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Editorial
WCC LOOKS FORWARD
The 13th - 20th February meeting of the World Council of Churches’ Central Committee was an opportunity to celebrate the ecumenical body’s 60th anniversary. Preaching at a special service to mark the occasion, His All Holiness Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, told the congregation at Geneva’s St Pierre Cathedral that the WCC had accomplished much in its six decades. "The Council has provided an ideal platform where Churches with different outlooks and belonging to a great variety of theological and ecclesiological traditions have been able to engage in dialogue and promote Christian unity, while all the time responding to the manifold needs of contemporary society," the Orthodox leader said.
Indeed, at a session of the Central Committee the WCC General Secretary, the Revd Samuel Kobia, spoke prophetically of the ecumenical future, placing a clear emphasis on new expressions of Christianity and the growing prominence of the Global South. He said: "The WCC will only continue to function as a privileged instrument of the wider ecumenical movement if ... openness to change is shown, and concrete steps for greater clarity of roles and improved cooperation between different actors in the ecumenical movement are taken." There is no doubt that Dr Kobia, who has announced that he will not be seeking a second term as General Secretary, will be missed for his clear vision, once he departs at the end of this year.
Also taking the theme of the ecumenical future, one of the participants at this month’s Central Committee meeting, Christina Biere of Germany, spoke of allowing the traditional WCC assemblies to change their format and expand. She was one of three main speakers who presented dreams and a rationale for an "expanded space" at the next WCC Assembly. This vision calls for a model that brings more ecumenical partners and other voices into one event or a series of events, for a more cohesive ecumenical voice.
There is no doubt that under Dr Kobia’s leadership, the WCC has clearly grasped the need for reform and for a wider inclusion of Christian Churches, organisations and movements. If, by God’s grace, this dynamic vision can be turned into reality, the WCC certainly has a very bright future.