“Interfaith Cooperation in Peace Building is a Priority”, Asian Ecumenical Leaders Affirm

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).

First Preference:
Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia and Advocacy (PD)
Second Preference:
Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF)
01 March 2016

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“Interfaith Cooperation for Peace Building in Asia is a priority concern of the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) and the Asia Pacific Alliance of Young Men’s Christian Association (APAY). Both organisations are committed to support and lead the Interfaith Cooperation Forum activities through respective networks in various countries",  stated the General Secretaries of CCA and APAY during  the Working Committee and Joint Working Group Meetings of the Interfaith Cooperation Forum (ICF)   held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 25 to 27 February 2016.

ICF, initiated by CCA and APAY in 2003 with the assistance of the Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst - EED / Bread for the World, facilitates interfaith activities of justice and peace in Asia.

“Peace building in conflict-affected societies and reconciliation to move beyond conflicts for sustained peace with justice in post-conflict communities are priorities for CCA and its new program structure that gives special thrusts to peace building.The activities through ICF  initiated by CCA and APAY more than a decade ago will have an added value to  CCA’s peace building programs in Asia’s multi-religious contexts where interfaith perspective is essential”, said Dr. Mathews George Chunakara, General Secretary of CCA.

General Secretary of APAY Nam Boo-won  stated during the meeting that “the YMCA movement in the Asia Pacific region through its 27 national affiliated bodies is committed to implement peace building programs in the coming years and interfaith perspective of peace and justice is important in most national situations in APAY’s work.”

The Joint Working Group meeting scheduled a special program on ‘School of Peace’ (SoP) for two weeks with the participation of representatives from CCA and APAY constituencies in various Asian countries, which will be held in Siem Reap, Cambodia in August 2016.

The main activity of ICF is the annual School of Peace which brings together up to twenty young people belonging to different religions and faith groups. The group shares a living and learning together experience for fourteen weeks.

The ICF activities have been coordinated by Max Edigar, a peace activist /trainer from the Mennonite Central Committee,  who has been living and working in Asia for more than forty years. He started to work as a peace volunteer during the Vietnam war.  Explaining the experiences of the participants who had undergone the SoP training, Max Edigar said that, “the participants share a common goal: Let us sit down together in this field of pain, and let us talk of things which bring peace.”

ICF provides platforms for several other activities such as workshops, internships as well as ongoing mentoring support to the participants after their return to their home countries.