MECC
Speech of the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Professor Michel Abs
At the Welcome and Well-Wishes Meeting with His Excellency
The President of the Lebanese Republic,
General Joseph Aoun
Republican Palace – Baabda
28.07.2025
Your Excellency,
It is with joy and hope that we visit you today, as a delegation from the Middle East Council of Churches, composed of the associate secretaries general and heads of central departments within the Council.
We had hoped that the four Presidents of the Council, Metropolitan Anba Antonios, His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, and His Beatitude Patriarch Raphael Bedros XXI Minassian, as well as members of the Executive Committee could lead the delegation. However, due to some being abroad and the short notice between the date of invitation and this visit, that was not possible. We will make up for this by visiting you all together during the upcoming Executive Committee meeting scheduled in Lebanon in early December. It is worth noting that visiting the head of state is a tradition observed by the Council whenever its Executive Committee convenes in a country where its member churches are present.
The Middle East Council of Churches is entering the second 50 years of its age, which we hope will be long and fruitful. It is a regional institution licensed in Beirut and includes 21 churches from all over the Middle East, grouped into four ecclesial families based on their theology.
The Council has its main office in Lebanon and additional offices in Syria (Damascus, Daraa, Aleppo), Jordan (Amman), Jerusalem, Nazareth, Gaza, with a Cairo office being reopened in Egypt, and offices planned for reopening in Iraq and Cyprus…
A Delegation from the Middle East Council of Churches Visits His Excellency the President of the Lebanese Republic General Joseph Aoun
The President of the Lebanese Republic General Joseph Aoun, met with a delegation from the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), headed by its Secretary General Professor Michel Abs. At the beginning of the meeting Professor Abs said, "It is with joy and hope that we visit you today, as a delegation from the Middle East Council of Churches, composed of the Associate secretaries general and heads of central departments within the Council." He added, "visiting the head of state is a tradition observed by the Council whenever its Executive Committee convenes in a country where its member churches are present."
He said, " The Middle East Council of Churches is entering the second 50 years of its age, which we hope will be long and fruitful. It is a regional institution licensed in Beirut and includes 21 churches from all over the Middle East, grouped into four ecclesial families based on their theology. The Council has its main office in Lebanon and additional offices in Syria (Damascus, Daraa, Aleppo), Jordan (Amman), Jerusalem, Nazareth, Gaza, with a Cairo office being reopened in Egypt, and offices planned for reopening in Iraq and Cyprus"…
Video - "Ecumenical Horizons" Program: Seventh Episode
Produced by the Middle East Council of Churches
“Ecumenical Horizons” is a weekly program that features spiritual, cultural, intellectual, educational, youth and environmental topics.
The Middle East Council of Churches Issues the Ecumenical Calendar for August 2025
The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) have now issued its online Ecumenical calendar for the month of August 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.
The MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs Participates in the 104 Meeting
Celebrating Archbishop George Khodr: An Eastern Pen for Literature in the Heart of God
"Archbishop George Khodr, an Eastern Pen for Literature in the Heart of God," was the title of the "104 Meeting" celebration, organized at the invitation of "Liqaa" in cooperation with AUT University – Halat, and with the blessing and presence of His Eminence Archbishop Silouan (Moussi), Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Byblos, Batroun and Dependencies (Mount Lebanon).
The ceremony was attended by representatives of prominent figures and authorities, most notably President General Michel Aoun, Represented by Lawyer Wadih Akl; the Vice President of the Supreme Islamic Shiite Council, Represented by Sheikh Mohammad Haidar; Bishops Michel Aoun and Simon Faddoul; Sheikh Ahmad Al-Lakkis; and MP Dr. Salim Sayegh. The ceremony was also attended by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs; the General Directors, Jean Gebran and Hassan Al-Akra; as well as Representatives of Orthodox associations, spiritual figures, intellectual, political and academic personalities, and friends of Archbishop Khodr.
The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Issues Its Weekly Newsletter
“Momentum”
24-7-2025
This issue includes reports, videos, news, articles, and a full coverage of the latest developments of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), as well as the Church, Ecumenical, and social events…
This is in addition to the weekly word of the MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs which is entitled in this issue “From Beneath the Rubble”.
You can check the issue via the following link: https://mailchi.mp/6297fca96731/momentum-mecc-weekly-newsletter.
You can also subscribe to the Momentum Newsletter via the following link: https://mecc.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?id=fd3381352a&u=1db32cafe9ea32b38eb90480a.
From Beneath the Rubble
Professor Michel Abs
The Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC)
From beneath the rubble, we call to you.
From the heart of tragedy, we cry out.
We are the children of Palestine, the people of Gaza, abandoned by all the nations of the world,
betrayed by governments that defied their own people who stood in solidarity with us.
We are Gaza’s children, we are its women, its elderly, its disabled, its sick.
We are all those left to be prey to killing, hunger, thirst, disease, displacement, and sleeping in the open.
We are the people of the stricken Strip, whose present and future have been destroyed,
turned into victims of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
We are those forsaken by the world, our wounds deepened by the deep state that sees our land only as a source of tourism and energy, investing in it over the torn bodies of our children, ripped apart by its missiles.
O blind, deaf, and mute world,
Do you not hear the screams of Gaza’s wounded?…
The Middle East Council of Churches Issues the “Season of Creation” Guide 2025 In Arabic
Under the theme “Peace with Creation” and the symbol of “Garden of Peace”, inspired by Isaiah 32: 14-18, the Ecumenical family in the Middle East and the world unites to celebrate together the “Season of Creation” 2025. This season, which constitutes an Ecumenical, Christian and environmental station, begins every year on 1 September, with the Feast of Creation, and ends on October 4, with the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, the Patron Saint of ecology.
In this context, the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) issues the guide for the “Season of Creation” 2025 in Arabic after the MECC Theological Department made its translation into Arabic, as is customary annually.
The guide includes all the details and information about the season, as well as the theme and slogan of this year, in addition to Prayers and suggestions for participating in the celebrations... Hence, you can find the guide for this year in Arabic and English.
Video - "Ecumenical Horizons" Program: Sixth Episode
Produced by the Middle East Council of Churches
“Ecumenical Horizons” is a weekly program that features spiritual, cultural, intellectual, educational, youth and environmental topics.
Leaders and Positions
Video - His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai Talks About the Challenges that the Family Faces Amidst the Current Situations
The MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs Receives the Secretary General and Executive Director of the Bible Society Dr. Mike Bassous
The Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs, received the Secretary General and Executive Director of the Bible Society Dr. Mike Bassous, on Tuesday, July 21, 2025, at the Middle East Council of Churches headquarters in Beirut.
During the meeting, the Secretary General Professor Abs and Dr. Bassous discussed various topics and issues related to Churches and the importance of Church media and Church publications. They also discussed issues related to relations between Ecumenical institutions in the Middle East and ways of networking between them.
Moreover, Dr. Bassous confirmed his attendance at the Middle East Council of Churches partners' meeting that will be held next September. He also invited Professor Abs to attend the Bible Society's Diamond Jubilee celebration, as well as the launching of the “Armenian Study New Testament” booklet, which is a joint production between the Bible Society and the Armenian Orthodox Catholicosate of Cilicia.