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In a 21 September letter, World Council of Churches interim general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca congratulated Dr Michel Abs on being elected as the next secretary general of the Middle East Council of Churches.

As churches across the world observed the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, they were reminded of God’s infinite love yet confessed to feeling overwhelmed by dark forces, too.

The fatal blast in Beirut last month became yet another blow to an already plagued country. In recent months, a financial crisis with a free-falling currency and rising unemployment has further undermined the Lebanese economy. Add to that one million Syrian refugees and the COVID-19 pandemic, and the contours of a fragile nation facing monumental challenges emerge.

Prayers, minds and hearts across the world were focused on the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel during an online ecumenical gathering hosted by the WCC on 14 September.

Rev. Fr Dr Lawrence Iwuamadi is dean of the Ecumenical Institute, the graduate school which opened its academic year this week. Below, Iwuamadi reflects on the arrival of new students at the Ecumenical Institute during this remarkable time.

An online morning prayer hosted by the WCC on 14 September will be specially focused on the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, observed this year from 13-21 September.

In a joint statement, the World Council of Churches, ACT Alliance, and Middle East Council of Churches appealed to address the most urgent needs in the wake of the catastrophic explosion that ripped through the heart of Beirut on 4 August.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is mourning the death of the Very Reverend Archimandrite Dr Alexi Chehadeh, who led the Department of Ecumenical Relations and Development for the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East in Damascus, Syria.

It has been 46 years since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus led to the partitioning of the island, the northern third inhabited by Turkish Cypriots and the southern two-thirds by Greek Cypriots, whose government is internationally recognized. The August 1974 ceasefire line became a United Nations buffer zone, along which Cyprus remains divided.

Church leaders from across the world are expressing their grave concern over the government of Israel’s plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank.

In a joint letter to foreign ministers that are part of the European Union, the WCC and Middle East Council of Churches appealed for a firm and principled stance by the European Union against any annexation by Israel of occupied Palestinian territory in the West Bank.

In a 7 May statement, Patriarchs and heads of churches in Jerusalem expressed their deep concern about Israeli unilateral annexation plans.

Father Jacques Mourad is a monk and priest of the community of Mar Moussa in Syria. He is very active in Islamic-Christian dialogue and belongs to the diocese of Homs of the Syriac Catholic Church. In 2015, he was captured and held hostage by the Islamic State, before escaping with the help of Muslims. During Advent, Father Mourad visited the Ecumenical Centre, where he led a special midday prayer for peace in Syria and the Middle East.

Churches worldwide have been releasing their official reactions to the proposal by US president Trump and Israeli prime minister Netanyahu for dividing up Palestine and Israel.

WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit on 29 January urged the international community not to support a proposal by US president Trump and Israeli prime minister Netanyahu for dividing up Palestine and Israel - a plan developed with no meaningful participation from the Palestinian people.

Upon completion of a meeting in Cyprus on 21-22 January, the Executive Committee of the Middle East Council of Churches released a statement by members who came from Cyprus, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, and Palestine.

The WCC stands firm in viewing “antisemitism as irreconcilable with the profession and practice of the Christian faith”.

In the aftermath of armed attacks by both the US and Iran, WCC reiterates its call for restraint and de-escalation of the confrontation.
“Further escalation and conflict between the United States and Iran can only serve short-term political interests, while threatening the permanent destruction of many lives, communities and precious cultural and environmental heritage,” said World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit. “I appeal to political leaders on all sides of this confrontation to put the interests of the people of the region ahead of their own interests, and to seek peace through dialogue and negotiation rather than confrontation.”

As 25 experts in geopolitics and theology gathered in Lebanon from 6-8 December, Dr Souraya Bechealany, secretary general of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), highlighted the vital importance of the process they were undertaking.