“Momentum”

9-1-2026

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 "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Participation in the Experience of One Life". It is the speech he delivered at the press conference announcing the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, on Thursday, January 8, 2026, at the Catholic Media Center - Jal El Dib, Lebanon.

You can check the issue via the following link: https://mailchi.mp/ddfbbebe0459/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.

at the Head of an MECC Delegation that included the Coordinator of Dialogue and Human Dignity Programs Professor Laure Abi Khalil, and the Coordinator of Media and Church Relations the Journalist Lea Adel Maamary

Produced By MECC

And a Life Testimony from the Coordinator of Media and Church Relations at MECC the Journalist Lea Adel Maamary

With the Participation of His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II

The Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs participated in the Ordination at the head of an MECC Delegation that included Professor Laure Abi Khalil, Coordinator of Dialogue and Human Dignity Programs, and the Journalist Lea Adel Maamary, Coordinator of Media and Church Relations

Participation in the Experience of One Life

Professor Michel Abs

Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC)

Since 1908, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has come to us in a renewed form, inspired by the Holy Spirit through the hearts and minds of believers who long for the members of the Church to be one in the Lord, just as the Incarnate Lord is one with the Father.

This is the one hundred and eighteenth year of celebrating the Week of Unity in its current form, after a process that extended from 1740 to 1908—a period during which pioneers and far-sighted visionaries helped plant its foundations and shape the elements of a prayer that gathers those of the same faith in a unifying orientation, where all accept one another in the way they address the Creator and thank Him for His boundless gifts.

The journey was long and took centuries, during which these pioneers fought the estrangement that spread among the children of the flourishing vine—an estrangement that reached the point of mutual hostility, enmity, and condemnation. This “luxury” was extremely costly—more than we imagine—and we still suffer its consequences to this day.

We will not prolong lamentation over what has passed. We have emerged from the mire of antagonism and are moving toward living our faith-unity in its proper form, even though some have been slow to join this path—a path that is, at the very least, sound, and whose results must bring much positive good to humankind.

Nothing is worse than division or fragmentation in any field, and nothing is better than unity and mutual support in any matter. It is a law of life, and no two sound-minded people truly differ on this principle…

The President of the Episcopal Commission for Ecumenical Relations His Eminence Archbishop Youssef Soueif, held a press conference at the Catholic Media Center, during which he announced the launch of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and its program under the title “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling”(Ephesians 4: 4), with the participation of the President of the Episcopal Commission for Media His Eminence Bishop Mounir Khairallah, the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs, the Director of the Catholic Center Monsignor Abdo Abou Kassem, and the Rapporteur of the Episcopal Commission for Ecumenical Relations Father Tanios Khalil.

Produced By MECC

at the Head of a Delegation, on a Visit to the MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs

Words Emphasized the Importance of Preserving Human Dignity

The Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs, received Dr. Sayed Mohammad Rida Mourtadawi, the Cultural Advisor of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Lebanon, at the head of a delegation that included Dr. Ali Kassir, Head of Media Affairs, and Mr. Jawad Tabrizi, Director of the Advisory Office (Secretary). The meeting took place on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, at the MECC headquarters in Beirut.

MECC attendees were the Associate Secretary General Mrs. Seta Hadeshian, Coordinator of the "Dialogue, Social Cohesion, and Human Dignity" Programs, Professor Laure Abi Khalil, and Coordinator of Media and Church Relations Journalist Lea Adel Maamary.

What Are the Celebrations that Will Be Held on the Occasion?

The Middle East and the world celebrate the "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity" between January 18 and 25 of each year. An Ecumenical station during which we Pray and sing together praising our Lord Jesus through a special booklet, which is entitled this year “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling”
(Ephesians 4: 4).

As is customary every year, Christians from different Church Families participate in celebrations during which they unite in Prayer on the intention of a unity that they long for.

In this context, we issue in Arabic the program of celebrations of the "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity" that will be held this year in various Lebanese regions.

Week of Prayer Booklet: https://www.mecc.org/mecc/2025/12/29/the-middle-east-council-of-churches-issues-the-arabic-version-of-the-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-booklet-2026.

“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling”

(Ephesians 4: 4)

With great hope, the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) releases the Arabic version of the “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity” booklet 2026, under the theme “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling” (Ephesians 4: 4), based on the Biblical Text Ephesians 4: 1-13.

The booklet presents Prayers and reflections prepared by the faithful of the Armenian Apostolic Church, along with their brothers and sisters of the Armenian Catholic, and Evangelical Churches. The texts were jointly prepared and published by the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches (WCC), and were translated into Arabic by the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), as every year.

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is in an eight-day Prayer celebrated by Christians around the world between 18 and 25 January every year. It invites us to delve more deeply into our fellowship in Christ, which unites Christians worldwide.