June 21, 2018

Religion, Violence, and Evil: A History in 550 Words الدين والعنف والشر: لمحة تاريخيّة في ٥٥٠ كلمة

By Martin Accad The debate about the nature of the relationship between religion, violence, and evil has been rather lively in recent months and years. Between the nauseating treatment of Muslim dissidents and non-Muslims in Syria and Iraq in the name of “Islam,” the continued bloody oppression of Palestinians justified […]
January 4, 2018

IMES Regional Brief – January 2018

Lebanon Lebanon is not merely a country; it is a message The repercussions of President Trump’s announcement, on the 6th of December 2017, regarding Jerusalem and the transfer of the American Embassy, have held prominent place of late in the Lebanese political arena. The announcement is widely viewed as having cancelled all […]
December 7, 2017

IMES Regional Brief – December 2017

Lebanon The complexity of the Lebanese crisis teaches us not to rush to hasty conclusions regarding the Middle East and its numerous religious groups Once again last month, the Arab World was caught in the crossfire of the Sunni-Shiite regional struggle that keeps threatening the future of this region’s people. […]
November 2, 2017

IMES Regional Brief – November 2017

IMES is launching its bilingual “Regional Brief,” which picks up on key news of a political, religious, economic, and social nature, happening in the MENA region. After shedding some biblical and theological insights on them, they will be presented in a way that serves churches and Christian organizations both in […]
July 6, 2017

How Should Arab Christians React to Persecution?

By Martin Accad The Arab Baptist Theological Seminary has just completed its fourteenth Middle East Conference/Consultation, organized by its Institute of Middle East Studies, the highlights of which were presented last week through our blog. Under the overarching concept of “disorienting times,” we explored the four themes of “Persecution and […]
September 8, 2016

When Will It All End?

by Elias Ghazal After a year of fruitless negotiations, empty promises, and shady contracts, the garbage crisis is back in Lebanon! Piles of toxic waste have lined streets of towns and villages, emitting harmful gases, contaminating underground water streams, and causing an environmental disaster at a national level. The solution […]
October 30, 2014

A Kingdom Reality-Check in the Middle East Crisis

Jesus was all about his kingdom. The first declaration of his public ministry was “Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand.” He communicated the nature of it in parable and story. His miracles demonstrated its authority over every sphere of life and he called his disciples to abandon […]