Asia Sunday-2020 focuses on the theme ‘God, Heal Us as We are Vulnerable’

Programme Review and Programme Direction

Two key deliberative sessions during the 15th CCA General Assembly are the Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions.

The Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions will both be conducted in three groups relating to the CCA’s programme areas, namely, (i) General Secretariat (GS), (ii) Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF); and (iii) Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia (PD).

Assembly participants will have the option to join one of three groups for both the Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions. For the sake of coherence, the assigned group will remain the same for both sessions.

General Secretariat

The General Secretariat oversees the coordination of programmatic, administrative, and financial activities of the organization. The GS comprises various departments such as church and ecumenical relations, relations with ecumenical partners, finance, administration, and communications, which provide crucial support and services for the implementation of programs and contribute to the overall functioning of the CCA.

Programmes: Relations with member churches and councils, ecumenical partners; advocacy at the United Nations; ecumenical responses to emerging issues in solidarity; income development and finance; and communications.

Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF)

Under the MU programme area, the CCA accompanies Asian churches to strengthen their mission and witness in multi-religious contexts, revitalise and nurture church unity and the Asian ecumenical movement, and develop contextual theological foundations.

Programmes: Asian Movement for Christian Unity (AMCU); Congress of Asian Theologians (CATS); Asian women doing theology in the context of wider ecumenism; contextualisation of theology in Asia and ecumenical theological education.

The EF programme area focuses on nurturing and developing ecumenical leaders in Asia. The programme aims to enhance spiritual formation and theological understanding, enabling people to actively engage in ecumenical dialogue and collaboration.

Programmes: Ecumenical Enablers’ Training in Asia (EETA); Asian Ecumenical Institute (AEI); Youth and Women Leadership Development; Ecumenical Spirituality and Nurturing of Contextual Liturgical Traditions; Asia Sunday

Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia and Advocacy (PD)

The BP programme area is dedicated to promoting peace, justice, and reconciliation in Asia’s diverse contexts. Through training, advocacy, and dialogue, the programme addresses the root causes of conflicts, empowers communities, and fosters sustainable peacebuilding initiatives.

Programmes: Pastoral Solidarity Visits; Churches in Action for Moving Beyond Conflict and Resolution; Young Ambassadors of Peace in Asia (YAPA); Ecumenical Women’s Action Against Violence (EWAAV); Eco-Justice for Sustainable Peace in the Oikos.

The PD programme area focuses on promoting justice, human rights, and social transformation in Asia. Through advocacy, capacity-building, and raising awareness, the programme addresses systemic injustice, empowers marginalised communities, and advocates for prophetic actions and meaningful change.

Programmes: Human Rights advocacy; Migration, Statelessness, and Trafficking in Persons; Asian Ecumenical Disability Advocacy Network; Asian Advocacy Network on the Dignity and Rights of Children (AANDRoC); Ecumenical Solidarity Accompaniment and Diakonia in Asia (ESADA); Health and Healing; Good Governance; Action Together to Combat HIV and AIDS in Asia (ATCHAA).

No preference updated.

13 March 2020

 

In light of the novel COVID-19, the pandemic that has infected almost all continents in the world,  the theme of Asia Sunday-2020 is ‘God, Heal Us as We are Vulnerable’.

Asia Sunday is observed by the member churches and councils of the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) annually on the Sunday before Pentecost. This year, Asia Sunday falls on 24 May 2020. However, the CCA requests its member churches and councils to use the Asia Sunday liturgy during special prayers in the coming days for the victims of the pandemic COVID-19.

Dr Mathews George Chunakara, the CCA General Secretary, stated “The crucial conditions which we are currently collectively undergoing is a reminder for humankind to reflect on the fragility of human life and the ultimate vulnerability of the entire cosmos! Our world needs prayers, cure, and healing especially in the times of this crisis. The CCA, in this context, has decided to focus on the theme, ‘God, Heal Us as We are Vulnerable’ for Asia Sunday 2020.”

The CCA General Secretary further stated, “The outbreak of COVID-19  is a loud wake-up call for all countries on our planet, and the proliferation of COVID-19, as well as other major epidemics since the beginning of this century, have shattered several myths about threats arising from new pathogens and diseases that escalate as epidemics.”

“The eruption of these epidemics have proved that such diseases are no longer limited only to densely-populated poor countries, and that wealthy, developed countries are not immune to them. Dependence on higher levels of living standards and apparently well-developed health care systems alone cannot be our sole solution to overcome new pathogens and epidemic-prone diseases,” observed Dr Mathews George Chunakara, in his introduction to the special liturgy developed and released today by the CCA for this year’s Asia Sunday.

The gravity of the multiplication of COVID-19 and its impacts on many countries are unimaginable and have not yet been properly quantified. A large number of people around the globe are extremely susceptible. In the span of a few months since the end of December 2019, the total number of confirmed cases has now surpassed 128,000 people in 126 countries worldwide, with over 4,717 deaths reported so far.

As of today, people in 25 countries and regions in Asia have been affected by this deadly virus. The most affected Asian countries are China, Iran, and South Korea.

All of the CCA’s programmes which were to be held by May 2020 have been postponed. The travel of CCA staff members, especially to high-risk areas, has been restricted.

Please download the Asia Sunday 2020 Worship Resources using the links below:
1. Asia Sunday 2020 – God, Heal Us as We are Vulnerable (Word Document)
2. Asia Sunday 2020 – God, Heal Us as We are Vulnerable (PDF)