Editorial: the quarterly of the World Council of Churches.

Best, Thomas F. ; Robra, Martin

God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. (Gen. 1:31)

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God's sight. (Luke 12:6)

We live within a world which God has created--and we are not the only ones, for we share this planet with countless other living beings. This issue of The Ecumenical Review begins with an exploration of our responsibility, as Christians and as human beings, to care for this web of life which God has made.

But what does care for mean in practice? We have moved beyond the simplistic slogans which blame "Christendom", and in particular "its" interpretation of Genesis 1:28, for the ecological crisis now confronting this planet and its inhabitants, both human and non-human. Having abandoned slogans we find ourselves facing complex issues and choices, some of them in areas literally unheard-of just a few years ago. To an unprecedented degree faith finds itself challenged to speak, on the basis of its fundamental principles, a word of hope, a word of wisdom, and, not seldom, a word of truth to power--truly a task which calls for the best efforts of the whole ecumenical movement.

A first set of articles reflects the current WCC initiative "Caring for Life", with its development of earlier work to build sustainable, truly human communities and its renewed affirmation of the spiritual dimension of life (not least in the face of new technologies which invite--no, tempt--humanity to try to play God). Two articles place the theme of caring for life in the context of concern for God's creation as a whole. An account of Orthodox perspectives, in all their coherence and complexity, on the theological bases of this theme is followed by reflections on a "spirituality of life" from a perspective of Asian women.

Two articles then place the theme in an insistently personal perspective. Responding to incidents of abuse in pastoral relationships, a church leader calls for a deeper theological appreciation of the human body--our own bodies--as God's creation. An article on hermeneutics reminds us that reading texts is not an objective enterprise, but involves our whole selves as embodied persons.

Three articles (from members of a small working group on genetic engineering formed by the WCC's Justice, Peace and Creation team) address challenges which were unthinkable only a generation ago. One tackles the ethical issues posed by stem-cell research and human cloning, two of the most controversial possibilities given us by the new bio-technologies. There follow two critiques of the genetic modification of living organisms (foodstuffs) by industrial agriculture, raising the spectre of the colonialization of nature itself, at the expense of local initiatives and control.

One vocation of the ecumenical community is surely to participate in the public debate and discussion of how best to care for the life which God has created. Thus these articles are supplemented by a contribution on the WCC's involvement in the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg, September 2002), illustrating how theological and ethical concerns inform and guide the engagement of the WCC in the framework of the United Nations and other public fora.

A second set of articles reminds us that it is only in communities, vulnerable and sometimes fragile as they are, that we can become fully human. One is a shattering account of one South African's struggle to come to terms with September 11th 2001 by placing it in wider contexts: of violence and human suffering on an even more massive scale, and of the search for personal and national identity. Another article asks what theological lessons can be drawn from an analysis of the Dalits' search for their rightful place in Indian society--and in the church. Another article, drawing on but not limited to the South African experience, explores the notion of human rights in relation to minorities today, on the basis of theological and biblical principles.

A final set of articles deals with themes related to worship. Two focus on the language spoken by theology and the church, exploring issues raised in some contexts by the use of the traditional trinitarian formula today. These articles are offered as a contribution to the continuing reflection on this issue. In the clarity of their own positions, and the charity with which they approach the positions of others, they might well serve as a model for the ecumenical discussion of sensitive topics. A third article examines the lengthy and complex process leading to the production of a new church hymnal. Bear in mind that most Christians learn most of their theology through the hymns they sing in church; and that a carefully crafted hymnal reveals little less than the heart--and soul--of the church which has produced it. Readers should not be surprised to find here a whole range of issues both theologically serious and emotionally charged.

In conclusion, the latest instalment of the church union survey traces, in the words of local correspondents, the latest developments in church union processes underway around the world. The family of united and uniting churches is the most varied and diverse of all the confessional--we acknowledge that the term does not quite fit--groupings today, and this is well reflected in the accounts gathered here.

We express thanks to all our contributors, and the hope that this issue of The Ecumenical Review will be of service to the ecumenical movement in its reflections on the world--and on the church, for the sake of the world.