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1. Background From the beginning, the exercise of Christian obedience through social responsibility has been one of the key features of the worldwide ecumenical movement. Indeed, Christians have often found it easier to respond to the needs of contemporary society than to resolve the internal divisions within what the Holy Spirit founded at Pentecost as the one church of Jesus Christ. The flagship of this movement has been the World Council of Churches (WCC), though it is far from being the only significant instrument of the ecumenical movement. At every level of th…

[English Version] (Birmingham). 1903 übergab der Schokoladenfabrikant und weithin bekannte Quäker George Cadbury seinen Familiensitz einer Stiftung; dieser sollte als Institut zur Ausbildung der Quäker, nicht zuletzt im sorgfältigen Bibelstudium, dienen. Dies war das erste von etwa zwölf Colleges, die größtenteils für christl. Zwecke gegründet wurden und im 20.Jh. zeitweise einem Verband angehörten, der offiziell 1919 gegründet wurde. Die S.O. C. wurden als ökum. Ausbildungsstätte weltweiter chris…

[English Version] Ranson, Charles Wesley (15.6.1903 Nordirland – 13.1.1988 USA). R. wurde 1929 zum methodistischen Geistlichen geweiht, um als Missionar nach Indien zu gehen; seit 1943 Schriftführer des Nationalen Rates der Christen in Indien, Burma und Ceylon, seit 1945 Leiter der Forschungsabteilung des Internationalen Missionsrats (IMR), Wahl zum Generalsekretär bei der Versammlung des IMR Whitby, Kanada, 1947. Seine Jahre in dieser Schlüsselposition waren durch die oftmals heikle und kontrovers …

[German Version] (Birmingham). In 1903 George Cadbury, the chocolate manufacturer and well-known Quaker, gave his family home to a trust to serve as a college where Quakers could be educated, not least through careful study of the Bible. This was the first of some 12 colleges, most of them founded for Christian purposes. At one time or another in the 20th century they belonged to a federation formally founded in 1919. The Selly Oak Colleges became known internationally for their ecumenical program…

[German Version] The IAMS is an international, interconfessional and interdisciplinary forum for the scholarly study of biblical, theological, and practical questions relating to Christian mission. It was formally established in 1972. Regular conferences have since been held in all five continents and now at four-yearly intervals. The 12th conference took place in Balatonfüred (Hungary) in August 2008. The membership stands at 541 individual, 7 corporate, and 17 associate members. The proceedings …

[German Version] (Jun 15, 1903, Northern Ireland – Jan 13, 1988, USA), was ordained a Methodist minister in 1929 for service as a missionary in India. Appointed as secretary of the National Christian Council of India, Burma, and Ceylon in 1943, he became research secretary of the International Missionary Council (IMC) in 1945 and was elected to serve as general secretary at the IMC meeting in Whitby, Canada, in 1947. His years in that key post were dominated by the often sensitive and controversia…