Christian world

President Basahr-al-Assad of Syria receives Orthodox Patriarch’s of Antioch & Grand Mufti Ahmad Hassoun

His Holiness Patriarch Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II along with Greek Orthodox Patriarch John X, Armenian Orthodox Archbishop and Dr Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun (Grand Mufti  of Syria) visited His Excellency Dr. Bashar Assad, President of the Syrian Arab Republic, who received the Christian and Muslim religious leaders in Syria after the conference organized by the Syrian Ministry of Endowments. Th meeting was held on 21 December 2014.

Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem II receives Syriac Orthodox Delegation from Malankara : Apostolic Visit to India Scheduled for February 2015

His Holiness Patriarch Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II met with a delegation of Metropolitan’s from the Syriac Orthodox Church in India . The delegation discussed internal affairs of the church in Malankara (Kerala). The delegation was led by Metropolitan Gregorious Joseph ( Secretary to Holy Synod of the Church in India). 

The Patriarchal visit to India will be  in the month of February 2015. The Primate of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church will take part in the annual feast  of St Ignatius Elias III (late lamented Patriarch of Antioch and Ll East) whose mortal remains are kept at the Manjanikkara Monastery in Kerala. Patriarch will also take part in various programmes during the Apostolic visit.

Church of England Names Libby Lane as First Female Bishop

The Church of England on Wednesday named the Rev. Libby Lane, a parish priest for 20 years in the north of England, as its first female bishop, just weeks after the church authorities took the final step to reverse centuries of canon law to begin what the archbishop of Canterbury called “a completely new phase of our existence.”

Ms. Lane, 48, will be consecrated on Jan. 26, the Church of England said on its website. She described herself as “grateful for, though somewhat daunted by,” the appointment. “This is unexpected and very exciting,” she said in a statement on the website. “On this historic day, as the Church of England announces the first woman nominated to be bishop, I am very conscious of all those who have gone before me, women and men, who for decades have looked forward to this moment. But most of all, I am thankful to God.”

Catholicos Aram I consecrates Armenian Orthodox Church and Genocide Memorial in UAE

Following the anointment of the baptismal font and the pictures by the Primates of Tehran, Isfahan and Lebanon, on Thursday evening, His Holiness Aram I, on Friday, anointed the altar and dedicated the four main columns of the building to the four Evangelists. Archbishop Sebouh Sarkissian, Prelate of Tehran, Bishops Papken Charian, Prelate of Isfahan, and Shahe Panossian, Prelate of Lebanon, continued the ceremony by anointing all the other columns and dedicating them to the Apostles and St. Gregory the Illuminator. After the thanksgiving prayers, His Holiness addressed the pilgrims who had come from different countries of the region.

Cathedral’s hunt for stolen Bible pages worth £1m

 Winchester Cathedral wants to track down eight Medieval illuminations that are missing from the greatest surviving 12th-century English Bible. These may have been stolen in the past 150 years, so there is a reasonable chance that they survive, probably unrecognised in a private collection.

Catholicos Aram I Visit Embassies of Armenia and Lebanon in Abu Dhabi

10 December 2014. On Wednesday, His Holiness Aram I and his delegation visited the Embassy of Armenia in Abu Dhabi. Ambassador Kegham Gharibian and the staff welcomed the Catholicos. After the blessing of the bread and salt, they led the Catholicos to the garden to plant a tree in order to memorialize his visit.