"Panta ta Ethni" - or "All the Nations" - is the magazine of Apostoliki Diakonia ("apostolic ministry of service"), the mission and publishing unit of the Church of Greece. "Solidarity" is the church's non-governmental organization (NGO) sponsoring development projects in more than two dozen countries. The names are instructive, representing Greek Orthodox commitment to follow Jesus into all the world.

"After 21 years of war, reconciliation is a great challenge in Sudan," says bishop John Kongi, from the Africa Inland Church, which has some 97,000 members, 160 local congregations and headquarters in the capital Kartoum.

When 22-year-old Yeukai Chikwizo travelled 25 hours from Zimbabwe to Greece, she had no idea that she would soon be playing a visible role in Tuesday’s opening worship ceremonies at the 13th Conference on World Mission and Evangelism.

"This conference reminds me of our Kirchentag in Germany," says Pastor Guenter Baum of the German association of Protestant churches and agencies in mission. "It does not concentrate on plenary sessions or the preparation of resolutions but builds a sense of community through Bible study in small groups and prayer in larger gatherings."

It seems a long time ago that the conference planning committee discussed ideas for a logo for the conference and considered various designs. This included discussion about the symbol of the cross.

In the land of Sophocles and Aristophanes, youth delegates and stewards took to the stage Wednesday morning at the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism near Athens, Greece. Without resorting to spoken words, nine young performers enacted the shattering of a community circle and desecration of the cross through acts of racism, colonialism, exclusion, ecological destruction and prejudice against the poor, women and persons with HIV/AIDS. These victims were portrayed by women, but the remaining man was labelled as a victim of his own ignorance.

What do a Norwegian Lutheran woman and a Greek Orthodox man have in common? A love of mission of course! Beate Fagerli is the Geneva-based CWME staff conference coordinator, and Dimitri Pasakos is the local organizer in Athens. Both have worked tirelessly - and their colleagues would say miraculously - for the last year to think, write, coordinate, plan, telephone, e-mail, cajole and convince their way to this unique world gathering.

Representatives of the Christian churches of Jerusalem bore gifts to Tuesday morning prayer at the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism near Athens: a five-metre cross made from Palestinian olive trees to serve as a focal point for prayer, small cross pendants carved from olive wood, and olive oil to provide light in the conference's worship tent.

"The Church of Greece wishes to sustain Greek hospitality to the international community and to offer the floor to WCC member churches for a fertile and creative exchange of missionary experiences," said the archbishop of Athens and All Greece. His Beatitude Christodoulos was delivering a welcome message to the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism- a week after Orthodox Easter, and one year after the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.

To be held in Athens at the invitation of the Church of Greece, this is a major international meeting of more than 500 representatives from all continents and all major churches and denominations. Scheduled to take place from 9-16 May 2005, the conference is being organized by the World Council of Churches (WCC).