Approving a substantial change in priorities and culture, the World Council of Churches (WCC) 9th Assembly completed its meeting with prayer in Porto Alegre Thursday, and agreed to give priority to spirituality, ecumenical formation, global justice and prophetic witness.

The "Message" of the 9th Assembly is an invitation to prayer. In proposing the document for adoption, message committee moderator Wendy Evans explained that the message is neither a report nor an exhaustive listing of concerns, but that "the message reflects the heart of the...

Walter Altmann, Gennadios of Sassima and Margaretha Hendriks-Ririmasse are, respectively, the new moderator and vice moderators of the WCC central committee.