Institute of Theology

From Friday 10^th to Sunday 12^th of September a symposium took place at the Academy of Hofgeismar to celebrate the 20^th anniversary of friendship between the Evangelical Church of Kurhessen-Waldeck and the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and all the East. The Antiochian delegation was headed by Metropolitan Georges (Abou Zakhm) of Homs and had the following speakers: Rev. Fr. Youhanna Haikal, Prof. Georges Nahas, Eng. Samer Laham, Mr. Michel Nseir, Dr. Daniel Ayuch, Prof. Asaad Kattan and Prof. Georges Tamer. Some members of the Antiochian Church in Germany were also present in the event.

The opening took place in the central hall of the Academy with welcome words by Bishop Dr. Martin Hein (Bishop of the Protestant Kurhessen-Waldeck Church) and by Pastor Dr. Martin Lkhoff who chairs the friendship committee. During this opening ceremony the leaders of the Kurhessen-Waldeck Church were honored for their commitment in the foundation and guidance of this friendship: Pastor Georg Richter, Prof. Dr. Wofgang Hage, and Mrs. Annegret Schmidt. A first dialogue table took place to evaluate the last 20 years.

On Saturday several papers were read dealing with the following issues: Bible and Patristics in Orthodox and Evangelical points of view, Protestantism and Orthodoxy in East and West, and the future of Orthodoxy in the Middle East.

On Sunday an evangelical service was celebrated at the Hofgeismar Academy church with the attendance of the Orthodox delegation. Later on, a last roundtable took place to discuss the future and the role of this friendship. There was a consensus that this kind of bilateral relationship between two different Churches is unique of its kind and very healthy for dialogue and for the development of Christian friendships.

The 20^th Anniversary will also be celebrated in the Church of Antioch in March 2011 with the visit of Bishop Hein and a delegation to Damascus and Balamand.

 
Dr Georges Nahas, Dean of the Institute of Theology at Balamand