Lent (and Thinking of Syria)

‘Flooded with news reports and troubling images of human suffering, we often feel our complete inability to help.’ The words are from Pope Francis’ Lenten message where, in his usual plain-speaking and challenging way, he addresses what he calls the globalisation of indifference.

The list of current-day horrors seems endless...Ebola, Islamic State, Boko Haram, al-Shabab, al Qaeda, Ukraine, Libya, Palestine, typhoons, wildfires, earthquakes, floods, kidnappings, school massacres ...never before have we been informed so rapidly and comprehensively, with up-to-the minute video reports by satellite and blow-by-blow accounts on the internet.

Yet, the more the tsunami of horror floods our consciousness, the less impact it seems to have, morphing into yet another infotainment; if the news is too distressing I can always flip a switch and retreat to one of the hundreds of other channels on my Sky tv. After all, there is too much horror isn’t there? And we are powerless, too far away to make a difference. And even if we could, we don’t have the ability or resources to change things.

Not so, says Pope Francis.

‘If one member suffers, all suffer together’ (1 Cor 12:26) he reminds us. Although he does not spell it out, I’m sure that the suffering of Christians in the Middle East is very much on his mind.

Syria is one of the oldest Christian communities in the world where a few still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus. About one hundred years ago, Christians made up 30% of the population of Syria, now it is around 7% or one million people, mainly Greek Orthodox, Armenian and Syrian Orthodox. Already, an estimated five hundred thousand Syrian Christians have been displaced by fighting or have left the country, dozens of churches have been destroyed and entire villages razed to the ground. Many people fear a repeat of the violence that occurred in Iraq after the US invasion, when Christians were targeted and whole communities destroyed, so that in a few years the estimated number of Iraqi Christians fell from a million and a half to about 400,000. Similarly, in Palestine the proportion of the population that is Christian has dropped from ten per cent seventy years ago to about 2% today.

So, what can we do? Here’s what the Pope says:

(1) Pray (and may I recommend a prayer from Maronite Archbishop Samir Nassar of Damascus?)

 A Prayer for the People of Syria

God of Compassion,

Hear the cries of the people of Syria,
Bring healing to those suffering from the violence,
Bring comfort to those mourning the dead,
Strengthen Syria’s neighbours in their care and welcome for refugees,
Convert the hearts of those who have taken up arms,
And protect those committed to peace.
God of Hope,
Inspire leaders to choose peace over violence and to seek reconciliation with enemies,
Inspire the Church around the world with compassion for the people of Syria,
And give us hope for a future of peace built on justice for all.
We ask this through Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace and Light of the World,
Amen.

 (2) Have a strong but merciful heart and make an act of charity – particularly since it is Lent (and may I recommend Aid to the Church in Need?  Aid to the Church in Need )  

(3) Let the dire need of far-away Christians in the Middle East remind us that life is uncertain, we too are dependent upon God and our brothers and sisters. Let us accept that – by ourselves - we cannot save the world; we need to implore God’s grace and trust in His love.   

Amen.