His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches for the Orthodox family, Presides over an extraordinary session of the Holy Synod of Antioch, which convenes today, Tuesday 25 April 2023, in Balamand, Lebanon. During this session, the attendees discuss emergency situations and urgent events.

"Ecclesia in Medio Oriente", Cyprus, Sunday April 23, 2023

By the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East and the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East

Beloved brothers, sisters, and spiritual children,
Christ is Risen! Truly, He is Risen!
We greet you today in this festive and exalted Paschal period, having our eyes fixed on the cross of suffering, and knowing that the Lord of glory transformed this cross of suffering into a cross of glory. Today, we remember the cross carried by the Christians living in this Middle East, suffering from murder, displacement, and terror. Today, we remember the spear which has marked for us as Christians, in the last two thousand years, the Passion of our Lord at the Calvary, and the other spear which has wounded us for the last ten years ago, and this wound has not been healed. Today, we remember the kidnapping of our brothers, the Archbishops of Aleppo, Youhanna Ibrahim and Boulos Yazigi, which occurred on April 22, 2013.

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, sent a congratulatory message to the Grand Imam, Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayyib, Sheikh of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, which reads as follows:
The Grand Imam, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb
On my behalf and on behalf of the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church, I am pleased to congratulate you and all our beloved Muslims on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr.
We pray that God grant you success in completing your work to raise our dear homeland and your enlightening role in spreading awareness and the values of tolerance, brotherhood, the culture of peace, citizenship and coexistence.

April 17, 2023

His Beatitude John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, paid a visit to visited Turkish Mersin Governor Ali Hamza Pehlivan, accompanied by Bishops Constantine Kayal and Arsenios Dahdal, Father Esper Timur, parish priest of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel in Mersin, Archimandrite Paul Ordoloǧlu, Vicar of Patriarch John in Antioch, and the President of the Association in the parish of Mersin, Mr. Jan Arab, at the governor's residence in Mersin.

At the outset, the governor of Mersin, Mr. Ali Hamza Pahlawan, welcomed His Beatitude and the accompanying delegation, thanking him for the stance of love and brotherhood that he took during such a difficult and hard circumstance that afflicted the people of the region after the earthquake. The governor commended the merits of His Beatitude, who stood by his children from the first moment, promising Patriarch John to complete and provide aid In Mersin, Antioch, Iskenderun, and wherever needed, to alleviate the suffering and pain of the Church's children in these hard conditions.

On Monday 18 April 2023 morning, the Monastery of St. Virgin Mary El-Syrian in Wadi El-Natrun hosted His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, and a number of Bishops and Metropolitan for breakfast.
H.H. delivered a spiritual sermon on the occasion of the Resurrection during the meeting, which is an annual tradition of Sham El-Nassim for H.H. and the members of the Holy Synod.

On Saturday April 15, 2023 evening, His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, prayed the Resurrection Liturgy at St. Mark’s Cathedral, Abbasia, Cairo, with the contribution of several General Bishops Vice patriarchy in Cairo along with some priests and monks. The Divine Liturgy witnessed the participation of a large number of people.

The prayers were broadcast on Egyptian television, Official Website of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Coptic satellite channels, and the COC channel of the Coptic Orthodox Church’s media center on the Internet.

The cathedral witnessed a large number of people who came to congratulate, from among statesmen, representatives of many institutions and bodies, and ambassadors of some countries, while the sides of the cathedral were filled with worshipers from the church.

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, prayed Good Friday prayers at St. Mark’s Cathedral in Abbaseya. The prayers started early in on Friday 14 April 2023 morning and ended around evening time. The prayers consisted of six prayers which are the first, third, sixth, ninth, eleventh and twelfth hours of Good Friday prayers, which goes moment by moment of the events of the day on which Christ was crucified, starting from when He was arrested, passing through the stages of condemning the Savior and from His Crucifixion to the tomb.
The cathedral was full of people who filled its both sides.
A number of general bishops of the dioceses in Cairo, priests of the churches, and deacons of the Theological College in Anba Rouis participated in the prayers.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God. Amen.

Khristos Anesti … Alithos Anesti

Christ is Risen … Truly He is Risen

I congratulate you all on the glorious Feast of Resurrection in the year 2023. We celebrate the glorious Resurrection after a prolonged fast. The Holy Lent that extended for 55 days. We celebrate the Resurrection as we do annually. As you know, the feast of the Resurrection is a celebration of the foundation of our faith. This feast of the Resurrection is a celebration of Christianity, a celebration of faith in Christ. As such, we celebrate the Resurrection each day in the prayer of the prime hour of the Agpeya. Moreover, we celebrate it each week on Sunday. Because it is the day of Resurrection, the Day of Light. We also celebrate it on the 29th of every Coptic month when we commemorate the Annunciation, Nativity, and Resurrection. We celebrate it every year on the glorious Feast of Resurrection, and our celebration extends for 50 days, which we call the Holy Fifties.

Indeed, the blessings of the Resurrection are innumerable in our life. I would like to discuss with you one of the rich gifts of the Resurrection of the King of glory. This is the gift of a positive vision toward life.

On April 17, 2023, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the Holy Qurobo of Monday of the resurrection at St. George Church in Hay El-Seryan in Aleppo.

During the Holy Qurobo, His Holiness was assisted by their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Boutros Kassis, Archbishop of Aleppo and Environs, and Mor Joseph Bali, Patriarchal Assistant.

On April 15, 2023, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the Holy Qurobo of the Easter Vigil at St. Aphrem Cathedral in Aleppo.

During the Holy Qurobo, His Holiness was assisted by their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Boutros Kassis, Archbishop of Aleppo and Environs, Mor Joseph Bali, Patriarchal Assistant, and Armenian Orthodox Archbishop of Aleppo Magar Ashkarian.

On April 14, 2023, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the services of the worship and burial of the Cross at St. George Church in Hay El-Seryan in Aleppo.

Their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Boutros Kassis, Archbishop of Aleppo and Environs, Mor Joseph Bali, Patriarchal Assistant, and Very Rev. Raban Augeen Al-Khoury Nemat, Patriarchal Secretary were also present.

On Easter Monday, 4th/ 17th April 2023, the feast of Pascha was celebrated with its befitting brilliance at the monastic Church of Saints Constantine and Helen, led by the Hegoumen of the Brotherhood, His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, as the service was officiated by the Typikon keeper of the Church Archimandrite Alexios, with the participation in prayer of High Priests and Priests and the representatives of the Russian Church, Archimandrite Alexander and the Romanian Church, Archimandrite Theophilos. The service was attended by the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem Mr Evangelos Vlioras and a very large congregation of pilgrims.

After the Divine Liturgy, the Patriarchal Entourage went to the Patriarchate Hall.

Early on Sunday morning at 01.00, 3rd/ 16th April 2023, the Service of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, the feast of Pascha, was celebrated at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

On this feast the Church commemorates that the incarnate Jesus Christ, our Lord, was crucified, died in the flesh and was risen from the dead as God-man, granting to His believers eternal life and the resurrection from the dead.

For this feast the Hagiotaphite Brotherhood went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where bells tolling, the Canon of Holy Saturday was chanted, while the clergy, with their Primate, His Beatitude the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos were being dressed. This was followed by a litany, three times around the Holy Sepulchre.

Then His Beatitude read the Gospel narrative of the Resurrection according to Saint Mark, followed by Christ is risen and the rest of the service of the Resurrection, with the Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom.

At noon of the luminous day of Pascha Sunday, 3rd / 16th April 2023, the service of the Second Resurrection was held at the Patriarchate.

The service started at the Patriarchate Hall, where His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, the High Priests and the Priests read the 9th Hour of Pascha and got dressed in their liturgical vestments.

Then under the chanting of “Christ is risen” in a slow Byzantine rhythm by their Eminences, Archbishop Aristovoulos of Madaba and Metropolitan Joachim of Helenoupolis, the Brotherhood marched in procession to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and stopped at the Court Yard for a supplication.

On Holy Thursday evening, March 31/ April 13, 2023, the Service of the Passion was held at the Catholicon of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

 His Beatitude the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos, who presided over this service, read the first Gospel narrative, followed by Hagiotaphite High Priests and Priests, who read the remaining of the 12 narratives, according to the Order.

This service, which is the Matins of Holy Friday commemorates the Lord’s Passion, the spitting, the beating, the vinegar, the nails, the spear and the death on the Cross, through which He saved us.

In today’s Gospel passage we find the disciples locked in the Upper Room. The evangelist John underlines at least two times (Jn 20:19, 26) that the doors of the place where the disciples are located are locked. In verse 19, he also clarified the reason for this lockdown: fear.

The disciples, therefore, are afraid, and we know that fear causes lockdown, it locks.

But fear is not the only reason. There is another one: the disciples locked themselves in the Upper Room because they are not expecting anyone. After the death of Jesus, everything was over for them and there was nothing more to await. Somehow, they were closed in a sepulcher, just as Jesus had been some days earlier.

Right there, however, Jesus comes, He enters. We said on Palm Sunday that the style of God is to visit, to enter life, to bring new life. Here, the Risen Christ continues to visit, just as He had done countless times before His passion and death. And He visits even when persons no longer expect anything, when they think that nothing new can happen again. Then the Lord comes.

MAGDALA - On April 15th, 2023, the Holy Land celebrated the Feast of Magdala in honor of Saint Mary Magdalene, with a Mass presided over by His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, and concelebrated by Mgr Rafiq Nahra, Patriarchal Vicar for Israel, and Mgr Giacinto-Boulos Marcuzzo, bishop emeritus, in the site of Magdala, in Galilee. The celebration was followed by the blessing of the Magdala center by the Patriarch.

"Before going to Magdala, I didn’t know much of Mary Magdalene. I knew she was an important figure in the life of ministry of Christ and was present during two key moments of his life (the crucifixtion and resurrection), but I did not have so much of a connection with her."

Mariana Be was born in Mexico, grew up in Texas, and also has a Middle-Eastern background. She is a singer, songwriter, composer and producer who, in 2022, went to London to showcase and release her original music. Instead, a couple of months later, she found herself in Magdala, composing songs about the key passages of the Bible illustrated in the seven chapels of the site Duc in Altum – including one about the disciple Mary Magdalene, which she sung during the feast.

In his visit after the devastating earthquake that struck the region, with his accompanying delegation, to the Antiochene parishes in Alexandretta, Antioch, and Mersin. On Sunday, April 16, 2023, His Beatitude John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and MECC President for the Orthodox Family, presided over The Glorious Easter Mass from the ruins of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in the city of Antioch. You can watch the prayer in the video

In his visit after the devastating earthquake that struck the region, with his accompanying delegation, to the Antiochene parishes in Alexandretta, Antioch, and Mersin. On Saturday, April 15, 2023, Bishop Arsanios Dahdal presides over Easter service in the presence of His Beatitude John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and MECC President for the Orthodox Family, in the Church of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel in Mersin, southern Turkey. You can watch the prayer in the following video