13.08.07 15:38 Age: 1 yrs

Mission work must not target the vulnerable, says WCC’s Hans Ucko

 

Rev. Dr Hans Ucko.

 

In a radio interview yesterday, Rev. Dr Hans Ucko described the concern for interfaith relations and religious freedom which motivated the World Council of Churches (WCC) to co-sponsor an intra-Christian consultation on conversion. Ucko, the World Council of Churches (WCC) programme executive for inter-religious dialogue and cooperation, spoke with a reporter for the US-based National Public Radio.

 

The consultation taking place in Toulouse, France, last week, is part of a three-year study project jointly undertaken by the WCC and the Roman Catholic Church. It saw the participation of some 30 Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Pentecostal and Evangelical theologians and church representatives.

 

Explaining what is sought in a code of conduct for conversion, Ucko suggested that Christians ought to dissociate themselves from any mission work that targets the vulnerable with offers of money or promises of better education for new converts.

 

Listen to the interview (4 min) on the website of National Public Radio

 

Read a WCC press release on the consultation