WCC News: Interfaith dialogue: protecting our children “a moral and practical imperative”

A new online Interfaith Dialogues Series organized by Religions for Peace, Arigatou International, and the World Council of Churches began on 26 November, marking the World Day of Prayer and Action for Children. 24 May 2022, Rostov-on-Don, Russia: A boy rests his back against the back of a girl at the Iversky Convent in northern Rostov. Following the eruption of war in Ukraine, many refugees from the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine have been taken across the border to the neighbouring Russia. A few dozen of them were offered accommodation and food at the Iversky Convent of the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) in northern Rostov-on-Don. Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC 27 November 2025 The Interfaith Dialogues Series “Advancing the Responsibility to Protect the Rights and Dignity of the Child” is bringing together religious leaders and faith communities to explore how we can advance children’s wellbeing and preserve their dignity through dialogue, shared learning, and collective action. During the first session, religious leaders spoke from experience and connected across traditions and realities. Rev. Keishi Miyamoto, president, Arigatou International, opened the session by reflecting that the gathering occurs at a time marked not only by multiple global crises but also by deep division, antagonism, and insecurity spanning every level of our societies. “Armed conflict, various forms of violence, persistent poverty, forced displacement, and the worsening impacts of climate change continue to devastate communities around the world. In all of this, children are the most affected,” said Miyamoto.  Dr Kezevino Aram, president of Shanti Ashram and founder of the International Center for Child and Public Heath in India, in a keynote speech, called religious leaders to not only act on foundations of science and compassion but to act with intentionality and as an aggregate body.   “We do so not only for our children,” she said. “We do so because we are invested in the way we want to shape our society.” His All Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, spoke of the the sacredness of childhood, which is increasingly threatened in today’s world.  “We cannot ignore the suffering of children caught in war, instability, and poverty. We think especially of the children of Ukraine, many of whom have been displaced, separated from their families, or subjected to the painful erasure of identity.” he said. “We also bear in mind the children of Gaza, Sudan, the Sahel, and every region where violence deprives the young of peace and the possibility of a hopeful future. Their cries place a moral claim upon us all.” The worth of children is not an abstraction, said Patriarch Bartholomew. “It is a moral and practical imperative requiring sustained attention and concerted action,” he said. Imam Yahya Pallavicini, chairman of  the European Muslim Leaders Council and member of Religions for Peace Europe, shared several points on Islamic doctrine on childhood that particularly connect to the holiness of youth. “May God help us in really protecting and developing the really important role of children,” he said. Rev. Fr Dr Cornelius Omonokhua, who spoke from the office of the Nigerian Religious Council, shared the special value people in west Africa place on children. “Our people have a saying that the child is the comfort of the parent and that would mean the child should not be neglected,” he said. “They are links between the past and the future.” The dialogue concluded with a call to action from Prof. Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia, spiritual leader and chairman, Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha, and co-president and international trustee for Religions for Peace International.  “When nations guard borders with armies, let us guard children with purity of thought and spiritual vigilance,” reads the call.  The Interfaith Dialogues Series will continue through November 2026, offering a sustained space for reflection, dialogue, learning, and peer support among religious leaders. Message Of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew for the Interfaith Dialogue “Advancing The Responsibility To Protect The Rights And Dignity Of The Child” WCC's work on Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation Learn more about Churches’ Commitments to Children See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 356 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches Chemin du Pommier 42 Kyoto Building Le Grand-Saconnex CH-1218 Switzerland