Ottawa priest to fill key post at WCC

Canon John Gibaut, a priest from the diocese of Ottawa who is involved in various national and international theological dialogues, has been appointed director of the World Council of Churches’ (WCC) Faith and Order Commission in Geneva. His appointment is effective Jan. 2, 2008.

Mr. Gibaut is also a professor in the faculty of theology at Saint Paul University, a Roman Catholic University based in Ottawa, where he specializes in liturgical and historical theology. From 1994 to 2003, he served as the faculty’s director of Anglican Studies.

He has been a member of the Anglican-Roman Catholic Dialogue of Canada, the Faith and Witness Commission of the Canadian Council of Churches, the International Commission of the Anglican-Orthodox Theological Dialogue, and the International Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations.”

Mr. Gibaut, who earned a doctorate in theology from Trinity College, Toronto, has served as canon theologian of the diocese of Ottawa.

The WCC is an ecumenical fellowship of more than 340 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 550 million Christians worldwide