New Cooperation Towards the Support of the Most Vulnerable People

In response to the call of God the Creator to stand next to the most vulnerable and neediest, the Middle East Council of Churches has always sought, since its establishment, to accompany the most marginalized and affected people due to the difficult living conditions. MECC aims to preserve their rights and dignity, in various countries of the Middle East. Within this context, the MECC Jordan office is implementing many programs to support Syrian and Iraqi refugees as well as vulnerable people from Jordanian host communities.

In this framework, the MECC Jordan’s Office, represented by its Director Mrs. Wafaa El Ghousous, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) – Amman, represented by the Associations’ President Mrs. Hania Kakish. The MoU aimed at strengthening the cooperation towards the implementation of various training courses. It was signed on Wednesday 14 September 2022, at the headquarters of the Association.

Together Towards Environmental Advocacy and Awareness!

The international Climate Summit COP27 on climate change will be held very soon between 6 and 18 November 2022, in the Egyptian city of Sharm El Sheikh, and the preparations have begun. Hence, the MECC Communication and Public Relations Department participated in an international online meeting at the invitation of ACT Alliance Communication Department, and with the participation of other international organizations, on Wednesday 14 September 2022.

The meeting aimed at exchanging ideas and suggestions, as well as discussing experiences and opinions in order to prepare and implement online marketing campaigns as part of the COP27 summit’s activities. Topics of discussions were centered around issues related to the environment and justice. It was also an opportunity to build new relationships between employees in the fields of communication, media and programs in various organizations.

In the new issue of the weekly newsletter Momentum issued by the Communication and Public Relations Department of the Middle East Council of Churches, you can find the weekly message of the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs, it is entitled “Between Secularization and Christianity... a Misunderstanding”, in which he talked the reality of Christianity in Europe, in light of the meetings and discussions he made during his participation in the WCC 11th General Assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany. You can also find a condolence message from the Acting General Secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca to the family of Late Gabi Habib and the Middle East Council of Churches.

As part of the series of celebrations organized by MECC, in partnership with “Danmission” organization, in the Middle East, on the occasion of the “Season of Creation” 2022, the issue includes details, photos and video about the celebration held at the “Anaphora” Prayer and Retreat Eco Friendly Center in Wadi El Natroun, Egypt, on Sunday 11 September 2022.

During my attendance at the General Assembly of the World Council of Churches between August 30 and September 8 in Karlsruhe, Germany, I held some meetings with Christian religious leaders from different countries of Europe, during which we discussed the path of European Christianity and its current status in light of the social changes taking place in the ancient continent.

What I deduced from the discussions and from field observations, which I added to the readings I make during my work as General Secretary of the Middle East Council of Churches, brought me to a conclusion that I can neither say is satisfactory nor positive for Christianity in Europe.

Municipal records, where European citizens apply for their Christian religion to be removed from their personal record, churches that are closing, sold or rented, Christian institutions that are declining and the level of donations is declining, are all indications of a shrinking Christian extent in the faith map in Europe.

This shrinkage is not the result of competition between religions, nor of a religious campaign carried out by one religion against another, nor of the temptations offered by the missionary institutions to attract people from Christianity to it.

Fadi Al Halabi: “Nothing about us without us”

Let us break barriers and raise awareness on the role of persons with disabilities in the Church

The Middle East is still far from any type of inclusion!

Their rights are not different from the rights of other citizens, and their effective participation in spiritual, social and economic life... is necessary. Persons with disabilities are important for building and developing societies. But why are they marginalized today? Answers for the question are many. But, what is surely important is the hope they sorrow through their talents and blessings amidst all despair and challenges. Through their continuous determination, persons with disabilities are able to reduce discrimination and emphasize their presence and special role in the Church and society.

Shouldn't the Church be more inclusive by integrating all people, no matter how different they are! Within this context, the World Council of Churches (WCC) launched the Ecumenical Disability Advocates Network (EDAN) in its 8th General Assembly. Its vision is “A church of all and for all, an epitome of a truly inclusive society”. EDAN aims at improving the livelihoods of persons with disabilities through advocating for their inclusion, and active participation in all spiritual, social, economic and structural lives of Church and society.

On the commemoration of the 100th years after the Burning of Smyrna, Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, MECC President for the Evangelical Family, President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, and President of Haigazian University in Lebanon, invites you to a lecture he will held about this painful event and the remembrance of Rev. Hagop Yeranian. The lecture will be convened on Tuesday 20 september 2022, at 7 P.M, in Haigazian University Auditorium.

In order to strengthen the support of the Middle East Council of Churches’ partners, a delegation from the international Church organization “Act Church of Sweden” visited the headquarters of the MECC General Secretariat in Beirut, on Monday 12 September 2022.

The delegation met with the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs online, along with members from the General Secretariat who participated in the meeting in person and online.

Queridos hermanos y hermanas,

En nombre del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias, escribo para expresar nuestro más sentido pésame por el fallecimiento del Dr. Gabriel Habib.  Lamentamos con usted y el mundo entero esta tremenda pérdida para nuestra familia cristiana, y en particular para la región del Medio Oriente.

Damos gracias por la vida de Gabriel Habib, quien sirvió fielmente al Consejo de Iglesias del Oriente Medio como Secretario General de 1977 a 1994, y por sus muchos años de participación en el movimiento ecuménico. Gabriel Habib testimonia la vocación de la presencia y el testimonio cristiano en Oriente Medio, así como la necesidad de los cristianos de estar en diálogo con las grandes religiones del Oriente.

El Consejo de Iglesias del Oriente Medio (MECC) se ha embarcado este año en una amplia campaña del Tiempo de la Creación. Gracias a sus esfuerzos, la Guía de Celebración del Tiempo de la Creación ha sido traducida al árabe y está disponible en su sitio web junto con las versiones en español e inglés. El MECC también está planeando una serie de actividades para celebrar el Tiempo de la Creación, que comienza el 1 de septiembre, Día de la Oración por la Creación, y termina el 4 de octubre, fiesta de San Francisco de Asís, patrón de la ecología.

"Nuestra campaña incluye servicios de oración en todo Oriente Medio, con Egipto, Jordania, Siria y Líbano como puntos destacados", dice la reverenda Dra. Rima Nasrallah, de la Unidad de Ecojusticia del MECC y miembro del Consejo de Administración de ACT. "También hay actividades orientadas a los jóvenes y proyectos de forestación". Se emitirán vídeos cortos, podcasts y entrevistas en la televisión regional y en las redes sociales.

Simon Awad: No podemos lograr la seguridad alimentaria y nuestra tierra sigue en peligro

A los habitantes de Tierra Santa se les impide el acceso a los recursos hídricos y a la energía renovable para echarlos de sus tierras

Karlsruhe – Alemania
«Porque esto es lo que dice el Señor: el que creó los cielos, él es Dios; el que modeló e hizo la tierra, él la fundó; no la creó para que estuviera vacía, sino que la formó para ser habitada; él dice: Yo soy el Señor, y no hay otro» (Isaías 45, 18). Dios creó los cielos y la tierra y todo lo que hay en ellos para el bien del mundo y de la humanidad. Infundió Su creación con bondad, y proveyó de tal manera que el éxito de la humanidad pudiera ser garantizado. La creación de Dios glorifica su nombre. ¡Qué hermosa es la obra de sus manos! La Iglesia bendice a todas las criaturas de Dios, reza por su protección, alaba al Creador y le agradece todas las bendiciones. El papel del Hombre en el centro de la Iglesia y del mundo es esencial para el cuidado de la bendita creación de Dios.

Es cierto que el medio ambiente se enfrenta a muchos peligros, pero varias sociedades de la región y del mundo siguen practicando las tradiciones eclesiásticas y sociales sobre el medio ambiente en muchas ocasiones y temporadas a lo largo del año, así como en sus hábitos y vidas cotidianas. Por lo tanto, podemos decir que la esperanza de un refugio ambiental limpio y seguro todavía existe.

Simon Awad: We cannot achieve food security and our land is still in danger!

People in the Holy Land are prevented from the access to water resources and renewable energy in order to kick them out from their land

“For this is what the Lord says — he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited— he says: I am the Lord, and there is no other” (Isaiah 45:18). God created the heavens and the earth and everything in them for the good of the world and mankind. He infused His creation with goodness, and provided in such a way that mankind's success could be guaranteed. God's creation glorifies His name. How beautiful is the work of His hands! The Church blesses all God’s creatures, prays for their protection, praises the Creator and thank Him for all the blessings. The role of Man at the center of the Church and the world is essential for the care for God’s blessed creation.

Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca to the Family of Late Gabi Habib and the Middle East Council of Churches

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) has embarked on a wide-ranging Season of Creation campaign this year. Thanks to their efforts, the Season of Creation Celebration Guide has been translated into Arabic, and is available on their website along with Spanish and English versions. MECC is also planning a series of activities to mark the Season of Creation, which begins September 1, the Day of Prayer for Creation, and ends October 4, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecology.

“Our campaign includes prayer services in the entire Middle East with Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon as highlights,” says Rev. Dr. Rima Nasrallah of MECC’s Eco-Justice Unit and a member of ACT’s Governing Board. “There are also youth-oriented activities and forestation projects.” Short videos, podcasts and interviews will be aired on regional television and social media.

To find out more about Middle East Season of Creation activities, follow the hashtag #SeasonOfCreationME on Twitter (MECC, @MECChurches) and Facebook (@MECChurches). ACT’s Twitter account will share MECC’s Season of Creation activities.

The last week has begun in a special way in Jerusalem. A festive procession of priests, monks, nuns and people young and old filled the streets of Jerusalem's Old City, joyfully singing and dancing and waving basil branches as they brought the icon of Mary from her tomb at Gethsemane to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Christian quarter of the Old City was lovingly decorated with lots of greenery. His Eminence the Archbishop Dorotheos of Avela - from the Greek Orthodox Church - carried the icon of Mary in front of his chest all the way from Gethsemane to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

It is beautiful to see important cultural rituals and traditions being carried out in a dwindling Palestinian Christianity, allowing the rising generations to integrate them into their lives and preserve their Christian identity. Apart from the religious significance, these special celebrations far away from the hardships of everyday life are also important to find new energy for life again. Mary, who grew up in simple circumstances, knew flight and rejection, as well as prejudice and hostility.

Joy Kennedy: Como abuela, digo que el cambio climático pone en peligro a hijos y nietos

La época de la creación está llena de esperanza y las iglesias deben trabajar por la justicia climática

Antes de la COP 27 en Egipto y la COP 28 en Dubai, muchas promesas aún no se han cumplido

Huguette Salameh, Karlsruhe - Alemania

El mundo sufre hoy muchas crisis sociales, de vida, de salud y de seguridad... pero los problemas medioambientales y de cambio climático hacen sonar la alarma. La humanidad se enfrenta así a un futuro desconocido. Por lo tanto, es necesario escuchar a los grupos más necesitados y vulnerables, y acompañarlos en medio de nuestra crisis ambiental global. De ahí que las Naciones Unidas estén trabajando, a través de sus diversos programas y asociaciones internacionales, para lograr la justicia climática hacia un futuro mejor.

En este contexto, la Iglesia también tiene un papel importante, especialmente en la sensibilización y el trabajo para la protección de sus hijos contra las repercusiones del cambio climático. Señalando que la Iglesia celebra el «Tiempo de la Creación» y subrayando la importancia de preservar nuestra casa común. Por su parte, el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) trabaja por la justicia climática, ya que el cuidado de la creación es una de sus prioridades más importantes. De hecho, la Biblia enseña la integridad de la creación y nos llama a cuidar el jardín del Edén (Gn 2,15). El Dios de la Biblia es un Dios de justicia que protege, ama y cuida a los más vulnerables entre sus criaturas.

Miles y miles de refugiados huyeron de sus países debido a los graves impactos de las guerras y los conflictos, buscando un refugio seguro en un país que protegiera a sus familias con dignidad. Sin embargo, los refugiados del Líbano sufren hoy, como todos los libaneses, unas condiciones de vida difíciles. También fueron privados de sus derechos básicos y se enfrentan a un futuro desconocido. De ahí que las mujeres se hayan convertido en los grupos más afectados y vulnerables, ya que se enfrentan a muchas dificultades, sobre todo a nivel económico, para hacerse cargo de sus hijos y familias.

En medio de todo el estrés de la vida diaria, las mujeres refugiadas se enfrentan a muchas presiones psicológicas que les afectan desde todos los ámbitos de la vida. Por lo tanto, el Departamento de Servicio y Ayuda - Diakonia, Oficina de Beirut, en el Consejo de Iglesias del Oriente Medio, busca durante todo el año, acompañarlas y apoyarlas para superar sus desafíos, a través de diversos programas.