An Asian outlook on today’s ecumenical challenges

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.

27 July 2019

26 July 2019
*By Claus Grue

image_previewCCA General Secretary Dr Mathews George Chunakara.

When leaders of eight regional ecumenical organisations gathered at the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey, Switzerland, earlier this month to further strengthen ecumenical cooperation, they took the opportunity to exchange views on global affairs and discuss how a well-coordinated ecumenical movement can contribute to a better world.

After the meeting, World Council of Churches (WCC) Communications caught one of the regional leaders, Dr Mathews George Chunakara, general secretary of Christian Conference of Asia, for a short conversation on today’s challenges.

While hopeful that the agreement, which emanated from the meeting, will pave the way for closer cooperation between the WCC and regional ecumenical organisations, and ensure better coordination of multi-regional activities, Chunakara expressed major concerns about a number of issues.

“In spite of dramatically improved standards of living in many Asian countries in recent years, we witness growing religious intolerance and animosity, extremism, violence, distrust in religious communities, lack of democratic governance, political instability, human rights violations and other threats to peace and security. These sad realities need our urgent attention”, says Chunakara.

In a church context

Chunakara underlines the importance of proper ecumenical perspectives and orientations, as well as professional local leadership, to effectively address these issues.

“We have a task to sensitize churches to accompany vulnerable people and communities, mainly through advocacy and capacity building. We must provide tools and a sense of commitment”, he points out.

He mentions the labour camp-conditions under which Asian migrants work in the Arabian Gulf as a concrete example of an urgent situation where local churches must be properly equipped to act decisively.

“This is a humanitarian and alien rights issue, where guest workers sometimes have had their passports and payments withheld by employers. Clearly, legal protection mechanisms are not always properly applied in the Gulf countries, and we have to advance advocacy for decent treatment of this category of strangers. There is a need for consistent accompaniments and expressions of solidarity from local churches, for which the ecumenical movement can play a major role.”, Chunakara says.

Another major concern is the rise of aggressive missionary evangelism, which in his view further increases the risks of conflicts and growing religious intolerance.

“The way they promote Christianity and preach the Gospel is exclusive and commercially driven. It has very little to do with being a Christian witness”, he explains.

Chunakara also touches upon the rise and impact of digitalization and artificial intelligence, which he fears will affect spirituality and alienate church members from an active church life.

“Digital technology is popular these days because it minimizes human involvement. It also makes possible for people to sit at home without attending the church services or without having their physical presence in churches with other worshipping community and follow a liturgical worship through web-based church services. This is helpful for diaspora members to follow liturgical services in their own languages. However, more and more people in Asian cities prefer to be part of web-based Sunday services telecasted by local churches. There are both advantages and risks involved in the long run, which we have to be aware of”, he concludes.

In Chunakara’s mind, the most effective measures to address both concerns and opportunities are local empowerment through ecumenical formation and leadership development training, accompanied by closer ecumenical collaboration across regions under the WCC and regional ecumenical organisations’ umbrella.

*Claus Grue is a communication consultant for the World Council of Churches.

"Regional ecumenical leaders pledge to stand strong together" - WCC news release 9 July 2019

"Regional ecumenical leaders convene at Bossey to share concerns, strengthen bonds" - WCC news release 2 July 2019