On the 10th Yearly Commemoration of the kidnapping of Archbishops of Aleppo
Metropolitans Paul Yazigi and John Ibrahim
The Middle East Council of Churches is Launching
"The Ecumenical Day for the Abducted and the Forcibly Absented"
And Invites you to a Seminar for the Occasion
24 April 2023, 10 am - 1 pm, Online
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, President of the Middle East Council of Churches, 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 Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches, 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 President of the Middle East Council of Churches, MECC is organizing a seminar and commemoration, 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”.
The seminar will begin with a joint statement issued by the Patriarchates of Antioch and All the East for the Greek Orthodox and Syriac Orthodox Churches. The seminar will include four parts centered around different topics, testimonies and struggle, a conceptual and legal approach to the topic at hand, and the rights of missing persons in light of transitional justice, with the participation of specialized and officials’ speakers from various fields. The seminar also includes testimonies via video for some kidnapped victims.
The seminar will end with two messages via video from His Beatitude Patriarch John X and Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, as well as the MECC statement.