On Great and Holy Tuesday, April 15, 2025, during the evening service at St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias, the parable of the Ten Maidens was presented, emphasizing the mystery of the Second Coming of Christ. Students from the Sunday School of the Catholicosate took part in the ceremony, dressed in church vestments and holding lanterns to represent the ten maidens from the Gospel. During the reading, the “wise” virgins kept their candles lit, symbolizing their readiness, while the “foolish” ones extinguished theirs, representing indifference to the Second Coming.

You can find below the Easter 2025 Message from His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.

His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Orthodox Family, presided over the Third Bridegroom Service at the Mariamite Cathedral in Damascus.

You can click here to check all the photos.

Upon the request of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches, Mr. Zareh Bezikian and his daughter Ani, will sponsor the construction of a five-floor multipurpose building at the Catholicosate of Cilicia in Antelias, Lebanon. This very generous gesture is as well an expression of love and gratitude towards Mr. Zareh Bezikian’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Alecco and Ani Bezikian. The center will be called BEZIKIAN CONVENTION CENTER (ՊԷԶԻՔԵԱՆ ԿԵԴՐՈՆ)…

His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Orthodox Family, presided over the First Bridegroom Service at the Mariamite Cathedral in Damascus.

You can click here to check all the photos.

On the evening of Palm Sunday, April 13, 2025, the Opening of the Portals ceremony was held at St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, presided over by His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC). His Eminence Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian conducted the ceremony and delivered the Sermon.

On April 13, 2025, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) presided over the Palm Sunday celebration at the Catholicosate of the Holy See of Cilicia in Antelias. His Eminence Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian celebrated the Divine Liturgy and led the children’s procession.

‎On April 13, 2025, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), celebrated the Service of Nahire (the Feast of Lights), at St. Peter and St. Paul Cathedral in Baghdad.

‎‏This service was attended by their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Severius Hawa, Archbishop of Baghdad and Basra, and Mor Augeen Al-Khoury Nemat, Patriarchal Secretary.‏

On the evening of Palm Sunday, 30 March / 12 April 2025, the First Bridegroom Service of the Holy Week commenced at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

This service was presided over by His Beatitude Patriarch Kyrios Kyrios Theophilos III, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, with the concelebration of the Holy Sepulchre Hieromonks and Hierodeacons, led by the Elder Kamarasis, Archimandrite Nektarios. The hymns were chanted in Greek by the chief cantor, Deacon Eustathios, along with visiting chanters from Greece, and assisted in the Praises by His Eminence Metropolitan Joachim of Helenoupolis.

Palm Sunday Statement on the Bombing of
the Anglican Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza
13/4/2025
The Diocese of Jerusalem condemns in the strongest terms today’s missile attacks on the Ahli Arab Hospital, an institution run by the Anglican Church in Jerusalem. The twin strikes demolished the two-storey Genetic Laboratory and damaged the Pharmacy and the Emergency Department buildings. It also resulted in other collateral damage to the surrounding buildings, including the church building of St. Philip’s.

The Church of Saint George the Martyr — the Anglican Cathedral in Jerusalem — celebrated the Palm Sunday service, presided over by His Eminence Bishop Hosam Naoum, the Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem and the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East.

On Friday, April 11th, 2025, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), sent a letter to Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches. In his message, Catholicos Aram I expressed deep sorrow and protest regarding the conference titled “Christianity in Azerbaijan,” held at the Vatican’s Gregorian University. He criticized the conference for being organized unilaterally, noting that the topics discussed and the speakers involved—particularly those related to the Armenian Church—were unjust, especially given the absence of Armenian speakers.

On April 13, 2025, His Holiness Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), celebrated the Holy Qurobo on the occasion of Palms Sunday, at St. Peter and St. Paul Cathedral in Baghdad.

On April 11, 2025, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), received their Excellencies: Avak Assadourian, the former Armenian Orthodox Archbishop of Baghdad, Mor Aphrem Youssef Abba, Syriac Catholic Archbishop of Baghdad, and Nerses Zabarian, Armenian Catholic Archbishop of Baghdad, at the Archdiocesan Headquarters in Baghdad.

Their Eminences Archbishops: Mor Severius Hawa, Archbishop of Baghdad and Basra, and Mor Augeen Al-Khoury Nemat, Patriarchal Secretary, also attended the meeting.

During the meeting, His Holiness thanked their Excellencies for their visit and discussed the current situation in Syria, Iraq and the region.

In this live broadcast, His Beatitude Patriarch Mor Ignatius Youssef III Younan, Patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church of Antioch and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), presided over the Nahireh Service from the Church of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, at the Patriarchal See in Beirut, Lebanon.
This video was published on the official Facebook page of the Syriac Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch.

In this live broadcast, His Beatitude Patriarch Mor Ignatius Youssef III Younan, Patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church of Antioch and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), celebrated the Divine Liturgy for Palm Sunday, including the procession, from the Church of Saints Behnam and Sarah, Fanar — Lebanon.
This video was published on the official Facebook page of the Syriac Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch.

Palm Sunday Grief: A Sanctuary of Healing Struck in the Land of the Divine Healer

Jerusalem, April 13, 2025

On this sacred Palm Sunday, as the faithful around the world raise palm branches in remembrance of our Lord Jesus Christ’s entry into Jerusalem—an entry marked not by conquest, but by meekness, peace, and divine compassion—we find our hearts weighed with sorrow over the suffering endured in the very land upon which He walked.

In the early light of this holy day, the al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital in Gaza, a place consecrated to healing and long rooted in the Christian vocation of mercy, was struck by an Israeli air assault that rendered its emergency and other critical departments inoperative. Patients in fragile condition, including children, were forced into the open streets. Among them, a twelve-year-old who perished during the chaotic evacuation. This death, like so many others, is a silent cry, a reminder of the innocent who suffer where care should prevail.

“Hosanna to the Son of David.blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.hosanna in the highest.” (Mt 21:9) 

Dearly beloved, 
may the Lord give you peace! 

I greet to all of you here, faithful of our diocese, the few pilgrims present. I also send greetings to those who are not here with us physically but are united with us in prayer. Today our whole diocese, the Church of Jerusalem, is united with us and praying with us. From Gaza to Nazareth; from Bethlehem to Jenin. All of Jordan and Cyprus are praying with us and ideally have entered with us into the Holy City, Jerusalem. And I especially greet you, the Christians of Jerusalem, for this day, which is dedicated to you, which is especially yours, for you are those here in Jerusalem who keep the flame of the Christian faith alive and keep Christ’s presence alive in our midst…

On Friday, April 11, 2025, in a day filled with deep feelings of faith and hope, the town of Yafa of Nazareth witnessed the celebration of the Way of the Cross, an event that became a living testimony to the unity of the churches and the believing community. It took place in a moving spiritual atmosphere, with wide participation from various Churches.

The celebration was presided over by His Beatitude Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, accompanied by Msgr. Rafic Nahra, Patriarchal Vicar in Galilee, and His Excellency Msgr. Youssef Matta, Archbishop of Akko, Haifa, Nazareth, and all Galilee for the Greek Catholics. Also in attendance were Archbishop Ilario Antoniazzi, Msgr. Boulos Marcuzzo, parish priests of Yafa of Nazareth, as well as numerous priests, religious, and faithful from surrounding parishes and towns.