First meeting of newly elected CCA Executive Committee commences in Chiang Mai

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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17 January 2024

Newly elected Executive Committee members at the headquarters of Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) in Chiang Mai

 

Chiang Mai, Thailand: The first meeting of the newly elected Executive Committee of the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) is now underway at the CCA headquarters in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

The 15th General Assembly of the CCA, held from 27 September to 4 October 2023 in Kottayam, India, elected three Officers and seventeen members of the Executive Committee, including the Chairperson of the Programme Committee.

The Executive Committee is elected from among the delegates at the General Assembly. It meets annually and is responsible for ensuring the implementation of the General Assembly’s decisions as well as for reviewing and supervising the CCA’s programmes and budget. The term of the Executive Committee is till the end of the next regular meeting of the General Assembly, i.e. from 2023 to 2028.

Key decisions that the Executive Committee will take at its first meeting relate to the selection of the Programme Committee, the Finance Committee, the CCA Thailand Foundation, the Board of the CCA Hong Kong Company, and the CCA Investment Committee in Hong Kong.

Bishop Reuel Norman Marigza, who belongs to the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, delivered the CCA Moderator’s Opening Remarks.

Outlining the terrible situation faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the context of violence in different parts of the world today, the CCA Moderator Bishop Reuel Norman Marigza stated, “In one sense, hope was all we had. Hold on––the pandemic will end. Hold on––the persecution will end. Hope makes us hold on in the darkest of circumstances. One day it will end, we need only to hold on. We need renewal, rebuilding, and restoration, with hope. Hope was what kept us going in the most difficult and trying period. Hope will energise us as we rebuild and restore our world.”

With these encouraging words, the CCA Moderator Bishop Marigza further stated, “The Asian churches and ecumenical movement must participate in the ministry of renewal and healing in this new normal. We must confront transgressions that are deemed normal, and transform the world into a new one in conformity with the vision of fuller life for all. For healing to take place, we must recognise wrong in our own selves and societies––whether by tacit approval, by being apathetic, or doing nothing about it. We can always look forward with hope in restoration and renewal in healing.”

“Hold on, pray expectantly. Let us pray that God will heal us, renew us in Spirit, and restore the creation,” said Bishop Marigza who was elected as the CCA Moderator at the 15th CCA General Assembly.

At the worship session, the biblical reflection was delivered by Ms Zion Chung, a CCA executive committee member who belongs to the Korean Christian Church in Japan and serves as a missionary with the United Church of Christ in Japan.

Ms Chung delivered a reflection on creation and the dissolution of boundaries. “To be made in the image of God does not simply mean the ‘shape’ of God, but the relationship with God. Every person is precious and cannot be replaced. But in today’s world, our preciousness feels replaceable, lost, and taken away,” she said.

“In Genesis 1:31, we read that ‘God saw all he made and behold, it was very good’. ‘Behold’ is a word that rouses interests and calls for attention. It indicates that God is satisfied with his work of creation, and it makes everyone that God created to know and take it to heart. No matter how chaotic reality is, there is a light that leads us to God. There is peace when we believe that all God created was good,” concluded Ms Chung.

The Executive Committee meets from 17–19 January 2024.

For more photo (Photo Gallery) Please Click here: Executive Committee Meeting 2024 Opening Session