Christians in Mid-East face extinction: Welby
Christians who were the first founders of the Church are on the brink of ‘‘imminent extinction’’, the Archbishop of Canterbury warns.
Describing the ‘‘daily threat of murder’’ in the Middle East, the Most Rev Justin Welby says Christians are experiencing ‘‘the worst situation since the Mongol invasions of the 13th century’’.
Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, the Archbishop calls on the Government to take in more refugees.
It comes as figures reveal that just one in every 400 Syrian refugees given asylum in the UK last year was a Christian, despite ‘‘horrendous persecution’’.
Ahead of a special service at Westminster Abbey to celebrate the contribution of Christians in the Middle East, the Archbishop writes: ‘‘Christians face daily the threat of violence, murder, intimidation, prejudice and poverty. In the last few years, they have been slaughtered by socalled Islamic State, and in many countries they find themselves squeezed between the upper and lower millstones of pressure on them within society and of conflicts that afflict the region.
‘‘Many have left. Hundreds of thousands have been forced from their homes. Many have been killed, enslaved and persecuted or forcibly converted. Even those who remain ask the question, ‘Why stay?’ The Christian population of Iraq, for instance, is less than half what it was in 2003 and their churches, houses and businesses have been damaged or destroyed. The Syrian Christian population has halved since 2010. As a result, across the region Christian communities that were the foundation of the universal Church now face the threat of imminent extinction.’’
Calling for everyone to ‘‘remember Christians in the Middle East and pray for them’’, he adds: ‘‘We must support and help them in every way we can. Where they wish to leave, they will be refugees in need of asylum. Where, courageously and by the grace of God, they choose to remain, they need publicity and external, visible support.’’
Welby will join forces with Prince Charles at Wednesday’s service, where the heir to the throne is expected to give a reflection focusing on forgiveness and reconciliation. In a moving speech last Christmas, he spoke
‘‘Christians face daily the threat of violence, murder, intimidation, prejudice and poverty.’’
of his ‘‘heartbreak’’ at the situation, and called on believers in the UK to step up their response to the crisis.
In June, a Freedom of Information request found just 11 of those admitted to Britain under the Government’s flagship Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme in 2017 were Christian. This is despite an estimated 10 per cent of the Syrian population being Christian at the start of the civil war.
The number of Christians granted asylum by Britain has slumped considerably since 2016, when 1.5 per cent were Christians.
Last year that per centage dropped to just 0.23 – amounting to 11 of the 4,832 Syrians who were resettled in the UK.