Amidst a rise in violence against woman which put her at risk at various levels, the world participates annually in the United Nations campaign “UNITE to End Violence Against Women”.

Through its participation with ACT Alliance in this international campaign, the Middle East Council of Churches calls for serious and quick action to end violence against women in all its forms and to help them face and overcome it.

«Vivir con dignidad para las personas con discapacidad» El jueves 8 de diciembre de 2022 de las 19:00 a las 20:30 horas

El Consejo de Iglesias del Oriente Medio le invita a participar en su nuevo seminario web mensual titulado «Vivir con dignidad para las personas con discapacidad», el jueves 8 de diciembre de 2022 de las 19:00 a las 20:30 horas.

Puedes participar en el webinar a través del siguiente enlace de Zoom: shorturl.at/bde19, y en directo en la página de Facebook del MECC.

El seminario web comenzará con una nota de apertura del Secretario General del MECC, el Dr. Michel Abs, e incluye 2 sesiones sobre el tema en cuestión. Será moderado por la Dra. Laure Abi Khalil, además de un resumen en inglés a cargo del Dr. Chawki Attieh.

The Middle East Council of Churches with the ACT Alliance join the annual campaign launched by the United Nations in the world under the title “UNITE to End Violence Against Women”. The campaign extends during 16 days of activism and awareness to end violence against women and work to preserve their dignity and rights.

“Living In Dignity For Persons With Disability”

Thursday 8 December 2022, from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.

The Middle East Council of Churches invites you to participate in its new monthly webinar entitled “Living In Dignity For Persons With Disability”, on Thursday 8 December 2022, from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.

You can participate in the webinar via the following Zoom link: shorturl.at/bde19, and live on the MECC Facebook page.

A Lecture by the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs at the Invitation of St. John of Damascus Institute of Theology

Friday 2 December 2022 - 7:00 pm, at Balamand and live on Facebook

Under the patronage of His Beatitude John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, St. John of Damascus Institute of Theology invites you to participate in a lecture delivered by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Professor Michel Abs, entitled "The Church and Society: Institution and Leadership". It will be held on Friday 2 December 2022, at 7:00 p.m. You can watch it live on the Facebook pages of St. John of Damascus Institute of Theology and the Middle East Council of Churches.

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 final statement issued by the MECC Executive Committee meeting held on Monday 28 and Thursday 29 November 2022 at Saydet El Bir Monastery in Bkennaya, Lebanon. As for the weekly message of the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs, it is entitled “Executive Committee and the concerns of an era”, in which he talked about the importance of the in person meetings, and highlighted the most important decisions taken by the Executive Committee regarding the MECC work and its development.

The issue also includes 2 videos about the first day’s activities of the MECC Executive Committee Meeting, and the sessions organized for youth who were part of the meeting.

Beyond the closing statement and the minutes of the meeting, we need to stop at the "experience" of the Executive Committee meeting that was held during the last two days in a calm monastery in Mount Lebanon.

There is no doubt that nothing is more lovable than meetings between brothers after a long separation, especially when it is in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and on common issues and concerns related to the Middle East region with all its components and their various affiliations.

We have been holding meetings remotely, online, as the name used to be, even in Arabic, during the hard years of the pandemic that struck humanity at its core, and we found, at that time that these remote meetings were the effective solution when the pandemic threatened every human life on earth. We have adopted this online solution, trained ourselves on its uses and adapted it to our needs. It was the perfect expression of the logic which says that “technology that may harm humanity in some of its manifestations is what provides humanity with the means that help it save itself”. However, with the return of life to normal, people came back to taste and realize the importance of face-to-face meetings with this interaction that takes place between two people in direct encounter versus the encounter between two computer screens or cell phones.

At the end of 2022, the Communication and Public Relations Department at the Middle East Council of Churches have now issued its online Ecumenical calendar for the month of December 2022. 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.

As part of building Ecumenical bridges between Theology students from various Church families, the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME) organized an entertaining sports gathering with the participation of more than 200 students studying in Theological Institutes in Egypt. It was held on Saturday 26 November 2022 at the Coptic Catholic Seminary in Maadi, Egypt.

The gathering was characterized by an atmosphere of joy, friendship and love. It aimed to bridge distances between the participants who got to know each other, exchange experiences and opinions about various topics of their interest.

The United Nations campaign “UNITE to End Violence Against Women” is still ongoing during 16 days of activism, worldwide. The Middle East Council of Churches is participating with ACT Alliance in the campaign and raises its voice towards protecting women and preserving their rights.

Noting that this UN annual campaign starts on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on 25 November, and ends on the International Human Rights Day on 10 December.