Conference on “Countering Hate Speech to Promote Human Dignity and Coexistence”

A Report Via "Extra News" Channel

Within the framework of constructive media cooperation and the strong partnership between the media department of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) and its various media partners, joint media efforts play an important role in following and covering the Conference on Hate Speech. This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to highlighting issues of concern to our societies while promoting a culture of dialogue, respect, and acceptance of others.

This partnership has been demonstrated through close cooperation and coordination among media teams across all aspects of the coverage. It includes preparing news stories and press reports, covering the conference’s key sessions and discussions, providing photo and video coverage and documenting its activities, as well as conducting interviews with participants and speakers to highlight their views and perspectives on hate speech and ways to counter it.

This cooperation underscores the fact that the media, through its various institutions and platforms, is an essential partner in disseminating positive messages and strengthening communication among the different components of society, particularly on issues that require collective efforts and the creation of spaces for dialogue and mutual understanding.

The sessions of the regional conference organized by the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), in partnership with the Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services (CEOSS), begun in Cairo.

The conference’s opening session started with a welcoming word delivered by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Michel Abs.

Then, two presentations were delivered: the first one by Dr. Abdul-Hussain Shaban, was entitled “Hate Speech: A Vision of Its Essence,” while the second, one by Dr. Samir Morcos, was entitled “Hate Speech: A Coercive Act and a Hateful Society.”

Afterwards, Dr. Lubna Bayouk presided over the first session, which was held under the main theme “The Value-Based and Religious Framework for Countering Hate Speech.”

Reverend Dr. Andrea Zaki: Confronting hate speech begins with rebuilding awareness and strengthening the value of the human being

We need an alternative discourse based on dialogue, respect, compassion, and acceptance of diversity

Professor Michel Abs: Egypt was chosen to host the conference because of its status as a land of encounter and unity

The region is suffering not only from wars and armies, but also from a war of narratives and a war of words

Cairo, October 4, 2026

Reverend Dr. Andrea Zaki, President of the Evangelical Community in Egypt and President of the Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services (CEOSS), participated, on Sunday, in the regional conference “Countering Hate Speech to Promote Human Dignity and Coexistence.” The conference was organized by CEOSS in cooperation with the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) at the CEOSS’ headquarters in Cairo, with the participation of a distinguished group of Religious and intellectual leaders, researchers, and thinkers from Egypt and several Arab countries.

To the President of the Evangelical Community in Egypt Reverend Dr. Andrea Zaki

during the opening of the regional conference, “Countering Hate Speech to Promote Human Dignity and Coexistence”, held in the Arab Republic of Egypt.

“Our role in confronting the widespread hate speech in the world is a significant one. We have established a program for this purpose, and this regional conference is clear evidence of that. We must anticipate developments and take the lead in confronting this situation, so that we can build a new mindset that accepts differences among people and prevents individuals from producing hate speech.”

As part of his visit to the Arab Republic of Egypt to participate in the conference “Countering Hate Speech to Promote Human Dignity and Coexistence,” organized by the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) with its partners, the MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs participated in the opening ceremony of Al-Nour Ninth Festival for Culture and Creativity, honoring the Thinker Dr. Hussain Shaban, in Cairo. Dr. Shaban is also one of the prominent researchers participating in the Council’s “Countering Hate Speech” conference.

Attending the opening alongside Professor Michel Abs were His Eminence Bishop Georges Chehwan, Maronite Bishop of the Eparchy of Cairo for Egypt and Sudan and Apostolic Visitor to North Africa; Reverend Dr. Refaat Fikry, MECC Associate Secretary General; Father Dr. Michel Kanbar, University Professor, Writer, and Historian; Professor Laure Abi Khalil, Coordinator of the Dialogue, Human Dignity, and Social Cohesion Program at MECC; and the Journalist Lea Adel Maamary, Coordinator of Media and Church Relations at MECC, along with a distinguished group of thinkers, researchers, poets, and writers from several Arab countries.

October 3, 2026

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) held a media interview with His Eminence Bishop Thomas Adly, Bishop of the Coptic Catholic Diocese of Giza, Fayoum, and Beni Suef, and a Member of the MECC Executive Committee, as part of the “Leaders and Positions” program. The interview sheds light on the Coptic Catholic Church and its role in the Middle East, in addition to his vision for the future of the Ecumenical work, the challenges that the Churches are facing, as well as the people of the region.

The interview was conducted by the Journalist Lea Adel Maamary, Coordinator of Media and Church Relations at MECC. The episode explored His Eminence Bishop Thomas Adly’s experience and his journey within the Middle East Council of Churches, his role in Ecumenical work, and the importance of strengthening common Christian witness amid the crises and growing challenges that the region is facing.

“Momentum”

2-10-2026

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 "A Conference to Sound the Alarm on Hate Speech".

You can check the issue via the following link: https://mailchi.mp/81ac190b821b/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.

Professor Michel Abs

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

A delegation from the Middle East Council of Churches is heading to Egypt to hold a conference on hate speech, in coordination with the Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services (CEOSS) and other Arab and international organizations.

As part of its strategic orientations, the MECC has considered addressing this scourge—by drawing attention to it and developing practical plans to confront it—among its primary responsibilities: first, as an ecumenical institution, and second, as an institution founded upon dialogue and justice, both of which lead to social peace, the indispensable condition for all progress and development.

Since we launched, five years ago, our programs for the preservation of human dignity and the rehabilitation of social capital, we have been monitoring the fault lines of fragmentation that threaten the unity of our societies and that, if left untreated, could lead them toward disastrous consequences.

As part of this effort to identify the forces of social disintegration and division, and following a series of seminars and discussions with experts and researchers, we concluded that priority should be given to convening a regional Arab gathering around this frightening and: Hate Speech. The conference will bring together around 35 distinguished researchers specializing in social unity and cohesion. We decided to begin in Egypt, where the experience of unity in daily life offers a valuable model worthy of consideration and emulation…

Cairo, Egypt | 4–6 October 2026

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), in partnership with the Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services (CEOSS), and with the participation and support of the Presbyterian Church (USA) (PC(USA)), and The United Church of Canada, and the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID), will convene a regional conference in Cairo from 4 to 6 October 2026, under the theme: “Countering Hate Speech: Promoting Human Dignity and Living Together.”

An Episode About the MECC Conference: “Countering Hate Speech to Promote Human Dignity and Coexistence,” in Cairo

Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian to the MECC Media: A Series of Activities Promoting Culture Across Generations

Amidst the rapid advancement of technology and the accelerating transformations taking place in the education sector, new questions are emerging about the future of education and access to knowledge. Between today’s challenges and the future of students, Haigazian University in Lebanon is preparing many activities aimed at raising awareness of the importance of academic education and the return to books and reading.

In this context, and in an exclusive interview to the Media of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, President of Haigazian University in Lebanon, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Evangelical Family, spoke about the University’s upcoming activities, their objectives, and details.

An Ecumenical Workshop Organized by the Middle East Council of Churches and Tearfund in Beirut

As part of efforts aimed at strengthening the preparedness and capacity of Churches to anticipate and respond to crises amidst the challenges that Lebanon is facing, the Diakonia and Social Service Department, Lebanon’s Office, at the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), in partnership with Tearfund, held a training workshop on “Churches And Preparedness” from 28 to 30 September 2026 in Beirut. The workshop brought together an Ecumenical group of clergy and laypeople representing various Church Families.

The workshop was facilitated by a specialized trainer from Tearfund, and focused on the role of the Church in responding to crises and challenges affecting communities, as well as ways to strengthen the skills of Church workers. It addressed the various stages of disaster risk management, from prevention, risk reduction, and preparedness to response and recovery.

It Also Concludes the "Season of Creation" this Month

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) have now issued its online Ecumenical calendar for the month of October 2026. 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 Middle East Council of Churches also concludes the "Season of Creation" in the region in October 2026, which this year carries the theme “Living Water” and the symbol “Immersion in Living Water,” inspired by Ezekiel 47:9 and 12.

Written by Fr. Antoine Al Ahmar, Director of the Theological and Ecumenical Department at the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC)

As the sun set over the Suez Canal, young Christians from different Church traditions gathered beside the water to pray. Earlier that day, they had planted trees and blessed water together. For some, connecting care for the Earth so directly with their Christian faith was something new.

“Planting a tree and praying together is a new experience for us,” one young participant reflected.

Another, who had travelled from a different region, was already thinking about what could come next: “We would like to organize similar activities in our region as well.”

These simple words capture something of what the Season of Creation 2026 is seeking to inspire across the Middle East: allowing faith, ecumenical encounter and care for creation to flow together like the “Living Water” at the heart of this year’s theme.

When the Corrupt Run Institutions

Part Two

Professor Michel Abs

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

How Do We Confront Corruption from a Christian Perspective?

Christianity does not regard truth merely as an administrative or legal value, but as something intimately connected to the very essence of the relationship with God.

Jesus Christ said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6)

He also said: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32)

Defending the truth, therefore, is not merely a professional position; at its core, it is a spiritual and moral stance.

Where truth is falsified, genuine freedom cannot exist. And where a person is compelled to lie in order to preserve his job, the institution becomes a space of fear rather than a place of service.

This is why Christ was particularly uncompromising toward hypocrisy, especially when religion, law, or authority became a cover for personal interest.

He said to the scribes and Pharisees:

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.”
(Matthew 23:27)…

An Episode with His Grace Anba Antonios

Metropolitan of Jerusalem and the Near East for the Coptic Orthodox Church, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Eastern Orthodox Family

Produced By MECC