WCC news: Bossey’s 80th celebration reiterates “counter-cultural witness to the kingdom of the God of life”

As the official 80th anniversary celebration for the World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Institute at Bossey began on 7 October with an opening prayer, Rev. Prof. Dr Odair Pedroso Mateus, former deputy general secretary of WCC, offered a sermon from the perspective of one who served Bossey for 16 years, particularly in the chair of ecumenical theology. Photo: Marcelo Schneider/WCC 7 October 2026 “I wish to express to the Bossey faculty my deep gratitude for the invitation to bring you a brief message on this festive occasion,” said Mateus. “I also take this opportunity to bring you greetings from the parish council of Saint Peter’s Cathedral of Geneva, which I co-preside.” He gave thanks for Bossey and for the future of ecumenical theological education and formation amidst global and ecumenical perplexities and challenges. “Does it still make sense to embrace and serve the ecumenical movement when its contemporary resources and results are no longer what they were 50 or 60 years ago?” he asked. “Does it make sense to embrace and serve ecumenical education and formation when many churches refuse to draw the implications of their membership in the World Council of Churches for the way they define and practice ministerial formation?” He further asked: Does it make sense to embrace and serve ecumenical education and formation when chairs of ecumenism and ecumenical institutes disappear one after the other and, with them, disappears the vital transmission of the ecumenical memory to new generations?  “Of course, my answer is yes!” he said. “For at least two reasons. The first reason is that the search for visible Christian unity is not a matter of choice but a matter of obedience to the Gospel.” The second reason, Mateus said, is very contemporary. “In times of climate emergency, in times in which the superpowers place the law of the strongest above the strength of international law, in times in which Christians in well-known countries support Christian nationalism, white supremacy, and toxic masculinities, in times as ours, the biblical, spiritual, and moral values that guide the ecumenical movement are and should remain a counter-cultural witness to the kingdom of the God of life,” he said. “When churches listen together rather than separately to the Word of God, they run less risks of falling into the temptation of following the voice of other lords, that means, presidents, prime-ministers, influencers, and so forth.” Read the full sermon Photo gallery Learn more about the 80th anniversary of Bossey Photo: Marcelo Schneider/WCC See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 356 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches Chemin du Pommier 42 Kyoto Building Le Grand-Saconnex CH-1218 Switzerland