Welcome to the WYEC Website
Thank you for visiting the website of West Yorkshire Ecumenical Council (WYEC).
WYEC brings together the churches of West Yorkshire and much of North Yorkshire in common witness and mission.
WYEC's SUMMER NEWSLETTER OUT NOW!
Read all about recent and forthcoming events and developments in the world of churches together in the WYEC region; see the WYEC Newsletter, Summer 2010.
CHRISTIANS LEARNING ACROSS YORKSHIRE
One of the best regional collaborations of the churches is in providing courses for everyone. See the latest CLAY leaflet to find out what's on this coming autumn and winter.
CHURCHES TOGETHER, COMING TOGETHER
Churches Together groups across Leeds came together for a consultation in Holy Trinity Church, Boar Lane. This assembly, for mutual support and the sharing of news and resources, was jointly organised by WYEC and Leeds Churches Together in Mission. It was the latest in a series of WYEC consultations with Churches Together groups in metropolitan districts across West Yorkshire. Read all about it!
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MISSION AND PEACE, FOR THE WORLD AND THE CITY A member of the World Council of Churches team promoting the Decade to Overcome Violence, Dr. Deenabandhu Manchala, led a WYEC-sponsored event in Leeds. Dr. Manchala was in the UK attending Edinburgh 2010, a celebration of the origins of the ecumenical movement at a 1910 Mission Conference in that city. Visiting Leeds, Dr Manchala delivered a world perspective on how faith groups can promote peace and overcome violence in the city. |
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For the General Election, WYEC joined with the Bradford Racial Justice Group to produce a colour poster / leaflet aimed at churches and communities. The message was: 'The churches of your area encourage you to Use Your Cross - Vote responsibly for a better world'. The high turnout was good for democracy and helped to reduce the impact of extremist parties. Churches were urged to display and distribute the poster in local communities. Download a poster. |
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Over 14 Churches Together groups and other faith groups in our region held hustings meetings for the General Election. 2010 Election Overview summarises what happened. |
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DIALOGUE ON 'AUTHORITY AND THE CHURCH'
18 March. The Bishop of Wakefield and Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor engaged in ecumenical dialogue at packed Wakefield Cathedral. The Cardinal identified the enemies of ecumenism as 'suspicion, inertia and impatience', adding that, 'There is no ecumenism worthy of the name without interior conversion, newness of attitude and unstinting love'.
SEEKING PROTECTION
1 March. A group of WYEC church leaders has met with senior officials of the Leeds office of the UK Borders Agency to discuss the policies and practices of the agency. This is part of a continuing dialogue which reflects the churches' concerns for the well-being of people seeking protection (asylum) in this country. The WYEC delegation, pictured, included the Revd. Dr. Liz Smith (Chair, Leeds Methodist District), the Rt. Revd. John Packer (Bishop of Ripon and Leeds) and Mgr. Michael McQuinn (Vicar General, Catholic Diocese of Leeds).
CHURCH LEADERS SPEAK OUT ON RICH-POOR DIVIDE
On Ash Wednesday, 17 February, WYEC church leaders issued a public statement, 'Every Person Matters. They criticised the gap between the richest and poorest people in our society, a gap linked to bad health, crime and poor education; a gap which puts pressure on our communities.
In contrast, they affirmed the work of local churches in building social capital - a concern for others, a sense of community and respect for other people.
In the run up to the General Election, the statement called on politicians to reduce economic inequality and embrace the community values of the churches.
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The statement was made at St Christopher's Church, Holme Wood, Bradford on Wednesday 17 February. See a) the text of the statement,
Pictured: WYEC Chair, Pastor Gloria Hanley, with the Revd. David Gamble, Chair of the Methodist Conference, at the launch of the WYEC Church Leaders' public statement. |
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UNITY POST 2010,
It reports on the amazing things being done by churches working together across central Yorkshire. A page by page download
Unity Post is distributed by your local Churches Together group. |
THE WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY, 18-25 JANUARY
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, 2010, saw large scale pulpit exchanges from Wakefield to Wetherby, daily ecumenical prayer groups in many churches across the region, and countless united services following the national theme 'You are my witnesses'.
In Golcar, Huddersfield, the Week of Prayer was marked by the signing of an Ecumenical Covenant between the local Anglican, Baptist and Methodist churches.
ECUMENICAL WELCOME
| Congratulations to the churches of Upper Wharfedale which have become the first in the WYEC region to offer an Ecumenical Welcome to Christians of any tradition in their area. The Declaration of Ecumenical Welcome was made in Kettlewell Parish Church and the other churches in the area on 3 January. |  |
CHRISTIANS LEARNING ACROSS YORKSHIRE
The latest (January - September 2010) CLAY leaflet for ecumenical short courses and training is available here.
BANGING THE DRUM FOR PEOPLE SEEKING SANCTUARY
In a colourful - and at times noisy! - carol service in Bradford Cathedral, West Yorkshire church leaders celebrated the Christmas story along with asylum seekers, refugees and their supporters. Bible readings were heard in Farsi and Assyrian, and musical contributors included people from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe and Malawi. The Sambalifax Band from Halifax had us dancing in the aisles!
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West Yorkshire Ecumenical Council consists of church leaders and ecumenical officers from: |
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The Anglican Diocese of Bradford |
The Yorkshire Baptist Association |
The Anglican Diocese of Ripon and Leeds |
The Yorkshire Synod of the United Reformed Church |
The Anglican Diocese of Wakefield |
The Yorkshire Division of the Salvation Army |
The Catholic Diocese of Leeds |
The Lutheran Church in Yorkshire |
The Leeds District of the Methodist Church |
The Yorkshire District of the Moravian Church |
The West Yorkshire District of the Methodist Church |
West Yorkshire African Caribbean Council of Churches |
The Yorkshire General Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) |
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Together, we are committed:
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