Written by Mr. Fouad Hassoun and Translated by Father Dr. Michel Kanbar

Tuesday 10 October 2023 - 7 pm, at the Humanities Campus at Saint Joseph University, Beirut

Dar El Mashreq published the book “I Forgave” in Arabic, written by Mr. Fouad Hassoun, who is blind, and translated by Father Dr. Michel Kanbar, Executive Secretary of the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME), Priest of Saint Joseph Parish El Hajjeh – Lebanon, and University Professor.

The book signing will take place on Tuesday 10 October 2023, at 7 pm Beirut Time in the Humanities Campus at Saint Joseph University (USJ), Beirut, Building C – conference room.

1- Between the gift of the Creator and the futility of creature... the search for justice

2- Again, on the Path of Spiritual Renewal facing Challenges

Welcoming speech by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches

Dr. Michel Abs

At the conference “Ecumenical Approaches to Climate Change”

Holy Spirit University - Kaslik - October 4, 2023

And Speech of Dr. Michel Abs

Delivered at the Opening of the General Assembly of the Association of Theological Seminaries in the Middle East

St. John of Damascus Theological Seminary, Balamand - October 3, 2023

(ATIME)

Holds Its General Assembly Meeting Hosted by the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology - Balamand, Lebanon

With the blessings of His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Orthodox Family, the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME) held its General Assembly meeting in its first regular session for the academic year 2023-2024, on Tuesday 3 October 2023, hosted by the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology - Balamand, Lebanon.

Attendees were the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Dr. Michel Abs, President of the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East, and Dean of the Saint John of Damascus Institute at the University of Balamand in Lebanon, Archimandrite Dr. Jack Khalil, and the ATIME’s Executive Secretary Father Dr. Michael Kanbar, alongside Deans of 18 Institutes from Egypt, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq.

Organized by MECC in Cooperation with ATIME

Environmental Lectures Combining Theology and Science

For the second day in a row, the symposium “Ecumenical Perspectives on Climate Change”, continued its sessions at the Saint Joseph University (USJ) in Beirut, at the invitation and organization of the Middle East Council of Churches in cooperation with the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME). It was held in the presence of their Eminences Bishops and Priests, Nuns and Monks, the President of the Saint Joseph University in Beirut Father Professor Salim Daccache, the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Professor Michel Abs, alongside Deans, Professors and students from different Institutes of Theology, as well as specialists in the topic of environment and climate, and attendees concerned with the issue of climate and social justice.

The first part of the second day began with a speech delivered by Father Professor Salim Daccache, President of the Saint Joseph University in Beirut, in which he said “Your initiative is truly appreciated amidst the environmental problems that are threatening our world and the countries of our region. You have made a lot of efforts to organize this symposium. I am certain that the solidarity and cooperation of the Middle East Council of Churches and ATIME has led to this achievement that we witness today, which encourage the Church to prepare a policy of initiatives that concern the environment. The environmental issue is not marginal, but rather a responsibility to protect nature and creation."

The Middle East Council of Churches, in cooperation with the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME), organized a Symposium entitled “Ecumenical Perspectives on Climate Change”, which was inaugurated on Wednesday 4 October 2023, following and Ecumenical Prayer Service held for the occasion of the “Season of Creation”, at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik – Lebanon. As for the second day of the Symposium, its sessions were held on Thursday 5 October 2023, at the Saint Joseph University in Beirut, which you can find a highlight of it in the video.

Speech of Dr. Dave Bookless, Director of Theology for “A Rocha International” Organization

At the “Ecumenical Perspectives on Climate Change” Symposium

The Middle East Council of Churches organized in cooperation with the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME) a symposium entitled “Ecumenical Perspectives on Climate Change”. It was inaugurated on Wednesday 4 October 2023, following an Ecumenical Prayer Service held on the occasion of the “Season of Creation” at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik – Lebanon. The symposium continued its sessions on Thursday 5 October 2023, at the Saint Joseph University of Beirut.

During the symposium’s opening, Dr. Dave Bookless, Director of Theology for “A Rocha International” organization, delivers the Keynote speech during which he said: “We are facing many dangers of human-caused climate change, alongside global biodiversity loss and growing inequality within societies, together form an existential threat to human thriving and potentially to the continued survival of human societies... As Christians we are called to turn to God in lament, repentance, reflection, and action. We draw on the resources of our tradition, particularly the biblical narratives of God’s purposes in sustaining and redeeming a good world…”

On the occasion of the “Season of Creation” 2023 which theme for this year is “Let Justice and Peace Flow”, the Middle East Council of Churches held an Ecumenical Prayer Service, that you can find a highlight of it in the video, on Wednesday 4 October 2023, at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) – Lebanon. It was followed by the opening of the Symposium “Ecumenical Perspectives on Climate Change”, organized by the Middle East Council of Churches in cooperation with the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME), which sessions has been continued on Thursday 5 October 2023, at the Saint Joseph University (USJ) in Beirut.

With an Ecumenical Prayer Service at USEK - Lebanon

The Council Inaugurates in Cooperation with ATIME

The Symposium “Ecumenical Perspectives on Climate Change”

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) concluded the “Season of Creation” for this year with an Ecumenical Prayer Service under the title “Let Justice and Peace Flow”, on Wednesday 4 October 2023, hosted by the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) - Lebanon.

You can find an article by Mrs. Seta Hadeshian, the Associate Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches, in which she talked about the contribution of the Danish Church in restoring life to the “Birds’ Nest” orphanage, which is located in the Lebanese region of Byblos. She also highlighted the most important historical stages that led to its founding and how it was established, as Mrs. Maria Jacobsen worked to manage and develop it in cooperation with the "Near East Relief" organization.

The Near East Relief

The Near East Foundation is a charitable organization, formerly known as the Near East Relief, it was established in 1915 as a result to the atrocities committed against the Armenians and other minority groups in the Ottoman Empire during WWI. The Ambassador Henry Morgenthau’s request for immediate assistance speeded up the process. As the atrocities against the Armenians escalated, The Near East Relief launched a series of fund raising and public awareness campaigns to shed light on the plight of the Armenians in Ottoman Turkey and to collect funds for relief efforts in the Near East.

On a Visit to the MECC Headquarters in Beirut

As part of building bridges and strengthening Ecclesiastical ties between the East and West, a delegation from the Diocese of Aalborg, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark, visited the offices of the Middle East Council of Churches’ General Secretariat, in Beirut, on Monday 2 October 2023. The delegation was received by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Dr. Michel Abs, along with the MECC Associate Secretary General Mrs. Seta Hadeshian, and the Director of the MECC Theological and Ecumenical Department Father Dr. Antoine Al Ahmar.

The visiting delegation, which is making a tour in Lebanon facilitated by the “Danmission” organization, included Bishop Thomas Reinholdt Rasmussen, Dean Niels Christian Scheel Lassen, Dean Lisbeth Damgren, Pastor Theis Kvesel Aaen, Pastor Ruth Smed Folmersen, Mr. Anders Brødbæk Hummelmose. The visitors were also accompanied by a delegation from the "Danmission" organization, which included the Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa Mrs. Kristen Auken, the Program Manager Mr. Antoine Abdel Massih, the Partnership Consultant Mathias Notden Larsen, and the Project Coordinator Sarah Jane Kalaha Redmond.

In the new issue of the weekly newsletter Momentum issued by the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), Communication and Public Relations Department, MECC issues its 2022 annual report which compiles in its pages the activities of the Middle East Council of Churches and the achievements it has accomplished at various Ecumenical, Theological and humanitarian levels. As for the weekly message of the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs, it is entitled this week “School Dropouts: Booby-Trapping the Future of a Nation”. Dr. Abs delivered this speech at the MECC monthly webinar which was held under the title “School Dropout and Human Dignity”, on Thursday 28 September 2023. This webinar is part of the MECC monthly seminars and comes within the framework of the “Human Dignity Project” - “Dialogue and Social Cohesion-Social Capital Rehabilitation”, which MECC is implementing consecutively.

In the issue, MECC invites you to participate in an Ecumenical Prayer it will organize on the occasion of the “Season of Creation” with the participation of Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, President of Haigazian University in Lebanon, and MECC President for the Evangelical Family. The Prayer Service will be held on Wednesday 4 October 2023, at 5 pm Beirut time, in the Pope John Paul II Amphitheater at the Holy Spirit University – Kaslik (USEK), Lebanon.

Senior Financial Officer

The Organization

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) is a regional ecumenical organization, which brings together churches in the Middle East for a common Christian witness in a region where Christ was born, lived, spread His word, died and resurrected.

The purpose of the MECC is to deepen the spiritual fellowship among the churches of the Middle East, and to unite them in word and deed as they strive to achieve the unity of the churches and to serve humans on the basis of the Christian faith. The MECC works through its various structures to achieve this purpose by promoting dialogue amongst the churches (locally, regionally and internationally), and strengthening the spirit of fellowship and ecumenical awareness.

The Vacancy

MECC is Currently recruiting a Senior Financial Officer

There are two scenes that deeply wound my national pride and my feelings as an educator of several decades.

The first scene involves street children. They swarm around you when you halt at a red light, their pleas intended to prick your conscience. These children, often referred to as beggars, have learned to survive in the harsh environment of the streets. As an educator and an expert in labor and child labor issues, the first and most obvious question I find myself asking is, “Where are your parents, and why aren’t you in school?” which I complete by saying “go to your parents and ask them to enroll you at school”.

For decades, while practicing this preaching, I have received a variety of responses. These children are either pretend they are orphans supporting their siblings, or children of parents incapacitated by illness, or refugees aiding their families, or they have no parents at all. What’s important to note is that these young children have ready-made responses, taught to them by their employers who we see distributing them daily at various points for begging. These employers have done an excellent job indoctrinating these children to respond intelligently and cunningly.

The Middle East Council of Churches issues its annual report for the year 2022 under the title “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid" (Matthew 14: 27), which was the title that MECC took for its Twelfth General Assembly held in May 2022. Hence, through this report and its title, the Middle East Council of Churches reaffirms the necessity of adhering to faith, continuing to Pray together, and relying on our Lord Jesus Christ, our only hope, in order to overcome all the difficulties and challenges that cast their shadows over the wounded Middle East.

The Monthly New Webinar Organized by MECC

Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs: School dropouts signify a society that has lost its ambition, sacrificing its aspirations at the altar of deprivation and hardship

As part of its monthly seminars, the Middle East Council of Churches held a new webinar entitled “School Dropout and Human Dignity”, on Thursday 28 September 2023, with the participation of specialists, academicians, universities’ students and interested attendees in the topic at hand. Noting that this webinar comes within the framework of the “Human Dignity Project” - “Dialogue and Social Cohesion-Social Capital Rehabilitation”, which MECC is implementing consecutively.

The webinar, which was broadcasted live on the MECC Facebook Page, included four interventions, moderated by Dr. Laure Abi Khalil, who presented in her opening speech definitions about the phenomenon of school dropout, in addition to its causes and repercussions, as well as the problems to which the dropout is exposed.

The webinar began with a speech delivered by the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs, in which he spoke about the problems that lead to school dropout and the consequences of this phenomenon, and said “The existence of school dropouts, in such large numbers, is indicative of a society that is unwell, teetering on the brink of an abyss, and hurtling towards it at an alarming rate. School dropouts signify a society that has lost its ambition, sacrificing its aspirations at the altar of deprivation and hardship… The school may be out of touch with educational progress and may not know how to address or deal with the student body.”

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), Communication and Public Relations Department, have now issued its online Ecumenical calendar for the month of October 2023. It includes the Ecclesiastical and Liturgical feasts of the various families of Churches in the Middle East. In addition to international days identified by the United Nations, and which are related to the MECC identity and its spiritual and human mission.

During September 2023, MECC organizes an Ecumenical Prayer Service, on the occasion of the “Season of Creation”, with the participation of Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, President of Haigazian University in Lebanon, and MECC President for the Evangelical Family.

The Prayer Service will be held on Wednesday 4 October 2023, which marks the “Season of Creation” closing, at 5 pm Beirut time, in the Pope John Paul II Amphitheater at the Holy Spirit University – Kaslik (USEK), Lebanon. Hence, MECC invites you to participate in the Prayer in person at USEK or through media and live on the MECC Facebook Page. Noting that MECC will held this Prayer annually.