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Taking as its starting point the 1966 World Conference on Church and Society in Geneva, which marked the beginnings of a fundamental change in the understanding of ecumenical social ethics within the World Council of Churches (WCC), this article discusses the role of the conference in this shift in perspective from the idea of the "responsible society" to the emergence of a form of postcolonial ecumenism. It traces the emergence of the responsible society as a guiding principle for the WCC and, in particular, the role in this of the US social ethicist Paul Abrecht, as well as how a focus on rapid social change helped strengthen and consolidate churches in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. These churches would then articulate the beginnings of a postcolonial understanding of ecumenical social ethics at the Geneva conference, which would in turn lead to the development of new programmes on social justice after the WCC's 4th Assembly in Uppsala in 1968. The article concludes by discussing the tension between the two guiding principles in the decade that followed the Uppsala assembly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article recalls the history of the relationships between the World Council of Churches (WCC) and Pentecostal churches from the early years of the WCC until today. One of the greatest challenges currently facing the WCC is the shift in focus of Christianity to the South and the East, a phenomenon to which emerging Pentecostal and charismatic churches and communities are contributing. Alongside global cultural trends in the context of globalisation, Pentecostal and charismatic piety and spirituality are increasingly affecting the older churches as well. While some see this negatively, many see it as an expression of adaptation to new challenges necessary for the survived of these churches. The article shorn bow the changing ecclesial context led to the WCC to explore new avenues for building relationships such as a Joint Consultative Group and the Global Christian Forum. Keywords Pentecostal churches, World Council of Churches, Global Christian Forum, Joint Consultative Group between the WCC and Pentecostals, David du Plessis, Walter Hollenweger, Konrad Raiser, Cecil M. Robeck, The ecumenical movement can be described as a polycentric network of churches, ecumenical organizations, and associations while the World Council of Churches (WCC), as a fellowship of churches, particularly of [...]

This article discusses the role played by Konrad Raiser in the World Council of Churches (WCC), from 1969, when he joined the staff as a study secretary, to his time as general secretary from 1993 to 2003, and especially his role in the conciliar process for Justice, Peace, and the Integrity of Creation. As general secretary, Raiser played a key role in supporting and encouraging the churches' witness for peace and nonviolence, strengthening the fellowship of churches within the WCC through the process to develop a 'Common Understanding and Vision' and the Special Commission on Orthodox Participation in the WCC. Keywords Konrad Raiser, World Council of Churches, ecumenical movement, conciliar process, Decade to Overcome Violence, Orthodox churches, Konrad Raiser served as general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) from 1993 to 2003, but first joined the staff of the WCC in 1969 as study secretary [...]

In 1995--fifty years after Dietrich Bonhoeffer was hanged in Flossenburg--I visited the Union Theological Seminary in New York. Bonhoeffer had studied there in 1930 and 1931 and returned to Union [...]

Kuncheria Pathil. Future of the Ecumenical Movement. Delhi: ISPCK, 2017, 228 pp. This is a thought-provoking book, and, precisely because of that, an encouraging one. Kuncheria Pathil shares insights of [...]

Konrad Raiser. 500 Jahre Reformation weltweit (500 Years of Reformation Worldwide). Studienreihe Luther 7, Bielefeld: Luther Verlag, 2016, 232 pp. Before writing about a subject he is asked to address, [...]