In his first sermon as general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), the Rev. Olav Tveit spoke of the sonship God has given to those in the ecumenical movement, and encouraged believers to be a beacons of peace and justice amidst the numerous crises in the world.

"The beginning of a year opens up the possibilities of new days, weeks and months; in this case also of a new decade," Tveit said, speaking on Monday at the WCC's headquarters in Geneva. "Yet as we enter into the second decade of the 21st century, the world continues to face many crises taken over from the old decade: financial crisis, climate crisis, a food crisis, a new wave of terrorism and violence, new burdens of injustice and violations of human rights for many peoples in different cultures, of different ethnicities and faiths."

"These realities are brought home to us week by week as we pray for the different countries and their peoples through the ecumenical prayer cycle, last week Iran, Iraq, Yemen among others … this week Turkey, Greece and Cyprus."

"We start this year also with a greater concern for the religious freedom of some of our Christian sisters and brothers in several places," he said

Speaking from the text in Luke about Jesus' baptism in the Jordan, Tveit called the biblical event a "beginning" for the ecumenical movement, and asked the church to "celebrate and remind one another how much we are given in the name of Jesus, as we enter into the many fights against evil, against injustice, against our own shortcomings and sins."

"Our life together can begin in the blessed name of Jesus, the beloved, just as everything in the past can be seen in the light of Jesus and everything in the future can be faced in the name of Jesus."

Tveit, a 48-year-old Norwegian theologian and pastor from the Lutheran Church of Norway, was elected to the general secretary position in August 2009 at a meeting of the WCC's central committee. The new secretary succeeds the Rev. Samuel Kobia, a Methodist from Kenya who headed the WCC for six years.

In his sermon, Tveit recalled how Kobia had planted an olive tree at the site of Jesus' baptism in the Jordan as a sign of the WCC's commitment to peace.

"This, then, is the perspective in which I see my calling as I now succeed Sam," Tveit said. "We are one in the name of Jesus, the beloved and the loving Son."

"Jesus calls us all to follow him in a daily conversion from evil; to each day bring the hope of peace and justice to the whole world; and to do this inspired by the Holy Spirit."

"As at our baptism, we can hear the blessing of our going out and coming in, from now and for ever."