By the special invitation of the Protestant Church in Switzerland and its President, the Rev. Rita Famos, UAECNE Acting President Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (UAECNE), and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Evangelical Family, visited Bern and Zurich for a series of activities focused on Lebanon, the Middle East, Armenia and Artsakh from 3-7 November 2024.

On Friday, October 26/November 8, 2024, The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem celebrated the feast of the Great Martyr Demetrios the myrrh-gusher.

On this feast, the Church remembers in the certainty of faith that Saint Demetrios came from Thessaloniki and lived in the time of Emperor Diocletian as the chief military officer and after his conversion to Christianity and his baptism, he became of catechist and teacher. Under this quality, he blessed and encouraged his student Nestor to fight against a gladiator of great strength and inhuman ferocity, Lyaeus. Thanks to the blessing of Saint Demetrios, Nestor agreed to “repress the pride of Lyaeus” and put him to death.

Having been informed of this, Maximian condemned Saint Demetrios and Saint Nestor to death by spear and sword. Through their example, all the Christians – members of the Church through the centuries until today are strengthened in their faith and life in Christ and glorify God, Who is wondrous in His Saints.

The Christian Media Center in the Holy Land (CMC) interviews the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem

It is extremely difficult to express and assess in a few sentences the social, political and religious situation we have been experiencing for the past year. The fact is that we are living through one of the most problematic periods in modern history. This conflict is military in nature, and we are witnessing the consequences of what happened on 7 October and what is also happening in Gaza and the West Bank. However, from the Church's perspective, the concerns are not only about the military aspect, but also about the devastating impact on the population. First of all, the emotional impact; the hatred, resentment, revenge, and contempt. We had never witnessed a situation as deep and intense as this year! And of course also the consequences on people's lives

On Tuesday, October 23 / November 5, 2024, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of jerusalem celebrated the feast of Saint James the Brother of God. On this feast, the whole Church, especially that of Jerusalem, remembers that Saint James was the son of Joseph, born of a woman Joseph had married before he was betrothed to the Theotokos. That is why James was also called her son and brother of the Lord and son of Joseph (Matthew 13:55). He was also called “the Just” because of his extreme honesty and justice.

The Lord appointed him as the first Hierarch of the Church of Jerusalem. He presided over the First Apostolic Synod of Jerusalem in the year 49. He contributed the most to the decision of this Synod so that the Church would open its gates to the nations and not only to the Jews.

He wrote his Catholic Epistle in the New Testament, addressed to the twelve tribes of Israel in the diaspora. He confessed Jesus as sitting at the right hand of the power of God and coming on the clouds of heaven. On his testimony, he was pushed down from the wing of the Temple of Solomon and was stoned to death by order of Annanus the High Priest, in the year 62.

Mark 12:38-44

We saw two Sundays ago that Jesus' last miracle before entering Jerusalem and experiencing the Passion was that of healing a blind man, Bartimaeus (Mk 10:46-52). And this is because the disciple is the one who sees: he sees God at work in history and recognizes it by his unique and unmistakable style, which is the style of Easter.

Just like the disciples of Emmaus: they see a pilgrim walking with them, but they only recognize him when they see him breaking bread (Lk 24:31, 35). Because that gesture speaks of God, it speaks of his way of living and loving. The disciple is the one who learns to see, to look at life through the lens of Easter.

On Sunday, November 3, 2024, the parish of Reneh celebrated the 60th anniversary of the church's inauguration with a thanksgiving Mass led by His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa,  Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. Concelebrating were Msgr. Rafiq Nahra, Patriarchal Vicar of Galilee, Fr. Ibrahim Shomali, the parish priest, as well as several priests and religious sisters.

Established in 1964, the church was built to serve the growing Catholic community in Reneh, guided by Fr. Joseph Nicolas and funded through the generosity of the French Knights of the Holy Sepulchre.

01 November 2024 | Indonesia   Global

The delegates of the General Assembly gathered Yogyakarta have approved 18 public statements on a variety of topics, from the situation in Ukraine and Palestine to Tax Justice and climate change. Public statements are an opportunity for the members to outline priorities, positions and define engagement on a  variety of topics.

Please, find the approved statements here.

29 October 2024 | Indonesia

The climate crisis is a threat that impacts all people, all communities, all nations in the world. ACT Alliance has had a focus on climate justice through its programming and advocacy for many years, and that focus continues in its General Assembly taking place in Yogyakarta, Indonesia October 28-November 1, 2024.

The crisis is of concern to all people, from the youth attending the Youth Pre-Assembly, to leaders of ACT, ACT members, and others speaking to journalists during a press conference, or from those working with local communities in Indonesia to those engaged in the UNFCCC’s Conferences of the Parties.

He spoke before 300 delegates from across the globe who are gathered in Indonesia this week.

“With gratitude, I want to affirm the ACT Alliance as a gift to the world and to the ecumenical movement,” he said. “I express special and personal words of thanks to the moderator Erik Lysén and the general secretary Rudelmar Bueno de Faria.”

Pillay reflected that the ACT Alliance is an essential partner of the WCC.

“We need to serve those in need, and we also need to change the systems and policies that keep them oppressed,” he said. “We go into the world knowing that mercy and justice go together.”

The ACT Alliance international organization held its 4th General Assembly under the theme “Hope in Action, Together for Justice”, between 28 October and 1 November 2024, in Yogyakarta – Indonesia.

The ACT Alliance General Secretary Mr. Rudelmar Bueno de Faria heartfeltly thanked all members, YAKKUM, and the dedicated volunteers who made the Assembly possible. In this message, he acknowledges the invaluable support, hard work, and commitment that brought the event to life, highlighting the spirit of unity and service that defines the ACT community.

01 November 2024 - Indonesia/ Global

On the day of his appointment as new Moderator for ACT Alliance, Nicolàs Rosenthal delivered the following address in front of the delegates of the ACT Alliance General Assembly:

Dear sisters and brothers,

The other day, when I spoke, we were campaigning. Now we’ve been elected, and here’s the bad news: We are at a critical point in human history. But we did not appear here unexpectedly. More than 50 years ago the Club of Rome was already warning us of the limits of growth. More than 50 years ago, too, my late uncle, the radical thinker and prolific writer Ivan Illich, Monsignor Ivan Illich, was drawing our attention to the critical thresholds that our civilization was beginning to cross, points of no return where supposed advances in energy, transportation, medicine or technology were beginning to turn against their original good purposes.

On the occasion of COP29 UN Climate Change Conference in Baku (Azerbaijan) – November 2024 – We, the three spiritual leaders, express once more our frustration and concern regarding Azerbaijan’s war, blockade (2020-2023) and forced evacuation of 120.000 Armenians from their historical homeland; the planned destruction of Armenian religious and historical monuments and the illegal imprisonment of political leaders.

of the Malankara Jacobite Syrian Christian Church in India, upon the passing away of His Beatitude Mor Baselios Thomas I

Apostolic Benedictions to our beloved brother in Christ: His Eminence Mor Gregorios Joseph - the Malankara Metropolitan and Assistant to the Catholicos, Their Eminences the Metropolitans, Very Reverend Cor-Episcopos and Monks, Reverend Priests and Deacons, Respected Nuns, WorkingCommittee, Managing Committee and Association Members and the entire faithful of our Malankara Jacobite Syrian Christian Church in India.

‏With hearts filled with hope in the Risen Lord, we offer our deepest condolences on the passing away of our beloved Catholicos of India: His Beatitude Mor Baselios Thomas I. His life was a shining testament to unwavering faith, tireless devotion, and an enduring love for the Holy Church. The loss of such a holy leader is profound. We join with all of you in Malankara in celebrating his life and mourning his departure from this earthly life.

"We pray for you and stand by you and your people in these circumstances of war in Lebanon and violence in the whole region. "

Damascus, October 31, 2024

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, received a phone call from His Beatitude Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, New Rome and the Ecumenical Patriarch. During the call, the Ecumenical Patriarch stressed the support of the Church of Constantinople, both as clergymen and lay people, especially for the affected areas because of the war in Lebanon and Gaza. Both parties asserted the importance of efforts to stop the war and restore peace.

On October 29, 2024, 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, inaugurated the seminar titled: “Harnessing clean energy for a sustainable future”, held at Beirut Hall in Golden Mazzeh Hotel.

The Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All East organized this seminar in collaboration with CRETA Group. International organizations as well as ambassadors and representatives of leading local organizations attended the seminar.

Mk 12: 28b-34

Last Sunday we saw that for Jesus, loving a person means stopping before him and for him - Jesus is in Jericho and on his way to Jerusalem to give his life.

But on this journey, giving life means for Jesus that he stops and takes the pain of this person to heart, that of Bartimaeus, who cries out and turns to him in order to be able to see again. Jesus stops, meets him and heals him.

So loving also means stopping and listening, taking the pain to heart.

In today's passage, we see that Jesus has come to Jerusalem. It is the city to which one goes up, where love for God finds concrete and visible expression: offering worship and sacrifice to the one God and Lord.

His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches, places an utmost emphasis on enhancing the educational sector within Armenian communities globally. This imperative was underscored during his visits to the United States. On October 13, 2024, the Guzelian family of Boston hosted an intimate dinner reception in honor of His Holiness Aram I, attended by esteemed community members.

On Wednesday, October 23rd, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches. visited the AGBU Alex and Marie Manoogian School, where he was warmly received by the principal, administration, faculty, and student body. In honor of His Holiness, the students prepared a brief artistic program, complemented by formal addresses delivered by Principal Sonia Kalfayan and the Head of the Armenian Department, Mr. Sebouh Avedissian.

On Monday, October 15/28, 2024, a doxology was held in the Catholicon Church of the Holy Sepulchre, for God’s help in liberating our nation from the German and Italian Occupation of the Second World War and as a tribute towards the fighting heroes of our Nation and a prayer for the repose of souls of all the victims of this ordeal.

The Doxology was presided over by His Beatitude Patriarch Kyrios Kyrios Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem, along with the Holy Sepulchre High Priests, Hieromonks, and deacons, in the prayerful participation of monks and nuns and members of the Hellenic Parish.

The Doxology was particularly honoured by the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos and the staff of the Greek Consulate General.

After the Doxology in the hall of the Patriarchate, His Beatitude spoke with the following address:

“Your Excellency Consul General of Greece Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos,

During the final session of the Assembly of the Synod, His Beatitude Ibrahim Isaac Sedrak, conveys his thanks, on behalf of all involved, for the successful completion of the Synod’s various stages.

By Antonella Palermo 

His Beatitude Ibrahim Isaac Sedrak, Patriarch of Alexandria of the Catholic Copts and President of the Assembly of Patriarchs and Bishops of Egypt, on Saturday the 26 of October 2024 evening expressed thanks for a prophetic labour that, while reaching a conclusion here, he said, is also a beginning in our daily lives.

A journey of courage

Speaking on behalf of the General Assembly, Patriarch Sedrak extended thanks to all who contributed to organizing the Synod’s three preparatory phases and two follow-up sessions, held under the guidance of His Holiness Pope Francis and the Holy Spirit, "with realism and clarity."