Middle east
The Church suffering

SYRIA CAUGHT  IN THE CROSSFIRE
The Arab Spring has transformed into a civil war, and the Christians are courted by both factions. If they side with Assad, tomorrow they will be traitors. If they take the part of the rebels, today they risk the revenge of the dictatorship. Fr. SAMIR KHALIL SAMIR describes the life of those who have remained in their country.

by Paolo Perego

They are caught in the middle of a civil war that is not theirs, in the midst of car bombs, snipers, and tanks sent to put down a rebellion that has lasted months. There have been thousands of deaths in this year of civil war, perhaps over 7,000. And then there is the embargo, the Western sanctions approved also by the Arab League in December. Heating fuel, electricity, gas, and food are scarce, and Syria is cold in the winter, in Aleppo, Damascus, Daara, and Homs, and on the snow-whitened mountains. The people are the ones who pay the price, regardless of their background–be they Shiite, Sunni, or Alawite Muslims; Iraqi refugees or Maronites, Catholic or Orthodox Christians (who, at over two million, form over 10% of the population).
“The position of Christians in today’s Syria is very delicate,” explains Fr. Samir Khalil Samir, a Jesuit scholar of Islam at the University of Beirut in Lebanon, the country bordering Syria, where a continual stream of refugees flows in. “For decades, they lived without suffering discrimination. They were citizens like all the others. But now their future is more uncertain than they could imagine.”

Secular dictatorship. Since 1970, this Middle East country has been ruled by the Baath dictatorship of the Assads, an Alawite family. “The Alawites are about 11% of the population, yet they have managed to stay in power for all this time,” first with Hafiz al-Assad and then, since July 17, 2000, with his son Bashar al-Assad. “The Sunnis, the majority of Syrians, see the Alawite minority as a Shiite sect. In the socialist and secular Baathist dictatorship, religion is recognized as a social fact, and yet it has no impact on the life of the State. For this reason, paradoxically, even while the regime is anti-democratic, it has never discriminated against minorities and religious groups.” Over the past 40 years, the government has only paid attention to possible threats to the dictatorship, no matter where they came from, to the point of reaching a maniacal form of preventive control, as Fr. Samir recounts, “over everything. There is no freedom of speech, because of an impressive network of spies–it is said one out of every five people. In the past, I have happened to go to conferences in Syria. I remember a meeting organized in a Franciscan convent at 9:00 in the evening. The next morning, they called the residence of the Jesuits where I was staying, asking the reason why I went to give a talk to say this and that–a perfect summary of my talk. They knew everything. Another time, on the road, I allowed myself to ask a few questions, about the reason for a symbol, the meaning of an important date. The person accompanying me suddenly stiffened: ‘Are you crazy? You can’t talk this way on the street!’ Just a mere suspicion is enough to get you arrested, and prison means violence, torture, and abuse.”

“Whose side are you on?” In March of 2011, when the crowd took to the streets to ask for freedom, following the “spring” that had swept through other North African countries, Assad fired on the crowd, bringing tanks against them. The repression became increasingly violent, and in the face of the escalation of murders and torture, groups of the more radical Sunni revolutionaries, supported by some Arab nations, took up arms and began very harsh guerilla warfare, above all in certain zones of the country, in Hama, for example, in the zone of Homs. There, nobody has forgotten the massacre of 1982, when Hafiz al-Assad razed an entire neighborhood to strike the Muslim Brotherhood: “A slaughter that has remained in the memory of the people, and which now has transformed into revenge and violence,” explains Fr. Samir. In this context, the situation of Christians is dramatic. The secular regime in some way guaranteed their survival. “But if the Takfiri rebels depose Assad, those who come after him will be radical Sunnis, Salafites, and the Muslim Brotherhood. We have already seen it in Tunisia, where the Islamic party won. And we are observing Libya and Egypt in their rebirth, nations where the revolution began with a secular cue, and also where the risk of fundamentalist tendencies is high. The Christians fear rebellion. On the other hand, they cannot support the freedom-killing regime of Assad. They are caught in the crossfire, pulled by each side. Whom are you with? With Assad? Tomorrow they will be traitors. With the rebels? If they choose to side with them, they would risk the regime’s repression today.”
This stalemate has been going on for two months, in the midst of fear and uncertainty for the future, a situation that is becoming increasingly unbearable, so much so that a few voices are beginning to be raised courageously in the Church as well, not so much in taking a political position, but rather in seeking help. “A blind alley, with no prospect for a solution. A black night”–this is the description of his country given by Maronite Archbishop Samr Nassar of Damascus. “At the end of every Mass, the faithful say farewell. I only had a dozen people for Christmas Mass and no more than 20 children at catechism. Many young people are considering leaving, and there are already many Christian refugees at the borders, in combat zones. We are asked not to remain neutral. How can we maintain our role as mediators between the two antagonistic forms of Islam without becoming victims?” This is the same concern of Mother Agnès-Mariam de la Croix, Mother Superior of the ecumenical convent of Saint James the Mutilated in Qara: “There are armed rebel groups just as responsible for attacks upon human rights as is the regime.” In addition to this, continues the religious sister, the first attacks on Christians have begun. “At Christmas, the Takfiri rebels prohibited symbols of the Christian feast from being exhibited; people who refuse to take a stance are blacklisted by the revolutionary committees.”

Help for everyone. “In daily life, as far as they are able, the Christian communities continue to help everyone,” adds Fr. Samir. “This is happening in Homs, for example, where the repression is more violent and where many are beginning to flee. Very few come to Mass because the snipers make it dangerous to leave the house. Many people have nothing to eat, because they can no longer buy supplies. I received a report from the community of Jesuits who are in that zone. They have helped about 500 families–Christians and Muslims. The entire Church in Syria is taking action this way.” This is also seen in the Franciscan appeal promoted by the Custodian of the Holy Land, Fr. Pierbattista Piazzaballa (see inset). A sign of hope that goes beyond ideology or confession, beyond all preconceived notions. “In Homs, the Jesuits have a piece of agricultural land outside the city,” recounts Fr. Samir. “It is part of a development project of the region, and Christians, Alawites, and Sunnis work there. Last week, the rebels arrived, looking for the Alawites. They were armed and wanted to kill them. One of the workers, an elderly Sunni Muslim, stopped them: ‘Here, there are no Alawites, Sunnis, or Christians. What we do is for everyone. We are all brothers, all Syrians. If you want to kill someone, you have to kill me first.’ He, a Sunni like them, on their side. They stole everything, looted, but without killing anyone.” What was the origin of the act of that Muslim? “It is not a question of defending Christianity ideologically. It represents a factor of hope. There is a high risk of a Christian diaspora, but if it were to happen, it would be a grave loss for the whole country. They have a fundamental role. At all costs, Syria must be helped to find a solution for the nation.” The UN is evaluating how to take a position, but it is difficult to reach an agreement. A few weeks ago, Russia and China vetoed increased sanctions. Syria has a strategic role of equilibrium for the entire Middle East. “For that matter, help cannot even come from the Arab countries, as they are too interested in having the Assad regime cast aside in order to further isolate its ally, Iran.”

An effective gesture. And yet, one cannot cease calling for “an urgent, peaceful solution,” as Archbishop Mario Zenari, Apostolic Nuncio said, in the face of the horror of the massacre of children of Homs. “The heart of the people must change,” continues Fr. Samir. “Witnesses are needed, people like Fr. Franz, a Dutchman, who remained in Homs even when the Jesuit community he headed was evacuated. He remained, alone, to help the people. Everyone said, ‘He’s crazy. Walking around a city full of snipers who shoot at anything that moves.’ And yet he is there. Twenty years ago, he started an initiative, a series of pilgrimages from one city to another, for everyone: thousands of young Muslims and Christians walking for a week. ‘If I have to die, I’ll die, but I cannot abandon the people.’”
Witnesses to hope. After two thousand years, precisely in the places where Christianity was born, salvation still passes through the flesh and blood of those willing to give their lives for Christ. “We have to pray for the faith of this people, as the Pope did. It is not banal to take refuge in prayer. No. It is truly the only possibility for peace. We must pray that God, also through the Christians of Syria, can change the hearts­­­­ of those who are fighting each other. For this reason, we have to pray for them.”