Conference of the Churches in the Middle East: Rooted in Hope
By: Nicolawos Hazboun (photos) and Cécile Leca (text and photos)/ lpj.org
NICOSIA - Day-by-day overview of the conference "10 years after Ecclesia in Medio Oriente - Rooted in Hope", that saw the gathering of all the Catholic Churches of the Middle East in the city of Nicosia, to discuss the impact of Pope Benedict's Apostolic Exhortation and the future implications for the Churches of the region.
Day 1: welcoming speeches by H.E. Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches and President of the Symposium, and H.E Gian Petro Dal Toso, Apostolic Nuncio for Jordan and Cyprus, prayers in various rites, and a talk by His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, during which he presented the Exhortation, the events that took place since its publication, and, in its light, some possible orientations for the Churches of the region.
Day 2: after a Holy Mass celebrated according to the Chaldean rite by Cardinal Louis Sako, the morning was split between three talks. First speaker was H.E. Paolo Martinelli, ofm cap, Apostolic Vicar for the UAE, Yemen and Oman, who spoke of the essentiality of Christian formation and its challenges. "The fundamental challenge for Christian formation," he notably said, "could be summarized in these terms: "One must move from a Christianity transmitted by convention through a social bond taken for granted to a Christianity transmitted by conviction, intercepting the new anthropological questions that the younger generations have in their hearts, aroused by the unprecedented situations they face in order to work, live and love."
The second speaker, Prof Youssef El-Haj (Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon - Ex-Consultor at the Commission for Religious Relations with Muslims (CRRM) of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) at the Holy See), spoke of Christian-Muslim relations and how, today, “Christian-Muslim dialogue is not seen any more by both parties as sporadic, but as a fundamental, irreversible, and continuous work-in progress that engages all Middle Eastern Catholic Churches in a concerted effort.”
Finally, Dr. Viola Raheb, consultant in science communication and projects at the PRO ORIENTE Foundation, debated on the topic of Freedoms and Rights, mentioning various challenges affecting today’s Christians and especially the youth, and which include diversity, political and economic instability, traditionalism and conflicts.
The day ended with group discussions debating the topics spoken of during the morning, followed by a plenary meeting, during which the conclusions of the discussions were presented, and which concluded on an evening prayer…
This meditation was originally published on the website of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Please click here to read the full text.
