SANCTE PATER: 'The last Mohicans' of Christ

This blog entry is interesting and needs to be read by anyone interested in the disappearance of Christianity in the land of Jesus, St. Paul and St. Peter.

Published Date: 27 April 2008

By Robert F Worth
In Malula,
Syria

ELIAS Khoury can still remember the days when old people in the
mountain village of Malula spoke only Aramaic, the language of Jesus. Back then the village, linked to the capital Damascus, only by a long and bumpy bus ride, was almost entirely Christian, a vestige of an older, more diverse Middle East that existed before the arrival of Islam.

Now Khoury, 65, grey-haired and bedridden, admits ruefully that he has largely forgotten the language he spoke with his own mother.

'It's disappearing,' he said in Arabic, sitting with his wife on a bed in the mud-and-straw house where he grew up. 'A lot of the Aramaic vocabulary I don't use any more, and I've lost it.'

Malula, along with two smaller neighbouring villages where Aramaic
is also spoken, is still celebrated in Syria as a unique linguistic island. In the Convent of St Sergius and Bacchus, on a hill above town, young girls recite the Lord's Prayer in Aramaic to tourists, and booklets about the language are on sale at a shop in the town centre.

But the island has grown smaller over the years, and some locals say they fear it will not last. Once a large population stretching across Syria, Turkey and Iraq, Aramaic-speaking Christians have slowly disappeared, some fleeing westward, some converting to Islam. In
recent decades, the process has accelerated, with large numbers of Iraqi Christians escaping the violence and chaos of their country."

What Would Jesus Do?

Persecution continues and in the eyes of some, anyone not a Moslem is allied with the invaders. We could do much better in supporting the million Iraqi Christians who have fled the country.

Christian quoter: Supporting Iraqi Christians: "So I am calling for more involvement there, specifically to protect the Christian minority who are being persecuted by those opposed to the occupation. In the eyes of good Muslims there is no separation of religion and politics. They wrongly see all Christians as supporters of the invasion. So Iraqi Christians who were no threat to Saddam are viewed as friends of the invaders and suffer with little apparent protection from the Coalition forces. They are being forced to flee their country."

END TIMES

It is nearing the time when Christian presence in Iraq will be gone. Thousands are in refugee camps in Syria and Jordon and have overloaded the ability of those countries to provide relief.

Work must be done to keep Christians from leaving Iraq, says bishop:

"ROME, Apr 24, 2008 / 01:27 pm (CNA).- Speaking to the SIR news agency,
Auxiliary Bishop Shlemon Warduni of Baghdad said this week, “I am pleased to
hear that some countries in the European Union have opened their doors to Iraqi
Christian refugees, but it is also necessary to work so that Christians do not
keep leaving Iraq.”"

Great Day

The part of the Holy Father's speech to the Bishops that grabbed me was

A strongly worded critique of what is often called "cafeteria
Catholicism.

Said Benedict: "Is it consistent to profess our belief in church
on Sunday, and then during the week to promote business practices or medical
procedures contrary to those beliefs? Is it consistent for practicing Catholics
to ignore or exploit the poor or the marginalized, to promote sexual behavior
contrary to Catholic moral teaching, or to adopt positions that contradict the
right to life of every human being from conception to natural death?"

Deploring the tendency "to treat religion as a private matter," the pope declared:
"Only when their faith permeates every aspect of their lives do Christians become truly open to the transforming power of the Gospel."

Benedict XVI Visit

In case you haven't found it, this blog address will provide a detailed description of his visit to Washington DC and New York. There is even a complete liturgical "book" for each of the days he will be here.

World news Feed Article | World news |

More Anti-Christian actions. Have you heard any of our presidential candidates say a word?

An Assyrian Orthodox priest was shot to death Saturday by gunmen using silencers as the Christian cleric and his wife returned home after a trip to the market in Baghdad.
The latest attack against Iraq's Christian minority drew a new plea
from Pope Benedict XVI for Iraqis to ``find the way of peace to build a just and tolerant society.''
Father Youssef Adel, 47, had tried to escape the sectarian violence, fleeing the predominantly Sunni neighborhood of Dora at a time when insurgents were burning down churches and uprooting Christians from their homes on threat of death. He moved with his wife, Lamia, to a relatively safe area in the mostly Shiite central district of Karradah and presided over services at the nearby St. Peter and Paul church, according to an assistant who spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.
But in a tragic example of the dangers that continue to face Iraqis despite a sharp drop in violence, Adel was shot to death by gunmen near the gate of his house, another priest in the same church said, also declining to be identified for fear of becoming a target himself.

IRAQ Iraqi Christians also taking to the streets abroad - Asia News

Not even once have I heard the "christian" leaders of our country point out the difficulties being experienced by Christians in Iraq.

"Rome (AsiaNews) – Iraqi Christians have brought their silent marches to the West, calling for justice and an end to the persecution visited upon them daily in their homeland. As people in the Plain of Nineveh march every day demanding the truth about the murder of Mgr Faraj Rahho, Chaldean archbishop of Mosul, Iraqi immigrants in the Netherlands, Germany and Canada (see photo) have taken to the streets, waving banners and holding up photos of their martyrs. For some demonstrators Monsignor Rahho is “a symbol for every Iraqi Christian,” not only for the Chaldean community."

OSV | Pope Benedict XVI | Papal Visit 2008

He's coming! On April 15, 2008, Pope Benedict XVI will begin a six-day trip to the United States, visiting Washington, D.C. and New York City. The Holy Father will meet with President Bush, lead Mass at the National Park in Washington and Yankee Stadium, address the United Nations General Assembly, and visit Ground Zero."