Kirkkojen maailmanneuvosto etsii pääsihteeriä

Kirkkojen maailmanneuvoston (KMN) ilmoitti keskuskomiteansa kokouksessa toukokuussa 2018 ettei pääsihteeri Olav Fykse Tveit tavoittele kolmatta pääsihteerikautta. KMN hakee nyt uutta pääsihteeriä jäsenkirkkojensa piiristä.

 

Pääsihteeri toimii KMN:n edustajana kansainvälisesti ja johtaa KMN:n työntekijöitä Genevessä Sveitsissä. Lisätietoja pääsihteerin roolista ja tehtävän vaatimuksista alla ja liitteessä englanniksi. Hakijan tulee toimittaa hakulomake ja suosituskirje omalta kirkoltaan 1. toukokuuta 2019 mennessä. Hakuprosessi etenee hakuajan umpeuduttua siten, että hakijalistauksesta päättävä työryhmä kokoontuu heinäkuussa ja haastattelut pidetään marraskuussa 2019. Valintaprosessin loppusuoralle valikoituneet hakijat kutsutaan KMN:n keskuskomitean kokoukseen maaliskuussa 2020.

 

 

World Council of Churches – General Secretary Role and Responsibilities

 

WCC Basis

"The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches which confess the Lord

Jesus Christ as God and Saviour according to the scriptures and therefore seek to

fulfill together their common calling to the glory of the one God, Father, Son and Holy

Spirit." (WCC Constitution Article I)

 

WCC Purposes and Functions

"The World Council of Churches is constituted by the churches to serve the one

ecumenical movement. It incorporates the work of the world movements for Faith

and Order and Life and Work, the International Missionary Council, and the World

Council of Christian Education. The primary purpose of the fellowship of churches in

the World Council of Churches is to call one another to visible unity in one faith and

in one eucharistic fellowship, expressed in worship and common life in Christ,

through witness and service to the world, and to advance towards that unity in order

that the world may believe." (WCC Constitution Article III)

 

Program Priorities (2013–2021)

In the WCC's 10th assembly (Busan 2013) formulated the Council´s program

priorities of the current period. The WCC is working within the framework of

programs, each of which builds on past work in these areas, under the over-arching

theme Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace (Each program area includes on-going and

time-bound projects and activities):

1. Unity, Mission and Ecumenical Relations
2. Public Witness and Diakonia
3. Ecumenical Formation

In 2014, the central committee identified overall objectives of the Council’s

engagement in the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace, focusing on

· a life-affirming economy

· climate change

· just peace

· human rights

 

In 2018, the central committee adopted the WCC strategic plan for 2018-2021,

maintaining the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace as the strategic direction; and reaffirming

the five strategic objectives:

- Strengthening the fellowship

- Witnessing together

- Encouraging spirituality, reflection and ecumenical formation

- Building trust and understanding

- Inspiring and innovative communication

 

Authority

“The general secretary shall lead the work of the World Council of Churches and

shall speak on its behalf. The general secretary shall serve as the chief executive

officer of the Council, including final responsibility for the work of the Council and its

staff.”¹

 

Responsibility

“The general secretary shall have the responsibility to interpret and promote the

strategic vision of the WCC consistent with its Basis and Purposes, the mandates of

the assemblies during which he/she serves, and in consultation with its governance

leadership and governing bodies. The general secretary will represent the WCC in its

strategic leadership role for the one ecumenical movement, interpreting the

programs of the WCC to the member churches, ecumenical partners, secular bodies

and governmental authorities, and the world at large.

 

Consistent with the Constitution and Rules of the World Council of Churches and

with Swiss law, the general secretary shall identify staff and consultants qualified and

mandated to develop and implement the WCC´s programs and objectives as

approved by the governing bodies, and oversee their work. Together with WCC staff

and consultants, the general secretary shall listen to, gather, analyze, interpret and

respond to the changing religious and cultural context, the changing ecclesial and

ecumenical context, the changing international and political context, and the

changing economic and social context as these affect the member churches, the

fellowship of churches and the ecumenical movement.”²

 

Currently, the WCC is engaged in a long-term development of its real property in

Geneva (the “Green Village” site development). The general secretary shall oversee

the development of this project and assure its feasibility – in cooperation with the

appropriate leadership of the central committee.

 

Delegation

“The general secretary shall be accountable to the central committee for the

programs, policies and strategic direction of the Council, and will delegate to

competent qualified staff appropriate responsibilities and assure the effective,

efficient and transparent management of the human and financial resources of the

Council.”³

 

Qualifications

The general secretary shall be expected to be a gifted, skilled and experienced

Christian theologian; a leader with deep spiritual discernment alert to the `signs of

the times´, grounded in the Scriptures and prayer. He/she needs to be able to

articulate and communicate theological reflections to a wider audience. He/she shall

thereby strengthen the voice of the Council in international affairs, interreligious

dialogue, as well as in mission and evangelism.

“He/she will be an active lay or ordained member of a Christian community that is

one of the member churches of the WCC .

 

The general secretary will be expected to demonstrate

(a) deep knowledge and experience with the World Council of Churches,

(b) understanding of, respect and sensitivity for its various member churches and

ecumenical partners,

(c) commitment to hold in balance the different historical streams of work of the

Council (Faith and Order, Mission and Evangelism, Education and Ecumenical

Formation, and Life and Work), and

(d) a clear commitment to the world-wide mission of the Church today.

 

He/she must have a breadth and depth of vision for the future of the WCC and the

ecumenical movement and must be able to articulate, orally and in writing, the

possibilities and promise of the ecumenical movement, and be deeply committed to

ecumenism and the purposes of the WCC. He/she will lead the development of the

WCC in ways consistent with the stated program priorities.

He/she must have knowledge of, and relationships with, other faith communities and

be committed to inter-religious dialogue and cooperation.

 

Among the most crucial administrative roles of the general secretary will be his/her

intentional cultivation of teamwork and respect within the staff of the WCC and

between and among the staff and the members of governing bodies, and of the

ethos of consensus. He/she shall listen to the staff and build consensus within the

team, seeking to encourage connections to be made between the various areas of

work. The general secretary shall encourage and nurture staff expertise,

commitment and dialogue, made manifest in a dedicated and spiritual community of

the Council.”⁴

 

Requirements

1. A nomination and recommendation must be received from the leadership of the

WCC member church of which the applicant is a member.

2. A post-graduate degree in theology, preferably a doctorate.

3. Normally fluent in English and at least one other WCC working language.

4. Knowledge of the WCC and demonstrated commitment to its aims as stated in

the WCC Constitution.

 

Term of Appointment and Appraisals

The normal term of appointment for the general secretary shall be five years, unless

some other period is stated in the resolution making the appointment.

Periodic appraisals, including self-appraisals of the general secretary shall be

conducted for the benefit of both the general secretary and the governing bodies, in

order to provide constructive feedback on his or her performance relative to stated

expectations and provide an opportunity to improve.

Retirement shall normally be at sixty-five for both men and women and in no event

shall it be later than the end of the year in which a staff member reaches the age of

sixty-eight.⁵

 

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_{1 World Council of Churches, Supplement to the Rules, 2012.
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
4 Ibid.
5 cf. Constitution and Rules of the World Council of Churches, and Supplement to the Rules.}