Member Church News: Exchange, Elections, Advocacy

The Presbyterian Church in Canada has a longstanding relationship with the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT). Each year, the PCT hosts a dynamic program called “I Love Taiwan,” which attracts youth from all over the world who share in the PCT’s youth and children’s ministry and learn about the unique culture of Taiwan.

Presbyterian Church (USA), regional and international partners advocate for continued collaboration at “People on the Move” gathering in Rome: Consultation session looks at refugee and migration issues in context.

Indonesia, the third largest democracy in the world, has voted. However, the result has not yet been finalized almost a month after the election. It is a fragile social situation that Indonesia finds itself in after the election. Jacklevyn Manuputty, general secretary of Indonesia’s largest church association, the Communion of Churches in Indonesia, gives an assessment of the situation in an interview.

United Church in Christ Women’s Week was celebrated with a special Embodying Women and Gender Justice Year Round webinar on 6 March. The event brought people together for sharing stories and information.

The World Council of Churches, in an intervention before the UN Human Rights Council, called upon the UN to ensure that counter-terrorism laws and practices, including efforts to combat terrorism financing, do not unjustly curtail the legitimate activities of civil society organizations, impede civic space, or hinder humanitarian endeavors in the Philippines.

As Lutheran World Federation moves, ”we continue to be on the same mission”: In a special prayer for closure and transitions, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and World Council of Churches (WCC) reflected on the move of LWF out of the Ecumenical Centre after nearly 60 years.

Frank Dieter Fischbach has been appointed as the new general secretary of the Conference of European Churches (CEC). Hailing from the Protestant Church in Germany (EKD), Fischbach comes to CEC with extensive experience in theology, ecumenical relations, employment and social issues, and churches’ dialogue with European political institutions.

_{Image: NCCP members provided a briefing to WCC staff and invited civil society members about human rights in the Philippines (Gloria Koymans/WCC).}