Hope after Seven Years of War for Syria: Reconstruction of Churches and Holy Places

In the second preface, Cardinal Kurt Koch described the booklet as the “fruit of ecumenical collaboration between the Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church” and emphasized that it was the dramatic situation in the Middle East which was one of the main concerns on the agenda of the 2016 meeting between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill. The shared concern of “our Churches for peace in this region, for the end of the persecution suffered by many Christians and other minorities, and for the importance of interreligious dialogue, was reflected in the joint Declaration signed on that occasion.”(…) In order to take tangible steps, a joint working group bringing together representatives of the Catholic Church in Russia and representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate, with the participation of the ACN was established almost immediately following the Havana meeting.

During the last two years, as Cardinal Koch recounts, several initiatives have been taken: “The first delegation of this joint group visited Syria and Lebanon from 6-7 April 2016, in order to offer a sign of solidarity to Christians of various Churches in the region and to reflect with them on constructing a way forward together. On September 17, 2017, a second delegation of this group visited the region.” While the primary needs of the local populations in Syria, according to Cardinal Koch, are of humanitarian nature, “with the prospect of a gradual return to peace, it is also important to be able to prepare the reconstruction not only of houses, but also of the numerous religious buildings destroyed by the war. The reconstruction of holy sites, churches and pastoral structures is indispensable not only because they are part of the cultural and spiritual heritage of this region, but also a sign of hope and encouragement for Christians, who have lived in these lands since the very origin of Christianity, either to remain or to return.”

The booklet shows photos representing the Catholic-Orthodox Working group, one showing the Metropolitan Hilarion and Catholic Bishop Kimovich during their meeting in Zahleh (Lebanon). In another article, Father Andrzej Halemba (PhD), who is the head of the Middle East section for ACN, describes the multiple projects in which ACN is involved in the Mideast. Since the beginning of the military crisis in Syria 2011 ACN has supported Christians with emergency aid. Last year alone suffering Syrians were helped by ACN benefactors with 4.7 million Euros in emergency aid. Economic sanctions affected access to health care, medicine and basic essentials and, as result of the embargo, as Father Halemba reported, this had a “devastating effect upon families, especially among those with children, pregnant women and elderly people who were unable to satisfy their basic needs.” ACN initiated food supply projects, such as “Food baskets”, a program which enjoyed the cooperation of ecumenical partners from nine different Christian Churches, thus strengthening the unity of the Church which in Syria is made up of a number of different ecclesial rites.

The “drop of milk” project supported families with small children, adopting the same ecumenical approach, thus increasing the project’s effectiveness. In autumn 2017, as Halemba reports, the security situation allowed children and students to return on a regular basis to school, college and university. Here it became clear that more support was needed in terms of renovating school buildings, as well as meeting basic needs like core text books, transport and school uniforms. In order to address this challenge another ecumenical initiative was launched, namely scholarships, and about 10,000 pupils and other students from Homs, Marmarita, Aleppo, Tartous and other parts of the country were able to benefit from them. This program developed the communion between different churches.

As a next step, the ACN is now determined to work with church Leaders and their communities to restore the Christian presence and prestige in the country, “which historians recall as the cradle of civilization and Christianity, the birthplace of cultures.” The ACN charity is thus giving signs of hope, “by rebuilding the destroyed homes of Christ and his people. Christians still live in Syria and many of those who were displaced want to return. Rebuilding is this key to the future of Christianity in Syria,” Halemba wrote. He referred to a recent ACN survey: Of “300 parishes in Syria, 120 reported damage or destruction of at least one of their buildings — either a church or a church-owned structure, such as a school, kindergarten, convent or parish hall/ community center. This means that more than one out of three parishes under review were affected. Many Christian homes also came under fire as well. To date, ACN has recorded 5,675 damaged or destroyed homes (mostly in regions such as Aleppo and Homs).

Even more tragic is that the jihadist violence and military action has led to massive loss of life, including many Christians. In a graph it is shown that 920 Christians were killed and 450 Christians kidnapped. Halemba underlined that aside from the need to raise enough funds on an international level to support the kind of reconstruction that is needed in Syria, it is important to note that the “Church in Syria has long since been recognized for its role in promoting reconciliation, acting as a mediator, a bridge-builder, a voice of dialogue and an advocate of the rights of minorities.”