Mideast Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs decried the desperate situation they face as shepherds of churches “whose existence is in real danger.”
Mideast
Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs decried the desperate situation they face as
shepherds of churches “whose existence is in real danger.”
They categorized the
continued displacement of Christians from the Middle East as “a genocidal
project, a humanitarian catastrophe and a plague of the earth’s civilization.”
“The time has come to make a
prophetic cry” and to speak “the truth that frees us in the spirit of the
Gospel,” the Council of the Eastern Patriarchs said in a statement Aug. 11,
after an Aug. 9-10 meeting in Diman, Lebanon.
“We, the custodians of the ‘small
flocks,’ are hurting because of the exodus of Christians from their native
lands in the Middle East,” the patriarchs said.
They appealed to the United
Nations and to “the states directly concerned with the war in Syria, Iraq and
Palestine to stop the wars that have arisen, as are evident in the demolition,
killing, displacement, revival of terrorist organizations and the fueling of
intolerance and conflicts between religions and cultures.”
They categorized as a “stain
on the forehead of the 21st century” the persistence of the situation, “the
inability to bring about a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the region”
and “the neglect” of the return of refugees, displaced and uprooted people to
their homelands and property “in dignity and justice.”
In a plea to Pope Francis,
the prelates asked, “Who else but the Rock of Peter can we resort to?”
“We are ready to heed the
call to holiness by following the path of the faithful,” they said, but “we
represent churches … whose existence is in real danger.”
“Only you, Your Holiness, are
left to call on the representatives of the people who control the destinies of
peoples, to remind them and even to scold them that the continued displacement
of Christians from the Middle East is certainly a genocidal project, a
humanitarian catastrophe, but a plague of the earth’s civilization.”
The patriarchs expressed the
belief that “the heavens must triumph.”
“Our call today is to become
the yeast in the dough and a shining light in a world that is thirsty for the
life-giving spirit,” they said.
Christians “will remain
rooted in the land of our fathers and forefathers, looking forward with ‘hope
beyond all hope’ to a future in which we see our ancient heritage characterize
our societies as well as the church of the whole East and West.”
The statement included the
Christian leaders’ assessments of the countries in the region.
Pointing to Iraq, they said
they were pleased about the liberation of Mosul and towns in the Ninevah Plain
from the Islamic State, but that they were concerned about the persistence of
extremist groups’ “ideology, inflammatory rhetoric and the climate of conflict
in this region.”
The patriarchs appealed to
local and international leaders “to respect the rights of Christians and other
national constituents to determine the future of their country, away from
pressures, in order to achieve their fair share of participation in management,
employment, political life” and to keep their “historical and geographical
status.”
They encouraged the Iraqi
faithful to remain in the country to preserve their civilization and help build
a new civilian state.
As for “the bloody horrors”
in Syria, the patriarchs said “these events must end, and Syria must emerge
from it as a strong, prosperous and secure nation.”
“The future is not for
violence and war, but for peace and common life … based on citizenship,” they
said. “We will remain wedded to our land in order to build the homeland that we
want, a homeland of freedom and dignity.”
The patriarchs said they were
following “with great interest the suffering of the Palestinian people as they
seek to determine their own destiny and regain their sovereignty over their land.”
They pointed to the “daily
harassment” of those who live in Jerusalem and said “the lack of reunification,
the continuity of settlement construction and the confiscation of land are the
risks to which they are exposed.”
“We know that the economic and
security situation has led to the exodus of many of our Christian children from
Palestine, but the Holy Land needs to be present, even if some sacrifices are
needed in order to reach a political solution in which Jerusalem would be the
capital of two peoples and a holy city open to all,” the patriarchs said in
their statement.
The delegation of patriarchs
met with Lebanese President Michel Aoun on August 9. They asked him to resolve
the issue of displaced persons and refugees who have become “a heavy burden and
a political, economic, security and social threat to Lebanon.” Between
one-quarter and one-third of the population of Lebanon is refugees; more than a
million are Syrians.
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