Por Damaris Dilling

El próximo domingo 22 de enero, Sally Azar será ordenada Pastor de la Iglesia Evangélica Luterana en Jordania y Tierra Santa, lo que la convertirá en la primera mujer Pastor de Palestina. En 2006, la Iglesia Evangélica había sentado las bases para ello al decidir que las mujeres también podían ser ordenadas.

Llegué a la iglesia alemana del Redentor, en la Ciudad Vieja de Jerusalén, donde he quedado con Sally para una entrevista, y puedo sentir literalmente el ajetreo y el ambiente especial inherentes a los días previos a la significativa ceremonia. Un periodista de la cadena de televisión alemana ARD toma algunas fotos de Sally y su padre, el obispo Sani Ibrahim Azar. Hay que ultimar la liturgia del domingo, los primeros invitados de Alemania ya han llegado y quieren tener unas palabras con Sally. Tras una breve charla con el obispo Azar, Sally me lleva a la cafetería de la iglesia. Pedimos dos capuchinos grandes y nos sentamos en un rincón tranquilo del patio abierto del antiguo santuario. A pesar de la tensión, Sally parece relajada, espera mi intervención y se toma su tiempo para responder a mis preguntas.

La Iglesia Evangélica Luterana en Jordania y Tierra Santa ha anunciado que ordenará a la sra. Sally Azar, hija del Obispo Sani Ibrahim Azar, como Reverenda de la Iglesia, convirtiéndose así en la primera mujer Pastor en Palestina, el domingo 22 de enero de 2023, a las 15:00 hora de Jerusalén.

Podremos ver la retransmisión en directo de la ceremonia en el canal de YouTube de la Iglesia Evangélica Luterana en Jordania y Tierra Santa, a través del siguiente enlace: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5ClyaldZZU.

By Damaris Dilling,

Next Sunday, 22 January, Ms Sally Azar will be ordained as a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, making her the first female pastor in Palestine. In 2006, the Evangelical Church had laid the foundation for this by deciding that women could also be ordained.

I arrive at the German Redeemer Church in the Old City of Jerusalem, where I have arranged to meet Sally for an interview and can literally feel the hustle and bustle and the special atmosphere inherent in the days before the significant ceremony. A journalist from the German television channel ARD is taking a few photos of Sally and her father, Bishop Sani Ibrahim Azar. The liturgy for Sunday needs to be finalized, the first guests from Germany have already arrived and want to have a few words with Sally. After a brief chat with Bishop Azar, Sally takes me to the church café. We order two large cappuccinos and sit down in a quiet corner of the open courtyard of the old sanctuary. Despite the tension, Sally seems relaxed and looks forward to my interruption and takes time to answer my questions.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land announced that it will ordain Ms. Sally Azar, daughter of Bishop Sani Ibrahim Azar, to be a Reverend in the Church, becoming the first female pastor in Palestine, on Sunday 22 January 2023, at 3pm Jerusalem time.

You can watch the livestream of the ceremony on the YouTube channel of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, through the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5ClyaldZZU.

"The Prisoner and Human Dignity"

Thursday 26 January 2023 - 9:30 am To 2:30 pm

As part of its series of monthly seminars, the Middle East Council of Churches has the honor to invite you to a round table entitled "The Prisoner and Human Dignity", on Thursday 26 January 2023, from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm, at the headquarters of the MECC General Secretariat in Beirut. You can participate in it on Zoom via the following link: https://tinyurl.com/9kzwm2be, or live on the MECC Facebook page.

The round table will start with an opening and welcome speech by Dr. Laure Abi Khalil, which will be followed by the speech of the MECC Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs.

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. Abs, which is entitled “Praying for Unity: A Phase of a Cultural Faith Process in the Making”, on the occasion of the beginning of the “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity”. Dr. Abs highlighted the importance of building bridges and meeting together, stressing the need to strengthen the Ecumenical culture.

As part of the “Week of Payer for Christian Unity” celebrations, the issue presents a video report about the significance of the date of this week which extends between 18 and 25 January 2023. This is in addition to this week’s booklet, and the daily Prayers and reflections which you may publish and distribute every day.

Today begins the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which runs from the eighteenth to the twenty-fifth of January. It is a week adopted by the churches of the world as an expression of their rejection of Christian division and of their yearning for unity of spirit, testimony, and role.

The Council has been associated with this activity, which was ecumenical par excellence at its outset.

It has been carrying out various tasks in order to make it a success. First, it is firmly convinced of the need for unity among Christians, and second, it  has become part of the annual calendar of ecumenical work.

It was a wonderful sight to see, last Sunday, at the early opening of this week in the St. George's Orthodox Cathedral in one of the towns of Mount Lebanon, how the largest number of church leaders came together to celebrate and pray together in the context of keeping up with the activities of the Week of Prayer for Church Unity.

A Joint Seminar Between MECC and OHCHR

It is true that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which the Lebanese expert Charles Malik wrote its final version. A Declaration that guarantees the preservation of human rights and dignity, but solidarity, awareness and preventing infringement of dignity have become necessary efforts today amidst some violations and obstacles.

Hence, the Middle East Council of Churches, in partnership with the Regional Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), held an intellectual seminar entitled "Dignity, Freedom and Justice", on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It was organized on Wednesday 11 January 2023, at the headquarters of the MECC General Secretariat in Beirut.

The video presents an overview of this seminar, its topics and participants. It is produced by the MECC Communication and Public Relations Department.

Before the war in Syria, livestock breeders used to find high-quality fodder at reasonable prices in the market. However, the livestock sector, like other sectors, was affected by war and started to face many challenges, the most important of which are high prices of fodder and periodic vaccinations.

This, in turn, has affected the ability of many livestock breeders in poor villages who resort to breeding in order to sell milk and dairy products to support their families. Many livestock breeders will no longer be able to continue their work taking into consideration constant losses resulting from high fodder prices.