accreditation is open up until the assembly begins, we kindly ask you to apply as soon as possible in order to facilitate a smooth and timely approval process. Please also note that in order to guarantee additional services offered along with your accreditation confirmation, such as accommodation and assembly meals during the assembly, we will need your application for accreditation by Friday, 15 July. Only online applications will be considered. In accordance with the WCC media policy, no subsidies or allowances are available. Only the WCC itself, as the host of the assembly, is authorized to accredit media to the assembly. Accreditations by other organizations are not valid.        Should further questions arise at this point, please drop us a line in the WCC media inbox: media@wcc-coe.org. Please also visit our press centre at the WCC website, where you can follow news continuously and learn more about the WCC and the assembly.  Welcome with your application!  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 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 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