In Quest of Pedagogies of Encounter

Programme Review and Programme Direction

Two key deliberative sessions during the 15th CCA General Assembly are the Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions.

The Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions will both be conducted in three groups relating to the CCA’s programme areas, namely, (i) General Secretariat (GS), (ii) Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF); and (iii) Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia (PD).

Assembly participants will have the option to join one of three groups for both the Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions. For the sake of coherence, the assigned group will remain the same for both sessions.

General Secretariat

The General Secretariat oversees the coordination of programmatic, administrative, and financial activities of the organization. The GS comprises various departments such as church and ecumenical relations, relations with ecumenical partners, finance, administration, and communications, which provide crucial support and services for the implementation of programs and contribute to the overall functioning of the CCA.

Programmes: Relations with member churches and councils, ecumenical partners; advocacy at the United Nations; ecumenical responses to emerging issues in solidarity; income development and finance; and communications.

Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF)

Under the MU programme area, the CCA accompanies Asian churches to strengthen their mission and witness in multi-religious contexts, revitalise and nurture church unity and the Asian ecumenical movement, and develop contextual theological foundations.

Programmes: Asian Movement for Christian Unity (AMCU); Congress of Asian Theologians (CATS); Asian women doing theology in the context of wider ecumenism; contextualisation of theology in Asia and ecumenical theological education.

The EF programme area focuses on nurturing and developing ecumenical leaders in Asia. The programme aims to enhance spiritual formation and theological understanding, enabling people to actively engage in ecumenical dialogue and collaboration.

Programmes: Ecumenical Enablers’ Training in Asia (EETA); Asian Ecumenical Institute (AEI); Youth and Women Leadership Development; Ecumenical Spirituality and Nurturing of Contextual Liturgical Traditions; Asia Sunday

Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia and Advocacy (PD)

The BP programme area is dedicated to promoting peace, justice, and reconciliation in Asia’s diverse contexts. Through training, advocacy, and dialogue, the programme addresses the root causes of conflicts, empowers communities, and fosters sustainable peacebuilding initiatives.

Programmes: Pastoral Solidarity Visits; Churches in Action for Moving Beyond Conflict and Resolution; Young Ambassadors of Peace in Asia (YAPA); Ecumenical Women’s Action Against Violence (EWAAV); Eco-Justice for Sustainable Peace in the Oikos.

The PD programme area focuses on promoting justice, human rights, and social transformation in Asia. Through advocacy, capacity-building, and raising awareness, the programme addresses systemic injustice, empowers marginalised communities, and advocates for prophetic actions and meaningful change.

Programmes: Human Rights advocacy; Migration, Statelessness, and Trafficking in Persons; Asian Ecumenical Disability Advocacy Network; Asian Advocacy Network on the Dignity and Rights of Children (AANDRoC); Ecumenical Solidarity Accompaniment and Diakonia in Asia (ESADA); Health and Healing; Good Governance; Action Together to Combat HIV and AIDS in Asia (ATCHAA).

No preference updated.

27 May 2003
christian conference of Asia, Asia christianity

How do we build communities of peace and justice in Asia? What pedagogies of encounter with the other will help build communities? These are some of the questions behind the theme, Building Communities: Asians in Search of New Pedagogies of Encounter, which will be the focus of the Fourth Congress of Asian Theologians (CATS IV).

Plans are underway for CATS IV set on 4-10 August 2003 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. No less than 80 Asian theologians and some guests are expected to gather.

Unique to this fourth gathering is the one-day Womens Forum on August 4 for all the women participants of CATS IV. This is a special time for women to be together, share concerns as women theologians in a predominantly male-dominated field and gathering. The Womens Forum is expected to make a collective statement at the CATS gathering.

Like in the previous CATS gatherings, keynote address and theme presentations will be made by Asian theologians.

Dr. Wong Wai Ching, professor at Chinese University of Hong Kong and current co-moderator of CATS, will give the keynote address. Responding to her will be Dr. P Mohan Larbeer, a Dalit theologian and current principal of Tamilnadu Theological Seminary in India.

Theme presentors will be Dr. Clive Pearson, professor at United Theological College in Australia who will make a religious and cultural proposal on the theme; and Dr. Ninan Koshy, former director of International Affairs, World Council of Churches, who will make a socio-political and economic proposal on the theme.

Responding to Pearson will be Sr. Dr. Mary John Mananzan, president of St. Scholasticas College in the Philippines, and to Koshy will be Dr. Gabriele Dietrich, professor of social analysis in Tamilnadu Theological Seminary in India.

There will also be time for participants to meet in discipline groups according to the following: Religious Education, Missiology, Biblical Hermeneutics, Ecumenism, Theological Methods, Ethics and Social Analysis, and Spirituality and Liturgy. Later there will also be time for issue groups to deal with issues that may arise from the presentations and discussions.

CATS is an independent body but presently assisted and facilitated by the Christian Conference of Asia. Participation in CATS is through membership. However, limited space is also given to overseas guests.

CATS is run by a Continuation Committee composed of elected individuals and representatives of the following organizations: CCA, PTCA (Programme for Theologies and Cultures in Asia), ATESEA (Association of Theological Education in South East Asia), and SATHRI (South Asia Theological Research Institute).

Hosting CATS this year is the Payap University in Chiang Mai led by Dr. Pradit Takerngrangsit, vice-president of Payap University.