On Saturday, October 23rd, 2021, a meeting took place between His Holiness Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I and Dr. Joanna Wronecka, the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon.

On October 24, 2021, the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II celebrated the Holy Qurobo at St. Mary Church in Montfermeil, France.

In a letter to G20 leaders, global religious leaders representing half a billion Christians in over 100 countries warned that rising global temperatures will have increasingly disastrous consequences on impoverished and vulnerable communities that contribute least to the climate crisis.

On 25 October, students, faculty and friends of the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Institute at Bossey marked the 75th anniversary of the “living laboratory of ecumenism,” as Bossey is affectionately called.

After a temporary shut-down in 2020 due to COVID-19, Bossey was able emerge with resilience, creativity and fortitude. From offering online classes, then a hybrid format and now back to in-person instruction while observing COVID-19 safety protocols, Bossey has kept moving forward.

His Holiness Pope Francis sends a congratulatory letter to His Beatitude Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I as he marks the 30th anniversary of his election as the Archbishop of Constantinople.

By Devin Watkins

As His Beatitude Patriarch Bartholomew celebrates 30 years since his election, His Holiness Pope Francis sent him a congratulatory letter, expressing his best wishes.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Once we experience the power of God’s love, and recognize his fatherly presence in our personal and community life, we cannot help but proclaim and share what we have seen and heard. Jesus’ relationship with his disciples and his humanity, as revealed to us in the mystery of his Incarnation, Gospel and Paschal Mystery, shows us the extent to which God loves our humanity and makes his own our joys and sufferings, our hopes and our concerns (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 22).

On Tuesday morning, 6/19 October 2021, the day of the commemoration of the Holy Glorious Apostle Thomas, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Holy Church of the Transfiguration of our Lord in Ramallah.

Co-celebrants and participants in prayer in this Liturgy were by the invitation and preparation of the Hegoumen of Ramallah Archimandrite Galaktion the Priests of the Ramallah District in the West Bank…

To all the priests, consecrated men and women, and faithful

of the Diocese of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem

Dear brothers and sisters,

May the Lord grant you peace!

The General Synod of the Church has been reorganized, in its mode of operation, by the Holy Father, Pope Francis. By starting from local realities, this reorganization aims to create opportunities for meeting, listening, sharing, and planning so as to avoid that the Synod, and the documents it produces, be predominantly a top-down product.

A new and updated version of the Pope’s prayer app helps the faithful pray for a synodal Church.

By Linda Bordoni

"Click To Pray" 2.0 is an updated digital proposal that can be downloaded on iOS and Android platforms. Launched by the “Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network”, the app offers users a variety of specific propositions to pray together with Pope Francis on a daily basis, and support the synodal process.

The Conference of Secretaries of Christian World Communions held its yearly meeting virtually from October 12th to the 14th, 2021. The ecumenical officers of each respective church family and communion shared their reports and updates. The executive session of the conference elected its new chair for the upcoming term, and finalized the details of the in-person meeting that will be held in 2022 in Vancouver, Canada.

Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa chaired the annual meeting of the Latin bishops in the Arab countries, which opened on Monday, October 18, in Abu Dhabi, the UAE. The meeting is hosted by the Apostolic Vicariate in Southern Arabia.

In a message to the Director General of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, Pope Francis says we must adopt “innovative solutions” to transform the way we produce and consume food “for the well-being of people and of the planet.”

On October 18, 2021, the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II laid the foundation ston of the Syrian Hungarian Private School in Bab Sharqi - Damascus, Syria.

Thanks to the efforts of the Hayastan All Armenian Fund’s US partner, Armenia Fund Inc, $1 million was raised and transferred to the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia to meet the urgent social needs of the Armenian community and support Armenian educational institutions in Lebanon. The fundraising was organized in September upon the appeal of His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia to Armenians around the world.

His Beatitude Patriarch of Babylon for the Chaldeans Cardinal Mar Louis Raphael Sako sends the following appeal to Iraqis:

Owing to a patriotic and conscientious affiliation, I address these words to you, stemming from my concern and love to our citizens and the homeland.

His Holiness Pope Francis celebrated Mass at St Peter’s Basilica for the solemn opening of the Synod of Bishops, which will take place in three stages over the next two years.

By Christopher Wells

His Holiness Pope Francis formally opened the Synod of Bishops on Sunday with a solemn Mass in St Peter’s Basilica.

Plenary meeting of the Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land

October 5-6, 2021

NAZARETH - The Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land met in Nazareth for their ordinary plenary meeting on October 5-6, 2021, guests of the Casa Nova for pilgrims, which we thank for the fraternal welcome. The choice of location was dictated by the celebration of the year dedicated to St. Joseph and his family.

The Grand Imam of Al-Azhar speaks to Vatican Media about his relationship with His Holiness Pope Francis: "From the first minute of our meeting I had confirmation that he is a man of peace and humanity. The encyclical is an appeal to create a true fraternity where there is no room for discrimination on the basis of differences of religion, race, gender, or other forms of intolerance."

As per tradition at the Catholicosate of Cilicia, on the Feast of the Holy Translators, the Divine Liturgy is officiated by the Dean of the Seminary at St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, in Antelias, Lebanon, followed by a celebration at the Main Hall of the Catholicosate to mark the opening of the academic year of the Seminary. Thus, on Sunday, October 10th, 2021, His Holiness Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I presided over the celebrations of the Feast.

Balamand, Lebanon: October 8, 2021

The Holy Antiochian Synod, presided by His Beatitude Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East Patriarch John X (Yazigi), held its twelfth regular session from October fifth to October eighth of 2021 in Balamand, Lebanon.