When Nations and Homelands Are Commodified

This word was delivered by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs on the Day of Solidarity and Prayer for
Lebanon and the Middle East, organized by MECC on Thursday 12 March 2026.

Professor Michel Abs

The Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC)

In the political and economic upheavals shaking the world, human society has been transformed into a slave market where homelands and nations are sold as spare parts or secondary components, used in the projects of those who see people only as bank numbers or tools for power and influence.

Our countries, whether we view our national belonging as Lebanon, the Antiochian Levant, the Middle East and North Africa, or the Arab lands, have been subjected to foreign control since the end of World War I, placed under siege, and fragmented into artificial mini-states, most of which do not constitute a fully functioning nation or a state capable of securing sovereignty and economic self-sufficiency.

Today we live a new chapter in the tragedies of these homelands, where siege and fragmentation have reached their peak and dependency has entered its most dangerous phase. “We will enter a long period of severe slavery,” said one of the visionaries of my country, and indeed we have entered this era after it was prepared for a long time by plunging the countries into successive crises of every kind, leaving them in a constant state of instability. We are the nation with the largest number of expatriates in the world, who in some countries may outnumber residents.

We bleed in every way: human capital, natural resources, looted treasures from the earth, financial capital, investments, and the list goes on. We see our children build the world while their own countries fall far behind.

This is not fate; it is the work of our own hands.

“God does not change the condition of a people until they change what is within themselves,” as the noble saying goes.

All of this inevitably leads to the loss of national sovereignty over our land, leaving it exposed and defenseless, an easy prey for those who have accumulated power and influence.

Today we are at the peak of the struggle between attempting to regain sovereignty or preserve what remains of it, and losing it for the benefit of projects woven over decades for our region, executed gradually—moment by moment, day by day, year by year, decade by decade. Until today, our peoples have prevented the realization of these conspiracies against us and their ultimate goal: fragmentation for submission. And in all of this, woe to those who resist, for we would then be the only nation in the world denied the right to resist. We are a nation that has known truth, and truth has liberated it, as the incarnate Lord said, who took his whip and drove out the money-changers from the Temple. Dignity and truth are rooted in our cells, deep within our souls and minds.

Today we witness horrific chapters of dramatic transformations in our region: from the destruction of Gaza and the extermination of its people, to the devastation of southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut, to attacks on other regional countries, destroying their infrastructure, capacities, and preventing them from achieving technological power and fully reclaiming their sovereignty. We are now in the most painful chapter, where the elites of the deep states have shown their true faces and told us directly that all our civilization, existence, and identity are worth less than the resources God has placed in our land. Control over oil, gas, minerals, natural sites, and other resources, exploited by dwarf companies called giants, justifies the extermination or displacement of those on the land. On the blood and bones of Gaza’s children, they want to build tourist complexes for the leisure of the world’s vampires, filling the news headlines. God alone knows the full extent of the destruction of southern Lebanese villages, their displacement, and near-total evacuation. Yet in both places, the people remain steadfast, enduring hardship, looking toward better days. The incarnate Lord said: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

We, at the Middle East Council of Churches, which includes the region’s churches in an ecumenical orientation covering all inhabitants of the oikoumene, strive to fulfill our national and humanitarian duty with all the energy and resources we have.

We work to advocate for our national causes and just causes worldwide, through communication with the global ecumenical movement. We also operate in humanitarian service, development, dialogue, networking, and research. We monitor all events in our region and strive to convey the voice of our peoples to the world, thanks to our partners in world church councils, the Holy See, and other institutions concerned with justice and peace.

Since the beginning of last week’s war, we issued a call to the world, released a joint statement with the World Council of Churches, and submitted relief projects seeking funding. This is but a small part; full details are available on our institution’s websites. We have also been monitoring the Gaza war since it began, dedicating a section in our weekly bulletin, Momentum, called the Palestine Observatory. In all we do, we aim to go beyond simply “Bear witness, I have conveyed the message.”

The burden of suffering increases globally, and especially in our countries, and we are committed to serving those in need. We see the face of Christ in every tortured, refugee, wretched, and marginalized person, for He said: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, imprisoned and you came to me. Then the righteous will answer him, saying, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to you?” And the King will answer them, Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these my brothers, you did for me.”

This is the responsibility entrusted to us, and may my Lord grant me the strength to fulfill His teachings.