AFRICA/EGYPT - The XII General Assembly of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) begins

Monday, 16 May 2022 middle east   oriental churches   local churches   ecumenicalism   area crisis  

Cairo (Agenzia Fides) - "Courage, it's me, do not be afraid!". The reassuring words that Jesus addresses to the Apostles, troubled and uncertain after having seen him walking towards them on the waters, in the Lake of Tiberias in the Gospel according to Matthew have been chosen as the motto of the XII General Assembly of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), which opened in Cairo on the morning of today, Monday 16 May. Representatives of 21 Churches and ecclesial communities present in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa are taking part in the work of the Assembly, which will last until Friday 20 May, and are called upon to share information, reflections and decisions concerning the present and future condition of Christians in the Middle East. The important institutional meeting of the most important ecumenical body in the Middle East is taking place for the first time in the Arab Republic of Egypt, thanks to the hospitality offered by the Coptic Orthodox Church and its Patriarch, Pope Tawadros II. At least 17 Patriarchs and Heads of Churches and ecclesial communities participate in the Assembly, including the Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphael Sako, the Syrian Orthodox Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch Yohann X, the Catholicos of Cilicia Armenians Aram I, Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch Youssef I Absi, Syrian Catholic Patriarch Youssef III Younan and Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa. The work is led by Dr. Michel Abs, Secretary General of the MECC. The assembly, which will end with the distribution of a concluding document, will follow the classic format, with reports and working groups on a wide variety of issues, such as diakonia and shared social service, the ecumenical journey as an instrument of common witness, and the contribution of Christians in the Middle East to the processes of reconciliation and peaceful coexistence in the societies of the Middle East and North Africa. During the meeting, the positions of the four co-presidents of the organization and the members of the executive committee, called upon to exercise the collegial direction of the MECC for the next four years, will also be renewed. The MECC General Assembly meets every 4 years to discuss issues related to the Christian presence in the Middle East. The Covid-19 pandemic delayed the convening of the 12th Plenary Assembly, which was to take place in 2020, by two years. The Middle East Council of Churches, founded in 1974 in Nicosia and currently based in Beirut, aims to facilitate the convergence of Christian communities in the Middle East on issues of common concern and to help overcome denominational conflicts.
About thirty Churches and ecclesial communities, belonging to four different “families”: Catholics, Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox and Evangelicals, are members of the MECC. According to the rotation criterion, the current general secretary Michel Abs belongs to the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, whose Patriarch, Yohann X, resides in Damascus. An economist and sociologist with extensive experience in management and business consulting, Michel Abs has also carried out studies and research on the presence of Christian communities in the Middle East and on issues related to interreligious dialogue. Before him, the post of secretary general of the MECC had been occupied for the first time by a woman, the Maronite Christian Souraya Bechealany, professor of theology at Saint-Joseph University in Beirut. (GV) (Agenzia Fides, 16/5/2022)


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