As part of the Bible conferences organized by Al-Rabita Al-Kitabiyya under the title “What is Man? (Ps 8: 5) Anthropological Issues Based on the Bible”, the instructors and students of the Pontifical School of Theology took part in two lectures delivered on Monday, March 11, 2024, at 11:00 a.m., in the Jean El Hawa Auditorium.

The first lecture, given by His Excellency Mgr. Antoine Awkar, tackled “Man as Mentioned by Jesus: Human Added Values According to the Gospels.” After discussing man in Psalm 8, which describes the gifts of God to men in the Old Testament, he stressed the importance and role of Incarnation, which brought us three added values given to us in Christ: First, man is the primary motivation that prompted the Son of God to empty himself in the Incarnation to raise high with him humanity to whom he gave his divineness.

Second, Christ dealt with man as a comprehensive, multidimensional unit.

Third, eternal life with the Lord Jesus.

Archimandrite Jack Khalil gave the second lecture on “‘Miserable’ Man and Deliverance According to Rm 7”, based on verse 24: “What a wretched man I am!” (Rm 7: 24). Having explained the context of this verse in Saint Paul’s letter and defined the wretchedness of man as well as the relation between sin and the Law of Moses, he went on to discuss deliverance from sin through mortification of the flesh.

Following the conference, the lecturers and attendees assembled for a convivial reception.