MECC
Video - "Ecumenical Horizons" Program: Episode Twenty-Two
Produced by the Middle East Council of Churches
“Ecumenical Horizons” is a weekly program that features spiritual, cultural, intellectual, educational, youth and environmental topics.
His Beatitude Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai Presides Over a Divine Liturgy on the Occasion of the Jubilee of the Prisoner
The MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs Participates in the Mass
As part of the celebrations of the “Jubilee Year of Hope” 2025, and in response to the invitation of the Council of Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops in Lebanon to celebrate the Jubilee of the Prisoner, the General Directorate of Prisons in Lebanon held a Divine Liturgy presided over by His Beatitude Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, Maronite Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Council of Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops, on Sunday, December 14, 2025, at the Maronite Patriarchal Edifice in Bkerke, Lebanon.
Under the theme "I was in prison and you came to visit me" (Matthew 25: 36), the Mass was attended by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs, the Journalist Lea Adel Maamary, Coordinator of Media and Church Relations at the Middle East Council of Churches and Head of the Media Committee of the General Directorate of Prisons, Members of the Directorate, official and social personalities, and the faithful.
During the Mass, His Beatitude Patriarch Al-Rai delivered a Homily in which he spoke about the Sunday of the Revelation to Joseph and its key meanings. He also talked about the "Prisoner's Day" and the mission of the General Directorate of Prisons, in addition to its role and the services it provides.
The Middle East Council of Churches Issues the Ecumenical Calendar for December 2025
The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) have now issued its online Ecumenical calendar for the month of December 2025. 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.
Video - From the children of Bethlehem to the children of Gaza… The crime is the same and the victim is the same
A Christmas Reflection by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs
Environmental Day at Azounieh – Lebanon, with the Middle East Council of Churches and the Youth Committee of the Armenian Sanatorium Azounieh
Praying and Working Together for the Creation!
On the Feast of Saint Nicholas in the Armenian, Greek, and Latin calendars, the Theological and Ecumenical Department at the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), in coordination with the Youth Committee of the Armenian Sanatorium – Azounieh, organized a special Environmental Day entitled “Can Santa Plant a Tree?!”, on Saturday, December 6, 2025, in Azounieh.
The event brought together youth from the Armenian Evangelical Churches of Nor Marash and Anjar, Deacons from the Armenian Apostolic Church, and the young people of St. George Melkite Catholic Parish in Zahle.
Adding to the joy of the gathering, Santa Claus—Saint Nicholas—joined the celebration. As the day coincided with his Feast, Santa himself planted numerous plants and trees in the Garden of the Armenian Sanatorium at Azounieh.
The day began with an introduction to the history and mission of the Azounieh Sanatorium, followed by a presentation by Fr. Movses-Garen Yosolkanian, Coordinator of the Season of Creation activities at MECC, on the Season of Creation and the connection between Santa Claus, the natural world, and his commitment to seafarers and gardeners. In keeping with local tradition, participants opened the activity by singing the Lebanese National Anthem, the customary prelude to tree-planting ceremonies.
Video - “And the Family Remains” Program
An Episode Entitled “Displacement and Christmas”
Produced by "The Platform of the Word" at the Middle East Council of Churches
As part of its program network, “The Platform of the Word” at the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) presents an episode within the program “And the Family Remains”, under the title “Displacement and Christmas”.
The program raises issues related to the family, motherhood and childhood, in addition to the Church’s view and response to the challenges, especially in light of the difficult living conditions that the region is passing through.
