WCC news: WCC delegation visits Ukraine

A delegation from the World Council of Churches (WCC) is visiting Ukraine on 10-12 May to renew relations with churches and religious organizations and to explore possibilities of joint efforts to achieve just peace in Ukraine. Buildings destroyed by bombing in Irpin, Kyiv region, Ukraine. Photo: Ivars Kupcis/WCC 10 May 2023 The WCC delegation consists of Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, WCC moderator of the central committee;  H.E. Archbishop Dr Vicken Aykazian, vice-moderator of the WCC central committee; and Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, WCC general secretary. The delegation is accompanied by Peter Prove, WCC director of the Commission of the Churches for International Affairs and Prof. Dr Vasile-Octavian Mihoc, WCC programme executive for Ecumenical Relations and Faith and Order. WCC representatives last visited Ukraine in August 2022 when they held a number of formal meetings and visited the besieged country to listen to the representatives of local churches, as well as state institutions working with religious issues, and to ensure the participation of Ukraine's churches at the WCC assembly in August-September 2022. During the visit, the delegation — aiming to receive a full picture of the current situation in Ukraine in the religious field — will have a number of formal meetings with representatives of Ukrainian churches as well as with other representatives. 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