Urgently
pray for the People and Peace to the War in Syria. So many have
suffered so dearly.
 |
| Past Pro-Hamas Rally in Damascus (www.wikimedia.org) |
DAMASCUS,
Syria, 29 Nov, 2012 (Open Doors News) — Syria appears to be heading
towards deepening breakdown, with sectarian fragmentation likened to
its neighbor, Lebanon’s civil war. Inevitably, Christians have been
caught up in the chaos over the past months, as we report here -
starting with a Syrian Orthodox priest who was deliberately killed.
In
an act of courage 43 year old Father Fadi Haddad set off by car to
negotiate the release of one of his parishioners, who had been
kidnapped. A week later, it became clear that the parish priest from
Qatana, some 20 kilometers south-west of Damascus, had paid the
highest price. On Oct. 25th, his lifeless and mutilated body was
found on the side of a road. Qatana had been terrorized by radical
fighters.
Locals
told Catholic Charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). “‘Extremists
went through the streets shouting ‘Alawites to the grave,
Christians to Beirut’. They want to kick us out”.
A
pastor who often provided Haddad with Bibles and who met him a few
days before he was kidnapped told us, "Father Fadi’s superiors had
asked him why he kept traveling back and forth between Qatana and
Damascus.
"‘I
cannot not serve Jesus; I need to help people, that is
why I have to move around,’
he responded."
Christians
in Syria say the particularly gruesome death of Father Fadi - his
eyes had been gouged out - marks a turning point for them. Before,
Christians were caught up in the war in the same way as Kurds, Druze,
and all other ethnic groups. Also, a part of the Christian community
in Syria has been actively supporting President Assad, thus being an
actor in the civil war.
But
some Syrian Christians say a series of incidents recently points to a
trend of violence against Christian civilians, including priests.
Particularly worrying, they say, is the growing presence of foreign
radical Islamic fighters in the country, and the many Islamist
brigades within the opposition Free Syrian Army. Yet there is fear of
government forces as well. On Nov. 14, four missiles struck the
Christian village of Tel Nasri in northeast Syria. St. Mary’s
Church was severely damaged, as were many houses. As the Assyrian
International News Agency reports, a 14-year old boy was killed and
many were wounded, apparently by Assad’s fighter planes, though
that is not confirmed.
Before
that, on Oct. 21st, a car bomb exploded near the gate of Bab Touma,
the historical Christian neighborhood in Damascus. The car was parked
next to two churches, a Maronite and a Latin church in Bab Touma
street, which emerges into ‘the straight street’ mentioned in the
Bible. The explosive detonated at a time when local Christians were
heading to church for Sunday Mass. At least 10 people were killed and
more than 16 injured. While the nearby police station may have been
the target, the timing of the explosion meant that churchgoers would
be hurt.
Read
the Persecution News at
Copyright
2012 Open Doors News
Open
Doors News is distributed to raise awareness of Christians worldwide
who are persecuted for their faith. Articles may be reprinted by
active subscribers only. For subscription information, contact:
jeffth@opendoorsnews.org
The
violence of man's inhumanity to man is horrific. “The wicked are
brought down by their own wickedness,” says Proverbs (NKJV Prov
11:5 ). “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev 19:18
NKJV) commands God.
Join
me on Facebook, “Bill Hunt, World in Christ”
Please
Pray for the people of Syria....
– Bill
Hunt
2 comments:
Oh Bill, I fear that this is only the beginning...yet we know the end of the story thank the Lord, this man is with Jesus now.
Father Fadi Haddad,
they gauged out his eyes,
but he can still see.
He's now in Heaven;
he's been set Free.
Post a Comment