On the morning of Monday, June 4, 2012, His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, received in audience at the patriarchate Mr. David Tam, director of the Hong Kong based ‘Jingjiao Fellowship.’ Also in attendance of the audience were: Their Graces Mar Awa Royel, Bishop of California, President of CIRED and Secretary of the Holy Synod; Mar Paulus Benjamin, the newly consecrated Bishop of the Diocese of Eastern USA; Mar Narsai Benyamin, Bishop of the Diocese of Iran; and the Very Rev. Archdeacon William Toma, parish priest of Mar Sargis parish in Chicago and Archdeacon of the Holy Synod.

​After more than a year of close collaboration between the American Bible Society (ABS) based in New York and the Commission on Inter-Church Relations and Educational Development (CIRED), the project of reprinting 10,000 modern Assyrian language Bibles has now come to fruition. The project began in mid 2011 at the express request of His Holiness MarDinkha IV, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, who saw the need to have fresh copies printed of the 1893Urmia edition of the Modern Assyrian Bible, as all copies reprinted until then had been exhausted worldwide, in order for the faithful to be closer to the word of the Lord and to regularly read the Sacred Scriptures.

In the Holy Synod of the Assyrian Church of the East, convened under the presidency of His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV, Catholicos-Patriarch in Chicago from 25 May to 1 June 2012, the Very Reverend Archdeacon Paulus Benjamin, vicar of Mar Gewargis Cathedral in Chicago, was elected bishop for the Diocese of Eastern USA.

The 14th Holy Synod of the pontificate of His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, was convened in Chicago from Friday, May 25th to Friday, June 1st 2012.

Voice of the East – Vol. 59 May & June 2012 Nos. 5 & 6 Voice of the East is a socio-religious bi-monthly magazine published continuously since the 1960’s by the Assyrian Church of the East, Archdiocese of India and the United Arab Emirates. The patron and publisher of the Voice of the East is His Beautitude Dr Mar Aprem, Metropolitan of Malabar and All India. All back-issues of Voice of the East for 2012 and 2013 (12 issues in total) have been made available here for unrestricted viewing  and for download in PDF format. New issues will be uploaded as they are published. The entire series of issues for other years will progressively be uploaded in the near future.

His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI has written to His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV, Catholicos Patriarch, extending his fraternal greetings and congratulations on the Golden Jubilee of the Catholicos Patriarch’s episcopal consecration.

On Friday 18 May 2012, His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV, Catholicos Patriarch, was called upon at the Chicago Patriarchate by Mr Yonadam Y. Kanna MP, Member of the Iraqi Parliament and Secretary General of the Assyrian Democratic Movement.

On the afternoon of Monday, May 14, 2012 His Grace Mar Awa Royel, Bishop of California and Secretary of the Holy Synod, met with the California State Assemblymember Kristin Olsen, Republican representing the the 25th congressional district at the State Capitol in Sacramento. His Grace was accompanied by the Rev’d Father Genard Lazar, Secretary to His Grace and Diocesan Youth Coordinator. Also in attendance was Mrs. Carmen Morad, a member of the Church in the Central Valley area and activist for Assyrian genocide recognition.

The Assyrian language program at Australia’s multicultural public broadcaster SBS has conducted a video-interview with His Beatitude Mar Meelis Zaia AM, Metropolitan of Australia, New Zealand and Lebanon.

His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV Catholicos Patriarch has welcomed to the Chicago Patriarchate, both His Excellency Dr Hamid Al-Bayati, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq to the United Nations, and Dr William Eshaya, the Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq.

On 24 April 2012 the faithful of St. George Cathedral in Chicago celebrated the Commemoration of St. George the Martyr and partook of the Holy Qurbana.

Sydney’s Reverend Father Narsai Youkhanis has received his Master of Arts in Early Christian and Jewish Studies from Macquarie University.

On Sunday 22 April 2012 His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East welcomed directors of the Assyrian Aid Society of America (AAS-A) to the Chicago Patriarchate.

His Grace Mar Aprim Khamis, Bishop of the Diocese of Western United States, has ordained three faithful of the Assyrian Church of the East, raising them to the ranking of Lector.