World Council of Churches -
News Release
Contact: + 41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363
media@wcc-coe.org
For immediate release:
4 February 2010
Two new scholarship endowments for Bossey
The endowment of two new scholarship funds geared towards facilitating studies at the Ecumenical Institute of the World Council of Churches (WCC) was celebrated at the graduation ceremony for the 61st session of the institute's
Graduate School of Ecumenical Studies
on 3 February.
The
Bishop Vinton R. Anderson Ecumenical Leadership Scholarship Fund
was created to provide support for African Methodist Episcopal students attending the Graduate School of Ecumenical Studies. The fund was initiated by Bishop Anderson of the
African Methodist Episcopal Church
in the USA. Born 1927 in Bermuda, he was the first African American to serve as WCC President for North America (1991-98).
With an initial capital of 100,000 US dollars, the fund was established as part of the Ecumenical Trust in New York, USA, which, among other functions, collects donations in favour of the Ecumenical Institute.
The
Elisabeth and Jan Remijn-Oerlemans Scholarship Fund
is being created from a legacy of some 100,000 Swiss francs bequeathed to the Ecumenical Institute by Elisabeth Remijn, née Oerlemans. In 1948, she had participated in the founding assembly of the WCC in Amsterdam.
The Reformed parish of Interlaken, where Elisabeth and her husband Jan Remijn lived for many years, is one of the parishes that regularly receive visits from students of the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey, Switzerland. Jan Remijn was the pastor of Unterseen until his death in 1986. Supported by his wife, he has initiated an ongoing programme of worship services in Dutch for the many holiday guests in the region.
More information on the Ecumenical Institute:
http://bossey.ch
Additional information:
Juan Michel,+41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363
media@wcc-coe.org
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 349 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 560 million Christians in over 110 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, from the [Lutheran] Church of Norway. Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
