Convening of the International Scientific Conference

“The Orthodox Church of Antioch from the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century: Towards a Proper Understanding of History”

The MECC Secretary General Professor Michel Abs Participates in the Opening Ceremony

*You can find a photo album below the text.*

Under the patronage and in the presence of His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches for the Orthodox Family, the University of Balamand, Lebanon, inaugurated, on Monday 16 October 2023, the International Scientific Conference entitled: “The Orthodox Church of Antioch from the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century: Towards a Proper Understanding of History”, and organized by the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology at the University of Balamand. It was held at the Zakhem Auditorium - University of Balamand in Koura.

Participants were the two former Presidents of the Lebanese Republic, President Michel Aoun and President Michel Sleiman, Deputy Parliament Speaker Mr. Elias Bou Saab representing the President Mr. Nabih Berri, Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Saadeh Al Chami representing the Prime Minister Mr. Najib Mikati, and the President of the University of Balamand Dr. Elias Warrak. Attendees were also the Bishops, members of the Antiochian Holy Synod, Archbishops, Deans of faculties at the University, and the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Professor Michel Abs, along with political, judicial, religious, social, cultural, educational, security, military, and media personalities.

The opening of the Conference started with some hymns presented by the choir of Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology at the University of Balamand, after which the Presenter of the ceremony and the journalist Elie Ahwach welcomed the attendees. The celebration included a speech by Archimandrite Dr. Jack Khalil, Dean of the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology in Balamand, and President of the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME), and a speech by Professor Elias Warrak, the President of the University of Balamand.

His Beatitude Patriarch John X delivered a speech in which he said “A proper understanding of history, as mentioned in the Conference title, requires adherence to scientific principles. The account of history is not a personal point of view, but a set of facts and events that we ought to study in order to understand what actually happened, and to draw conclusions… The Church of Antioch, the Apostolic Patriarchate and the first See of Peter continues to be the Church of communion, consultation, openness, and peace. She remains a Church with her place and authority among the Churches.”

In his speech, His Beatitude also talked about the abduction of the two Bishops Yohanna Ibrahim and Paul Yazigi, saying: “How can I not express the pain in our hearts over the case of the Archbishops of Aleppo, Youhanna Ibrahim and Boulos Yazigi, who have been kidnapped since April 2013? This bleeding wound in the body of the Antiochian Church will not heal until their fate is known, and their kidnapping will remain in our history as a painful picture of the oppression suffered by human beings living in this East.”

At the end, the first lecture was held under the title “Unia of Florence and the Church of Antioch: A Retrospect,” presented by Professor Constantin Panchenko from Moscow State University, Russia.

As part of the Conference’s opening, the Antiochian Orthodox Media Center affiliated with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East held a series of interviews, including an interview with the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Professor Michel Abs, via video, in which he indicated, “We are in anxiety, the region, the people, and the Church, and in during the period of anxiety, a person needs to return to his history and discover it, and to know more his/ her roots.” Regarding the speech of His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Professor Abs said that it was “an excellent speech that summed up all of history,” stressing its importance, and saying, “His Beatitude summarized in it all the anxiety, pain, and fateful concern for the future, and all concerns with national unity and social unity, in addition to Ecclesial unity.”

Noting that the Conference sessions are also being held on Tuesday 17 and Wednesday 18 October 2023, in the Patriarch Ignatius IV Hall at the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology in Balamand, Lebanon.

Photos’ Source: Facebook Page of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East.