Editor's note: The Sixth World Conference on Faith and Order began on 24 October 2025 at the St. Bishoy Monastery in Wadi El Natrun, Egypt. On the second day, China Christian Daily interviewed Professor Michel Abs, secretary general of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC). He shared insights into the work and future vision of the MECC and the situation of the churches in the Middle East. He also reflected on the significance of this conference for the churches in the region and his views on Christian unity.
China Christian Daily: Could you please introduce yourself and the MECC?
Michel Abs: I am Professor Michel Abs. I've been a university professor for nearly half a century, and an activist in human relations and international ecumenical work since the 1980s. I was a Lebanon director at the MECC during the decade of the 1980s. Decades later, I took on roles as Treasurer and a member of the Executive Committee, and then became the MECC's Secretary General since October 2020.
The MECC, in its current form, was established in 1974 as a non-governmental organization with its base in Lebanon. But its roots go back much further. In 1929, pastors from Edinburgh founded the Near East Christian Council, which evolved into the Near East Council of Churches in 1964, including Protestant churches only. It wasn't until 1974 that the organization became the Middle East Council of Churches.
Now, MECC includes 21 churches from four families: Protestant, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, and Catholic. Its reach includes Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Iran, Jordan, Iraq, Palestine, Egypt, and parts of Sudan, Tunisia, and Algeria—essentially the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
The MECC's structure includes a General Assembly of 64 members, with 16 from each of the four families. Every four years, this assembly elects the 24-member Executive Committee and the General Secretary. I'm in my second term, with three years remaining.
The General Secretariat oversees administrative tasks like human resources, procurement, IT, and the finance department. The social service department handles roughly 90% of the MECC's work. The Palestinian department, operating in Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine, acts as a social service department for Palestine. We also have the theology department, the communication department, and the newly created department of dialogue, social cohesion, and human dignity.
China Christian Daily: Could you please share about the situation of the Middle East and especially the church there?
Michel Abs: The Middle East is a crossroads, where all roads converge between Asia, Africa, and Europe. It's never had long periods of stability; turmoil and war have been constant. I call the situation in Palestine an "abnormal state." I want to be clear—I have nothing against Jews, but this state is killing people. Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Palestine have all been destroyed.
Stability is rare, but there are exceptions—Egypt and Jordan. These are the most stable countries in the region, with good governments and societies that function well. Lebanon, however, has a fragile balance. It may seem stable at times, but that balance is always at risk. Syria and Iraq are deeply unstable, despite Iraq's oil wealth.
The problem goes beyond just war; it's division: sectarian fighting, religious conflicts, class tensions, ethnic strife. Kurds and Arabs both are mostly Sunni, but they're divided by ethnicity. Then there are Yazidis and other religious groups—everyone seems to be fighting everyone else. Every now and then, the international powers might let a short period of stability happen, like a "bonus," but it never lasts. The region always slips back into conflict. That's the Middle East today.
This region was once fully Christian and gradually converted to Islam. Now, Christians are a minority almost everywhere. In Iraq, their numbers are 50,000, some say 150,000, but I don't think it's that high. Before the war, Syria had two million Christians; now it's down to one million. In Jordan, Christians make up only 3% of the population, and in Palestine, it's just 0.6%. Christians are fleeing the region.
However, the historic persecution of Christians is not the main issue today. While there are occasional incidents, most governments here try to treat Christians well. Jordan, Iraq, and especially Egypt are supportive of Christians. Egyptians know that Christians are good, decent people with strong institutions. Christians in this region are "civilization producers," building schools, hospitals, universities, publishing houses, and media outlets. They are substantial and main participants in development and progress, which is why they're respected.
China Christian Daily: What are the most pressing challenges facing the Middle East, especially Christians, today?
Michel Abs: I pray, go to church, and serve on my church council, but I engage with society in a secular way. I work with all Muslims—Shi'a, Sunni, and Druze—as well as Yazidis and Alawites. So when I talk about challenges, I don't focus only on Christians. For instance, the problems in places like Egypt affect everyone. What's bad for Egyptians is bad for all, including Christians.
The challenges here are huge and affect every community. Christians, who are often more educated and open to the West, have been more oriented towards emigration. But Muslims are emigrating just as much. The difference is that Christian numbers are smaller, so their emigration is more noticeable.
The real challenges are shared by all: low living standards, lack of income and jobs, slow development, poor economic growth, and a growing ecological crisis. The most pressing issue is freedom and democracy. These challenges are facing everybody, not only Christians.
This week, I'm meeting with Muslim leaders in Egypt, something I've been doing for 25 to 30 years. I don't see myself as a "minority" or others as a "majority." We're all Lebanese, all Arabs, all Egyptians—we're one. Labeling oneself as a minority diminishes self-esteem. We share the same identity as our fellow citizens.
Ultimately, the biggest challenge for Christians and everyone here is stability. Stability fosters development, growth, wealth, and a better life. Without it, poverty and misery take hold, and we can't address our situation.
China Christian Daily: How does the MECC support its member churches and the Christian communities in the Middle East?
Michel Abs: Our work depends a lot on our resources, which are limited. We support the reconstruction of churches, we assist schools, and we provide aid to families. We also back institutions—old people's homes, orphanages, handicap centers, and more. We also run training programs for church leaders—pastors, ministers, and trainers.
Decades ago, some member churches had little experience with development work. They didn't have structured development organizations before, but through the MECC, they learned how to set them up—and now they run very effective ones.
Financially, we help where we can, but available funding is far below the volume of needs. A single month of fighting can destroy 10 times what we're able to fund. So our support is more qualitative than quantitative: we build competencies of orientation and support. The most important thing we do is bring people together. We foster synergy, build networks between member churches, and link them to international organizations.
China Christian Daily: The 6th World Conference on Faith and Order is taking place. What does this global gathering mean for churches in the Middle East?
Michel Abs: If there were not this conference, I wouldn't have met you or known about Christianity in China, and that rejoices me. Global gatherings like this put Christians together. They meet, get to know each other's rituals, literature, thoughts, and even different liturgies or visions of God—so long as we don't touch the main parameters of faith.
Putting people together lets them think, develop documents, and evaluate the past (like the 1,000 years of the Nicene Creed) together. It builds bonding and synergy, making them stronger. They also share services, build confidence, develop knowledge, and often do training. The WCC is very important here—it includes a large percentage of Christians, and together they can do great things.
China Christian Daily: The MECC held a plenary yesterday. Do you have anything to share about that?
Michel Abs: We talked about faith in the Middle East, and there was some focus on the Palestinian situation. I spoke for 5-6 minutes to introduce the topic, and later I'll give a longer lecture on Christian unity.
I've fought for ecumenism for 50 years. We need to stop lamenting our differences or saying unity "should" happen—it's already there. Christ is here, and we are one in Christ, even with different cultures or denominations. We can't make all Christianity one institution with one hierarchy.
True unity comes from doing things together. For Christians, serving together and following Christ's model is unity. Christianity created key services: nursing, schooling, universities, hospitals, old people's homes, handicap centers, orphanages—all from Christian faith and love.
Dialogue is important too, but it's a target by itself and not only a mean. It's about accepting each other, exchanging, and knowing each other—not resolving every theological debate. What matters is following Christ's example: He came to help us have a better life. So we should focus on serving humanity, since humanity is wounded, bleeding, and facing value debacles. That's how we serve Christ and show our Christianity.
China Christian Daily: Looking ahead, what is your vision for the future of the MECC and for the unity of churches in your region?
Michel Abs: First, on unity—churches in the region, like the MECC, already have unity. Of course, they have problems, but that's normal.
The MECC is 51 years old now, and I want to finish my term with its full institutionalization. That means turning it into a strong organization: establishing clear rules, regulations, policies, and procedures; developing work methods; and creating committees for each department. I want it to stop being a "one-man show" or "few-people show" and become a "churches' show"—where member churches are involved in the MECC's daily life.
We also need to replenish the MECC's reserves— Lebanese banks froze all accounts and took our funds in 2019.
The MECC's future orientation, which I shared when re-elected last year, has four key goals: first, to make it a hub for dialogue; second, a space for elite thinking, think tanks, and knowledge production; third, a center for research; and fourth, a hub for networking. We already have networks for theological institutes and communication, and next we want to create one for church development agencies. The idea is to bring all similar church organizations together into one association. They'll stay independent, but work in an organized, coordinated way.
China Christian Daily: Do you have any words for the church in China?
Michel Abs: Only congratulations. You've been able to introduce and sustain Christianity in China—a truly worthy society. Keep doing what you're doing, and please help the "good word" reach everyone in China. The Chinese people are active, intelligent, and productive; if they hear this good word, it will only help Christianity grow stronger there. That's how I see it.
