Despite setbacks and constraints, the cause of greater Christian unity and outward-looking cooperation in Britain and Ireland is still strong, a gathering of ecumenists has said.

The Vatican official responsible for links with other churches, theologian Cardinal Walter Kasper, has rejected suggestions of a "standstill" in the search for Christian unity.

The appointment of a Catholic nun as dean of San Francisco Theological Seminary marks a significant new stage in inter-church cooperation in the United States, say observers.

An international expert on church unity has urged the Roman Catholic Church to declare officially that its longstanding excommunication of Martin Luther no longer applies.

Members of the church-backed Ecumenical Water Network are urging that water be affirmed as a "basic human right" by government delegations meeting in Istanbul at the World Water Forum.

The US National Council of Churches' assembly focused on being global good neighbours, including immigration reform, the meaning of Christian unity in a pluralistic era, and obstacles to unity, racial justice and interfaith dialogue.

The leader of Zimbabwe's largest functioning alliance of Christians says the country's main grouping of traditional Protestant churches and many wider church organizations have been too quiet on what is happening in his country.

The main British party conferences were about to sidestep the economy, but the latest bank crunch has made the topic unavoidable, says Simon Barrow. But do politicians or the churches have anything meaningful to say?

Ideas for "bringing unity down to earth", "communicative action" and a "theology of the wilderness" were among the winning entries submitted for an essay contest on Prospects for Ecumenism in the 21st Century.