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World Council of Churches
Press Release
For Immediate Use
16 April 1997

MECCA FIRE: CONDOLENCES PAID BY WCC GENERAL SECRETARY

Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser, General Secretary of the World Council of
Churches, has today made the following statement:

Christians throughout the world join with Muslim friends today in
their grief and sorrow following the terrifying blaze that killed
and wounded so many Muslim pilgrims from India, Pakistan and
Bangladesh gathered in Mecca for hadj.

The commitment to God of our Muslim brothers and sisters, so
vividly expressed in the pilgrimage of hadj, is in many ways a
challenge for all Christians.  This is why we are particularly
saddened by this tragedy which will cause sorrow among Muslim
communities throughout the world.  The World Council of Churches
expresses deepest condolences to the families and friends of the
victims.  They are very much in our thoughts and prayers.

*Our only comfort is in God, our merciful God, who makes grief
depart from us.'

**********
The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches, now
332, in more than 100 countries in all continents from virtually
all Christian traditions.  The Roman Catholic Church is not a
member church but works cooperatively with the WCC.  The highest
governing body is the Assembly, which meets approximately every
seven years.  The WCC was formally inaugurated in 1948 in
Amsterdam, Netherlands.  Its staff is headed by general secretary
Konrad Raiser from the Evangelical Church in Germany.

World Council of Churches
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