Words from the Heart for Difficult Times

Published by the Middle East Council of Churches on 26 October 2026, this article by Professor Michel Abs analyses Patriarch John X’s address at the opening of the Holy Synod at Balamand on 20 October. It follows five connected themes—responsibility, presence, witness, unity and synodality—and calls for the address’s values to be put into practice. This is a bilingual summary; the full article remains with its publisher.