Homs Archbishop Jacques Mourad has issued an urgent appeal for the future of the Christian presence in Syria amid a situation marked by violence, poverty, and the collapse of institutions. Source: CNA.
Born in Aleppo and a member of St. Moses the Abyssinian Monastery, Archbishop Mourad – who was kidnapped by ISIS in 2015 and managed to escape after five months of captivity – painfully expressed his concern for the present situation in his country: “Today, Syria has ceased to exist as a country,” he stated in an interview with the Vatican news agency Fides.
However, he has not lost hope or his spiritual conviction: “Jesus wants his Church to remain in Syria. And this idea of emptying Syria of Christians is certainly not God’s will.”
Syria is going through a period of great uncertainty following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024. Although the end of his government raised expectations of a democratic transition, violence has intensified and the humanitarian crisis continues.
Various armed factions are vying for power, especially in key cities such as Idlib, Aleppo, and Damascus, resulting in targeted killings, massacres, arbitrary arrests, and people disappearing.
Consecrated the archbishop of Homs, Hama, and Nabek in 2023, Archbishop Mourad recalled with regret the recent massacre of Orthodox Christians in Damascus on June 22 as they participated in the Divine Liturgy at St Elijah Church. At the command of the Lord in biblical times, the prophet Elijah anointed Hazael as king of Syria.
Back in 2013, two Orthodox archbishops were abducted and have never been found.
“Every government is responsible for the security of its people. And I’m not just referring to Christians. Many Sunni Muslims, many Alawites have also been killed, many have disappeared. This government is persecuting the people. All the people,” Archbishop Mourad said.
According to the prelate, both the Assad regime and the current one “have no respect for the Syrian people and their history.”
Adding to the violence is the daily hostility suffered by the baptised. The archbishop denounced the practice of people driving around in official cars with loudspeakers proclaiming verses from the Quran and calling on Christians to convert.
FULL STORY
Amid great danger, ‘Jesus wants his Church to remain in Syria,’ archbishop says (By Diego López Marina, CNA)
