On August 15, we pray for the persecuted Christians, victims of “a real ordeal,” and now “endangered!!”
The massacre of Christians in Syria , in Iraq, in Nigeria . There is a corner of the world where Christians are not persecuted for their faith? The Italian bishops before the violence against your brothers in faith are organizing a day of prayer that will take place on August 15, Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The initiative was announced by the CEI that he issued a statement in which he denounced distraction and indifference on the part of Europe than the authentic “Calvary,” the baptized who live in many countries around the world. All ecclesial communities are invited to “join in prayer as a concrete sign of participation by all who are suffering from the harsh repression.”
THE VOICE OF THE HOLY FATHER. , the Holy Father had reported a few days ago that “there are more persecuted Christians today that in the first centuries” is mentioned in the text about his upcoming trip to South Korea . “For our communities is a ‘precious opportunity to approach the reality of the Church: a young Church, the historical event which was crossed by a severe persecution, which lasted nearly a century, in which about 10,000 faithful were martyred: 103 of them were canonized in 1984, on the occasion of the second centenary of the origins of the Catholic community in the country. “
“CHRISTIANS RISK EXTINCTION.” The statement then goes to the heart of the problem imposed on the Christians. The lack of religious freedom is “a true Calvary that unites the baptized in countries such as Iraq and Nigeria, where they are marked for their faith and subjected to continuous attacks by terrorist groups; driven from their homes and exposed to threats, harassment and violence, they know the humiliation of exile and marginalization free up the killing. ” It should be noted that “their churches are desecrated: ancient relics, as well as statues of the Madonna and Saints, are destroyed by fundamentalism that has nothing authentically religious. In these areas, the Christian presence is in danger: in danger of extinction from the same place where she was born, from the Holy Land. “
“HUMANITARIAN TRAGEDY.” Calling towards the West is therefore strong: “You can not continue to look the other way, the illusion of being able to ignore a humanitarian tragedy that destroys the values that have shaped and in which Christians are charged prejudice which confuses them indiscriminately with a precise model of development. ” The desire of the IEC is that “concern for the future of so many brothers and sisters will translate into a commitment to inform us about the drama they are experiencing, promptly denounced by the pope.” The statement concludes with an invitation to the ecclesial communities “to unite in prayer on the occasion of the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a concrete sign of participation by all who are suffering from the harsh repression. Through the intercession of the Virgin Mother, their example will also help us to get over the spiritual aridity of our time, to rediscover the joy of the Gospel and the courage of Christian witness. “
NOT JUST A VISA. few days earlier, on August 6, Feast of the Transfiguration, will be held instead of the World Day of Prayer for Iraq. The initiative is sponsored this time by the Chaldean Patriarch of Baghdad, Raphael Louis Sako, in cooperation with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). For the occasion, the Chaldean Patriarch has sent a message to the international community through AsiaNews, where he explains that the solution to the problem does not go for ” obtaining a visa “for foreign countries but for” a political solution that would allow us to remain in this country that we love, to live in security, equality and dignity of all. ” As he had told tempi.it , also reiterated the international institutions: “If France and other countries really want to help – we read – they do this by encouraging families to stay, sending them emergency aid to alleviate their pain and contribute to the construction of housing in the cities where they can live in security. ” To date, the situation of Christians is bleak, the “jihadists robbed them of everything.” And the drastic decline of the faithful of all the Churches (Chaldeans, Assyrians, Syrians, Armenians, and Protestants) in Iraq is a confirmation of one million and 400 thousand in 1980 to 800 thousand in 2003 up to 300 000 today.
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