“Diakonia must be inclusive—not merely doing acts of kindness to others from a position of wealth or privilege,” says Rev. Matthew Ross of WCC at ACELC

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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    Rev Mathew Ross (WCC) delivers the ACELC Thematic Address on 'Ecumenical Diakonia – Called to Transformation'

    Jakarta, Indonesia: At the Asian Church and Ecumenical Leaders’ Conference (ACELC), Rev. Matthew Ross, Programme Executive for Diakonia and Capacity-building with the World Council of Churches (WCC), delivered a presentation on ‘Ecumenical Diakonia: Called to Transformation’.

    Rev. Ross stated, “Diakonia must be inclusive—not merely doing acts of kindness to others from a position of wealth or privilege, but recognising that human beings are equal in God’s sight, and that diaconal service must involve and engage the users rather than treating them as  passive recipients from whom gratitude is anticipated.”

    While outlining the principles of ecumenical diakonia, Rev. Ross, a Scottish theologian said, “Witness and service are crucial for the Church: mission, diakonia, and ecumenism belong together and to the heart of what it means to be the Church. The Church has a duty and calling to advocacy and service. We must strive to make a better society for all—as advocates for peace and reconciliation, countering hatred, and working for human flourishing.” 
     
    Rev. Ross further stated, “Diakonia is church-related social care—an integral part of Christian service which we in faith are called to do. Faith is our response to God’s grace, so sustained by worship, prayer, and the Word of God, we are called to live out God’s grace and love in loving neighbour as self. Yet, we cannot do this alone. We need to work in collaboration with our Christian sisters and brothers. In working together, we increase our capacity and maximise the benefits for those who need them most. Hence, ecumenical diakonia.”

    Rev. Ross presented an overview of the document adopted by the WCC Central Committee, ‘Ecumenical Diakonia: Called to Transformation’, jointly published by the WCC and ACT Alliance, and also spoke about the work of the WCC in promoting diakonia. 

    Rev. Tara Tautari from the Methodist Church in New Zealand asked about the position of the document on bilateral and multilateral diakonia, given the danger of power imbalances of the bilateral diakonia. 

    Juliate Malakar from the Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh and Karmila Jusup from the Mission21 Asia Regional Office sought Rev. Ross’ opinion on how churches could respond to the climate crisis through diakonia. 

    The second part of the ACELC jointly organised by the CCA and WCC was mainly focusing on the capacity-building of Asian churches in strengthening diakonia at every level of churches’ mission and witness.  

    More photos can be found here.