WCC news: WCC general secretary opens convocation in Korea: “The Kingdom of God is peace”

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay offered the opening sermon on 9 September at the 2026 International Ecumenical Peace Convocation in Seoul, Republic of Korea. Photo: NCCK 9 September 2026 Delivered in the Anglican Church of Korea, Seoul Cathedral, Pillay’s sermon was entitled "The Kingdom of God Has Come Near.” He acknowledged the 40th Anniversary of the Glion Consultation. “How wonderful it would have been if we gathered here to celebrate under different circumstances, a reunified Korea, but it seems that we are far from that today,” he said. “And so, my message to you today is to encourage you with the biblical message that assures us that the kingdom of God has come near even when we think it has not.” At Glion, Pillay noted, Christians from North and South Korea met during one of the most divided periods of modern history. “In a world shaped by the Cold War, they bore witness to a deeper allegiance: not first to competing political systems, but to the crucified and risen Christ,” he said. “Their meeting proclaimed that the Kingdom of God transcends every border, ideology, and human division.” Too many lives continue to be diminished by war, poverty, displacement, environmental destruction, and fear, Pillay continued. “Decades of division have left families separated, communities fractured, and generations shaped by memories of conflict,” he said. Even where open warfare has ceased, the wounds of history remain, Pillay reflected. “Without justice, peace becomes little more than the silence imposed by power,” he said. “For the Korean Peninsula, the pursuit of justice includes acknowledging suffering on all sides, honouring the dignity of every person, and creating conditions in which truth, accountability, compassion, and human flourishing can take root.” The Glion Consultation remains significant because it demonstrated that reconciliation begins with encounter, Pillay said. “People discovered one another not as enemies but as brothers and sisters in Christ,” he said. “As we remember the Glion Consultation, we honour those who believed that faith could build bridges where politics had built walls.” Read the full sermon Photo gallery 2026 International Peace Convocation to take place in Korea (WCC news release, 7 September 2026) 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