Global Ecumenical Theology

NATI-RETI 2026 is a fully immersive, two-week residential theological learning program jointly organized by the Canadian Council of Churches (CCC) and the National Council of Churches USA (NCC), with accompaniment from the World Council of Churches (WCC). Themed "Where Now for Visible Justice?", it brings together 50 emerging Christian leaders from across North America-Turtle Island for intensive theological engagement across six pillars: Indigenous solidarity, anti-racism, secularism, poverty, climate justice, and interfaith dialogue. The program employs a three-tiered pedagogical approach (intellectual, spiritual, contextual) adapted from the WCC's Global Ecumenical Theological Institutes model. 
This course is structured around six thematic pillars, each addressing a critical dimension of visible justice: (1) Climate Justice, (2) Secularism and Laicity, (3) Racism and Anti-Racism, (4) Interfaith Dialogue, (5) Solidarity with Indigenous Communities, and (6) Wealth Disparity and Poverty. Through these pillars, participants will develop the theological grounding, analytical competencies, and practical skills to engage questions of justice in their ecclesial, ecumenical, and civic contexts. Participants will learn to articulate a theologically grounded vision of visible justice drawing on diverse ecumenical, Indigenous, and contextual traditions; to analyze the structural dimensions of injustice in North American societies, including the legacies of colonialism, racism, economic inequality, and ecological crisis; and to engage across differences of confession, culture, and religious tradition in the service of shared ecumenical witness.