The more radical social and political changes are, the more likely they are to bring out tension amongst social actors. It is in a context such as this - a Living Letters delegation visiting Bolivia in mid July heard - that Bolivian churches struggle to overcome violence in society.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia urged the Nigerian President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to "ensure the safety of all citizens" as well as seeing that "all perpetrators [of] acts of violence and human rights violations are brought to justice".
The National Council of Churches of Kenya, shocked that Cabinet has decided not to establish a Special Tribunal or to refer the matter of post election violence to the International Criminal Court, calls on the President, Prime Ministr, and government "to honourably resign and allow Kenyans to choose new leadership that will steer this country away from impunity and the high potential of national collapse.” DN
The World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia appealed to Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari to "ensure the safety and security" of Christians in the Punjab province, where three attacks against Christian communities were carried by militant Islamic groups in the last two months. He demanded that the government "take necessary actions against the perpetrators".
Episocpal Diocese of Jerusalem--July 2009 newsletter
"The Time Has Come"--Churches for Middle East Peace July 2009 Policy Briefing
The World Council of Churches (WCC) will welcome five young people (aged 18-30 years) to serve as interns in its Geneva offices from February 2010 to January 2011. Interns bring valuable experiences to the WCC at the same time as they undertake several modules of ecumenical learning.
Anna Muinonen is the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) programme coordinator for FinnChurchAid, a member of Action by Churches Together (ACT) International providing emergency relief to victims of the long running conflict in the Central African country.
There is much hope in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that the guns will soon fall silent. But the trail of human rights abuses the combatants leave behind compels the churches to intervene.
In northwest Pakistan peace is scarce at the moment. In the chaos of fighting that displaced more than 3 million in Pakistan since army and Taliban forces began clashing in late May, and in countless other emergencies around the globe, nursing mothers like Saeeda tend to their babies no matter what challenges they face. In tent-ridden displacement camps, small shelters or during escape, nursing mothers continue to give life-saving nourishment to their children.
Government authorities have announced that areas that were the site of recent fighting between the Taliban and the Pakistani military including Buner and Swat Valley -- are now clear. But the displaced are asking if it is really safe for them to return.
Churches for Middle East Peace addresses letter to State Department
Angelique Al Asmar does not mince words when speaking of the plight of Iraqi refugees in Syria. "It's heart-breaking," said the 24-year-old vocational training officer with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All The East.
Jerusalem bishop: as in South Africa, churches key to peace in Middle East
From the smallest village to the biggest town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) people are yearning for peace. Church leaders encourage the rebel fighters to disarm.
When talking to people in Gaza about the difficult humanitarian, economic and infrastructure conditions under which they live, one quickly realizes that the 22-day assault that ended early this year was only the most recent, although especially brutal, chapter in a longer context of occupation and blockade.