The Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME)
Holds A Gathering for the Students of Theological Institutes in Lebanon :
“The Deposit of Faith, So That We May Know What We Have Received and How to Transfer It”
La Sagesse University - Lebanon
Aiming at bridging distances between Theology students from different Institutes, The Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME) organized the annual gathering for the students of Theological in Lebanon under the title “The Deposit of Faith, So That We May Know What We Have Received and How to Transfer It.” The meeting was held on Tuesday 20 February 2024 at La Sagesse University - Beirut, and attended by students representing seven Theological Institutes in Lebanon, which are part of the eighteen Institutes of ATIME.
Attendees were Professor Georges Nehme, President of La Sagesse University, Archimandrite Dr. Jack Khalil, Dean of the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology - University of Balamand and President of ATIME, Father Dr. Michael Kanbar, ATIME Executive Secretary, Father Dr. Bassam Nassif, Professor at the Saint John of Damascus Institute at the University of Balamand and ATIME Associate Executive Secretary, Father Dr. Elias Hanna, Dean of the Pontifical School of Theology at the Holy Spirit University – Kaslik, Father Tanios Khalil, Dean of the Faculty of Theology at La Sagesse University, Sister Dr. Yara Matta, Director of the Higher Institute of Religious Sciences (ISRR) at the Saint Joseph University in Beirut, and Dr. Georges Sabra, President of the Near East School of Theology (NEST) in Beirut. Participants were also Professors and Fathers from various Theological Institutes and 270 students of Theology in Lebanon.
After the opening prayer, President Nehme gave a welcome speech, in which he expressed the joy of meeting together as Theological Institutes and students, as well as the joy of La Sagesse University with this activity. He said, “For us to meet together is a very important Ecumenical testimony. We pray with each other, we talk with each other, we think with each other, and this is what constitutes a very important testimony... after 29 years, the renewal of these meetings help us to weave Ecumenical Church friendships.”
He added, “La Sagesse University was founded after the massacres of the mountain in 1875. It was founded by His Eminence Bishop Al Debs, and he had a vision for it to be a meeting place between Christians and between Christians and Muslims... The approach of rapprochement still continues in the University’s charter and mission, with the blessing of His Eminence Archbishop Paul Abdel Sater, the University’s guardian."
Then, Archimandrite Dr. Jack Khalil delivered a speech, in which he welcomed the students, and said: “St. Paul assures his disciple Timothy that their call to serve the Gospel was according to the eternal plan of God, and when Jesus Christ was manifested, their call was manifested too. And this is valid to those who will also carry the deposit of faith after the apostles... God will preserve the deposit forever, and blessed is he who carries it to the next generation without spoiling it. Blessed is he who adheres to the “sound doctrine”, not to the wisdom of this age. Contrary to many other books, the Gospel is not directed to a specific place and time, and the Gospel does not derive teachings from wordly wisdom acquired through human experience, but rather it is from the Incarnate Wisdom of God, and the content of a divine revelation ‘that was once for all entrusted to the saints’ (Jud. 1:3).”
He continued, "I hope that each one of us knows that God is also calling us today to carry the deposit with the power of the Spirit of God and transfer it, exactly as it was delivered by the apostles. According to the Apostle Paul, our call is not to adapt the Gospel according to the wisdom of this age, but rather to teach and baptize all nations, so enlighten the whole creation by the light of Christ... Be the true voice of Christ, who is the Truth, not the voice of those lukewarm in spirit, who loved darkness more than light. Don’t forget that the goal of the Ecumenical rapprochement in our time is to reach the visible unity in Christ, in the truth, and to walk together on the path that leads to life.”
After a dynamic introduction game between the participants, the meeting included two workshops aimed at enhancing the Spiritual awareness and Theological knowledge of the participants. The first workshop focused on “The Deposit of Faith Through the Authenticity of the Text of the New Testament,” in which speakers were Archimandrite Dr. Jack Khalil and Father Dr. Michel Sakr, a Professor of the New Testament exegesis. As for the second workshop, it was entitled “The Deposit of Faith About the Divinity of Jesus Christ,” in which speakers were His Eminence Bishop Mor Roger Akhras, Patriarchal Vicar for Syriac Studies, and Professor Martin Akkad, an Associate Professor of Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations.
Moreover, the meeting ended with a musical episode offered by the students. First, the students of the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology - University of Balamand presented a collection Orthodox hymns; afterward, the students of the Armenian Orthodox Seminary of the House of Cilicia in Bikfaya chanted a group of hymns according to the Armenian Orthodox Ritual. In addition, all watched a video introducing the Near East School of Theology, prepared by students from the School; finally, all listened to ecumenical lyrics sung according to traditional Lebanese music, chanted by students from the Institute of Theology at the Holy Spirit University – Kaslik. At the end, Fr Tanios Khalil let the participants in reciting the Prayer of consecration authored by Saint Ephraim the Syrian, and asking God to grant again similar meetings.