As mediation to solve the disputed Kenyan presidential election enters a critical phase, top-level figures from the two parties have met an international Christian delegation, which asked them to seek a compromise solution.

The new cooperative body Christian Churches Together in the USA (CCT), bringing together representatives of 43 participating churches and organizations across America, is giving priority to work on poverty and witness.

Christians should be able to look past denominational differences and see their common humanity, said a church leader working with other faith and civic leaders to stop gross human rights violations in the Philippines.

A joint campaign to eliminate genocide around the world has been initiated by leading civic, academic and religious figures in a conference room at the Interchurch Center near the campus of Columbia University in New York, USA.

The National Council of Churches USA and the development agency Church World Service, holding their annual meeting, have urged the US House of Representatives to officially recognize the slaughter of Armenians in 1915 as a genocide.

Ahead of a US Senate vote on the 2007 farm bill, churches across America have delivered local messages calling for access to locally grown food, guarantees farmers' access to conservation programmes, and respect for the environment.

Religious leaders representing very diverse faith communities with millions of members across the USA are urging their Congress to take urgent action to assist the poor who are facing the brunt of climate change.

The organisation linking together 35 of America's mainline Christian churches, accounting for 50 million members, has accused President George W. Bush of neglecting the needs of sick children, especially in poor communities.

The National Council of Churches USA's Justice for Women Working Group is working with people of faith across America in October 2007 to observe Domestic Violence Awareness Month and make sure the churches take the issue seriously.

The international affairs and peace programme of the National Council of Churches USA (NCCUSA) has endorsed a nationwide initiative for local congregations to raise awareness of the ongoing killing in Darfur, and action on the issue.