CCA felicitates nonagenarian Bishop Kenneth M. Fernando, former CCA President

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).

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13 December 2022
Christian conference of Asia, Asia christanity

CCA felicitates nonagenarian Bishop Kenneth M. Fernando, former CCA President From left to right: Dr Mathews George Chunakara, CCA General Secretary; Mrs Chitra Fernando, former CCA President (1977–1987) ; Bishop Kenneth M. Fernando, former CCA President (1995–2000); Mr Israel Paulraj, CCA Finance Committee Member; Mr Basil Fernando, Asian Human Rights Commission

Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) felicitated and honoured The Rt. Revd. Bishop Kenneth Fernando, the nonagenarian elder statesman of the Church of Ceylon, who served as a President of the CCA from 1995 to 2000. The special felicitation to Bishop M Fernando was held at the headquarters of the Methodist Church of Sri Lanka in Kollupitiya, Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 7 December 2022. The CCA General Secretary Dr Mathews George Chunakara appreciated the significant contributions of Bishop Fernando to the Asian ecumenical movement over several decades and honoured Bishop Fernando with a plaque and shawl.  Also present on the occasion was Mrs Chitra Fernando, the wife of Bishop Fernando, who herself had served as one of the Presidents of the CCA from 1977 to 1981.  Addressing the young ecumenists and church leaders who were also present for the CCA’s human rights training programme on ‘Affirming Human Dignity for Upholding Human Rights’, Bishop Fernando shared three key observations, namely, democracy’s decline in several Asian countries, the heightened importance of the need to develop Asian theologies, and the increased involvement of the Chinese churches in the Asian ecumenical movement.