The beloved and war-torn land of
Syria, close to Pope Francis’ heart
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| Pope Francis at Lesbos |
From the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Francis has
raised his voice for Syria, speaking out about the pain of its suffering
people; calling on the international community to put an end to the flow of
weapons; offering concrete help to refugees, and praising those countries that
have assisted them.
By Benedetta Capelli
Innocent blood shed; children caught in cruel bombings;
witnesses to the faith who have been kidnapped or killed, but who have never
retreated before the Cross. These are just a few of the images that Pope
Francis, over the past six years, has offered the world to ensure that the to
ensure that the world does not turn its eyes away from the inhuman war in
Syria. The Holy Father has been a voice of hope, of peace, of the commitment to
not shy from the difficulties of dialogue, nor hide the great risk of seeing
the war transformed into a “brutal persecution” of religious minorities. The
Pope has often shown special concern for the plight of refugees and those
fleeing from war and violence, “which only creates new wounds, creates further
violence.”
Close to the Syrian people
The Pope has launched numerous appeals during his Angelus
and Regina Coeli addresses. Syria is a recurring theme in his Urbi et
Orbi messages; and often, too, in his weekly General Audiences,
especially when fresh violence breaks out. Pope Francis repeats the cry for
peace when he speaks with world leaders, as when, in a letter
to Russian President Vladimir Putin, he called for a renewed commitment to
seek “a peaceful solution through dialogue and negotiation of the parties,
unanimously supported by the international community.” In a 2016 letter to
Syrian President Bashir al-Assad, the Pope called for “a peaceful solution to
hostilities,” the protection of civilians, and access to humanitarian aid. At
the same time, he condemned “all forms of extremism and terrorism, no matter
where they come from.”
The caress of the Church
Together with the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople,
Bartholomew I, Pope Francis visited refugees and displaced persons on the Greek
island of Lesbos in 2016. “I want to tell you that you are not alone,” the Pope
told them. When he returned to Rome at the end of that visit, he brought with
him three Syrian families, who were then resettled in Italy. It was an action
that spoke louder than words, a gesture that showed the love of the Church for
the weak, the caress of Jesus for those today who are in need.
Three years later, to express once again his closeness to
migrants on Lesbos, Pope Francis the Pope sent Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the
Papal Almoner, with a donation of 100,000 euros.
And on Good Friday 2019, during the Via Crucis at the
Colosseum, two Syrian families carried the Cross at the Twelfth Station. The
hands that bore the Cross were a vivid reminder of the Pope’s Letter
to Middle Eastern Christians in 2014, where he prayed that they might
“always bear witness to Jesus amid your difficulties.”
A day of prayer and fasting for peace
Just 18 days after his election, Pope Francis, in his
Easter Urbi
et Orbi message, implored peace for “dear Syria, for its people
torn by conflict, and for the many refugees who await help and comfort.” It’s a
plea he has repeated often through the years, as he calls for “courage” and
“decision” in embarking on the path of negotiation.
“How much blood has been shed! And how much suffering
must there still be before a political solution to the crisis will be found?”
Prayer gives us strength in times of sorrow and strife, and
it was for this reason that Pope Francis called for a Day of Prayer and Fasting
for Peace in Syria, in the Middle East, and in the whole world. “Humanity needs
to see these gestures of peace and to hear words of hope and peace!” he said,
when he announced the initiative during his Angelus
address on 1 September 2013.
Assistance for those who suffer
Throughout the years, and especially on the occasion of
international summits on Syria, Pope Francis has expressed his concern that
humanitarian law be respected. In particular, he has repeatedly called for
guarantees for the evacuation of civilians; and he has praised countries such
as Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey for welcoming refugees. On Lesbos, in 2016, the
Pope, together with Patriarch Bartholomew, and the Orthodox Archbishop of
Athens, Ieronymos II, signed a Joint
Declaration pleading for an end to the war, and for greater efforts to
care for those who have been forced to flee their homes. “We urge all
countries,” they said, “to extend temporary asylum, to offer refugee status to
those who are eligible, to expand their relief efforts and to work with all men
and women of good will for a prompt end to the conflicts in course.”
Suffering that cries out to God
In the face of kidnappings of Christians and Muslims,
including Bishops and religious, Pope Francis calls for the silencing of
weapons of war; and, in his Letter to Middle Eastern Christians, speaks about
the atrocities carried out by the so-called Islamic State group.
“Sadly, afflictions and tribulations have not been lacking,
even more recently, in the Middle East," he said. "They have been
aggravated in the past months because of the continuing hostilities in the
region, but especially because of the work of a newer and disturbing terrorist
organization, of previously unimaginable dimensions, which has perpetrated all
kinds of abuses and inhuman acts. It has particularly affected a number of you,
who have been brutally driven out of your native lands, where Christians have
been present since apostolic times.”
“This suffering cries out to God and it calls for our
commitment to prayer and concrete efforts to help in any way possible.”
Religious fundamentalism, the Pope explained in January
2015, “even before it eliminates human beings by perpetrating horrendous
killings, eliminates God himself, turning him into a mere ideological pretext.”
Children: the hope for peace
There is always a particular place for children Pope
Francis’ thoughts. They are the primary victims of war, who “cannot see the
light of the future!” Strongly condemning the use of chemical weapons, and arms
traffickers “who continue to pursue their own interests, Pope Francis said that
violence only leads to more violence.
“There is a judgment of God and of history upon our
actions which are inescapable! Never has the use of violence brought peace in
its wake. War begets war, violence begets violence.”
On the occasion of the International Day of Children in
2016, Pope Francis invited children from around the world to join with Syrian
children in praying for peace. And in 2018, on the First Sunday of Advent, he lit
a candle for “the little ones” who live in warzones, that they might not lose
hope.
Peace, as Pope Francis has often repeated, ultimately
“begins in the heart.”
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