Are you passionate about the political, social, historical, artistic and territorial dimension of the Middle East? Do you want to immerse yourself in the culture and everyday life of the living stones of Israel and Palestine? Then the Middle East Community Program (MECP) is the experience for you.
Also this year, the Pro Terra Sancta Association proposes the MECP to all university students and young workers who wish to know personally the places and inhabitants of the Holy Land.
It is a real two-week itinerary that responds to our mission: to create links between the Holy Land and the world.
The program will start on July 23 and end on August 6.
Some of the Pro Terra Sancta staff will guide you to discover the cultural heritage of this land and to deepen the political and social contrasts affecting the region.
We asked Morgane, one of the organizers of the program, to tell us why she would recommend the MECP to girls and boys: «I recommend the MECP because it is an opportunity to meet and discover this absolutely unique land; A discovery that takes place through a series of thoughtful encounters and moments lived together through the eyes of local people. It is therefore truly unique as a program, because it allows you to immerse yourself in this reality of the Middle East in a non-superficial way thanks also to the rooting of Pro Terra Sancta in the cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem. This trip that I organize for the second time is making me grow from a personal and professional point of view and I look forward to welcoming you in this 2023 edition!»
We therefore understand the importance for us to make you fall into the local community, to let you know the stories of the people who inhabit the Holy Land, giving you the opportunity to ask, dialogue and share experiences. This is our strength and what sets us apart.
You will visit cities, archaeological sites, basilicas and holy places, participate in seminars by professors, meetings and lunches with locals and follow insights on Pro Terra Sancta projects in Palestine. All this is also possible thanks to the encounter with the works we have created over the years, the people we help and who work with us. Connecting with all of them is what has always allowed us to maintain a lasting and fruitful presence in the Middle East. Together with us there will also be some experienced local guides, collaborators like Morgane and volunteers of the Universal Civil Service.
In an episode of our podcast ” Voices of the Holy Land” in September 2022 we asked Pietro, one of the young people who participated in the MECP 2022, to tell us about his experience. If you want to listen to it, the title of the episode is “An unforgettable experience: the story of Peter after the trip to the Holy Land”.
Here you can download the program and find all the info and for more information contact us by email at visit@proterrasancta.org.
Travel Lebanon with Pro Terra Sancta
Baalbek, Annaia, Maghodouche, Biblos, Harissa, Jrebta. These are some of the biblical cities that you can get to know with us on our new trip to Lebanon! We take you to discover the places mentioned in the Old and New Testaments of which the Land of the Cedars is rich. The journey we propose goes from 12 to 18 October 2023 and in these intense days you will have the opportunity to get to know part of the vast cultural, historical, artistic and archaeological heritage of Lebanon, a crossroads of peoples and cultures, inhabited by the first Christian communities. As always, the strength of our itineraries is to be able to meet and get to know the local communities and traditions, especially to deepen the mission of the Franciscan friars of the Custody of the Holy Land alongside the poorest.
During the trip you will also get to know the realities in which Pro Terra Sancta operates through education, conservation, humanitarian emergencies and socio-entrepreneurial activities.
by:Veronica Brocca
