Momentum, the Weekly Newsletter from the Middle East Council of Churches

In the new issue of the weekly newsletter Momentum issued by the Middle East Council of Churches, Communication and Public Relations Department, you can find the weekly message of the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs, which title is “Antiochians despite the destructions!”. Dr. Abs spoke about the tour held by His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and MECC President for the Orthodox Family, in Antioch, following the earthquake that struck this region. Dr. Abs also called this tour “a tour of hope”, “because our alphabet is Antiochian”.

In the issue, MECC invites you to a seminar and commemoration on the tenth yearly commemoration of the kidnapping of the Archbishops of Aleppo Paul Yazigi and John Ibrahim, and under the patronage of His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and MECC President for the Orthodox Family, and His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, and MECC Honorary President, and under the patronage and with the presence of His Beatitude Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian, Catholicos of the Armenian Catholic Church of Cilicia, and MECC President for the Catholic Family.

The commemoration and seminar are entitled “The Issue of the Abducted and Forcibly Absented, Violation of Human Dignity", and will be held on Monday 24 April 2023, from 10 am to 1:00 pm. You can participate in the seminar online via the following zoom link: shorturl.at/doG57. It will be also broadcasted live on Télé Lumière and Noursat and other TV stations, and on the MECC Facebook Page.

At the end of the seminar, the Middle East Council of Churches will issue a statement in which it will declare the 22nd of April as "The Ecumenical Day for the Abducted and the Forcibly Absented”.

As well as, the issue includes a news about the Prayer held by His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, and MECC Honorary President, on the intention of the safety and destiny of the Abducted Archbishops of Aleppo. It was on the evening of Sunday 16 April 2023, at Mor Aphrem Cathedral in Aleppo, Syria. Following the Prayer, the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs delivered a speech via video entitled "A Citizen's Cry", in addition to speeches delivered by Dr. Assaad Al-Sahmarani, and the Mufti of Aleppo His Eminence Dr. Mahmoud Akkam.

The issue also presents a news about a special interview made with the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs, under the title “The Abducted and the Forcibly Absented". The interview was prepared and presented by the journalist Lea Adel Maamary, and broadcasted on Wednesday 19 April 2023.

You can also find a news about the meeting of Dr. Michel Abs with the Secretary General of ACT Alliance Mr. Rudelmar Bueno De Faria, on Tuesday 18 April 2023, at the headquarters of ACT Alliance in Geneva, Switzerland.

This is in addition to a news about the online meeting held by Dr. Abs with the Senior Program Manager at KAICIID organization Mr. Waseem Haddad, on Tuesday 18 April 2023, in the presence of the Human Dignity Project’s team at the Middle East Council of Churches Dr. Laure Abi Khalil and Dr. Lubna Tarabey.

Furthermore, the issue presents details about the updates of the activities implemented lately by the MECC Service and Relief – Diakonia Department, in Syria and Lebanon.

Moreover, the issue includes many reports issued by MECC under the name of "Rescue Syria Update" which will keep you informed about the developments of MECC action as well as the overall situation in a context analysis perspective. The MECC will be also publishing other periodical and updated reports.

The issue also presents a photo album showing the difficult humanitarian situations in Syria, the Ecumenical Calendar for April 2023 issued by the Middle East Council of Churches, Communication and Public Relations Department, Ecumenical reports, the weekly Prayer, videos, and news of the Middle Eastern Churches.

Additionally, the issue presents a socio-economic overview of the Middle East during March 2023 and the latest updates of the Coronavirus in the region.