on Sunday, January 18, at 6 pm Beirut time, at the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia, St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, Antelias - Lebanon

on Friday, January 23, at 7 pm Beirut time, at the Armenian Catholic Cathedral of Saints Gregory the Illuminator and Saint Elias the Prophet - Downtown Beirut, Debbas Square

“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