CCA General Secretary expresses concern over the ongoing natural disasters in Asia

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.

17 January 2020

NR photo

While expressing sympathy with the people in recent natural disaster-affected areas in Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, and appealing to churches and people of goodwill around the world to pray for all affected communities, the CCA General Secretary Dr Mathews George Chunakara urged for the pressing need to respond actively to the impending climate crisis with concrete measures.

The three major natural disasters that have struck Asia- the bushfires in Australia, the flash floods in Indonesia, and the volcanic eruption in the Philippines have caused unspeakable suffering to the lives and damage to the property of thousands of people.

“These ongoing natural disasters and their effects remind us of our Christian responsibility of working together in times of crises, and pooling together our efforts and resources not only to help victims, but also to mitigate such unforeseen happenings,” stated the CCA General Secretary.

“Our prayers must be supplemented with concrete actions, as such events become more and more commonplace as consequences of the climate crisis and its worst effects. The climate emergency and its subsequent suffering will only intensify if communities and their governments fail to heed the apocalyptic predictions and do not take sufficient measures to mitigate the potentially irreversible damage to the planet,” added Dr Chunakara.

The CCA General Secretary called upon the Asian churches to raise their voice as a clarion call to people from all walks of life so that the world’s climate emergency can be collectively averted.

Amidst the catastrophes and severe damages to life and property, the churches and church councils in Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines have been actively responding to the crises by extending relief aid, emotional support, and volunteers to assist in disaster mitigation.

The CCA General Secretary also appealed to churches and people of goodwill around the world to pray for affected communities and donate to the relief efforts of churches and councils in the affected areas.

The full text of the CCA General Secretary’s statement can be accessed here.