Pope calls for end to Syria ‘horror’ in Easter address
Roman Catholic Church leader prays for an end to wars, famine and oppression as he tells people to hold fast to faith
VATICAN CITY // On the holiest day in Christendom, Pope Francis lamented the horrors of war and hatred, delivering an Easter Sunday message that also decried the “latest vile” attack on civilians in Syria.
In his balcony address, Francis prayed that God would sustain those working to comfort the civilian population in Syria – “prey to a war that continues to sow horror and death”. He also made specific reference to the car bomb on Saturday at a bus depot in the Aleppo area where civilians fleeing the fighting were waiting for transfer to safety, killing at least 100 people.
“Yesterday saw the latest vile attack on fleeing refugees,” the pope said, also praying for peace in the Holy Land, Iraq and Yemen, and in war and famine-stricken parts of Africa, notably South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Speaking of eastern Europe, he asked that “the Good Shepherd come to the aid of Ukraine, still beset by bloodshed”.
Of the social and political upheaval in Europe, Francis prayed for God’s blessing on “those experiencing crisis and difficulty, especially due to high unemployment, particularly among young people”.
Pope Francis has repeatedly championed the dignity of migrants fleeing war, persecution or poverty. Yesterday he recalled “all those forced to leave their homelands as a result of armed conflicts, terrorist attacks, fam- ine and oppressive regimes”.
In his impromptu homily during mass in St Peter’s Square and later in his Urbi et Orbi Easter message delivered from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica, the pope reflected on a litany of suffering in the world, including wars, oppressive regimes, human trafficking, corruption, famine and domestic violence.
Pope Francis, who is born in Argentina, also alluded to political and social tensions in Latin America, expressing the hope that the “common good of societies” would prevail. He acknowledged that many people wonder where God is amid so much evil and suffering in the world, but encouraged people to hold fast to faith in their “fearful hearts”.
About 60,000 people – fewer than usual but still including multinational throngs of pilgrims and tourists – endured tight anti- terrorism security checks to hear the pontiff and receive his blessing.
In Jerusalem, thousands of Christians marked Easter Sunday at the church of the Holy Sepulchre, the site where they believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected.
It was the first Easter since the unveiling in March of renovations at a cost of $3.7 million to the ornate, 19th-century shrine covering the tomb of Jesus. However, the tomb was off limits during masses.
Wajeeh Nusseibeh, 67, a member of one of the two Muslim families who traditionally hold the key and guard the church, said this year there seemed to be fewer visitors. He blamed tough economic times and conflict, with Middle East Christians under threat in countries such as Iraq and Syria.
At the same time, Jerusalem also remains the focal point of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Holy Sepulchre is in East Jerusalem, occupied by Israel in 1967 and later annexed.
Easter this year fell on the same date for both western and eastern Christians, an irregular occurrence since they follow different calendars. Masses were staggered throughout the day for the denominations that coexist, often uneasily, in the church in Jerusalem’s Old City.
Easter week got off to a bloody start last Sunday when 45 people were killed in attacks on two Coptic churches in Egypt which were claimed by ISIL.
In Iraq, hundreds of Iraqi Christians gathered in a church damaged by ISIL north of Mosul, celebrating Easter there for the first time since 2014.
Tel Esqof, meaning Bishop’s Hill in Arabic, did not sustain the same amount of damage as other Christian towns overrun by the militants three years ago in the plain of Nineveh.
Kurdish Peshmerga fighters dislodged the militants from Tel Esqof a week after it had fallen, in August 2014. On Sunday, they stood guard around the church. The militants had smashed the church’s windows, although a new cross has been put up in place of the one ISIL tore down.
A fresh breeze cooled the white chapel as the choir sang hymns in Chaldean – a language close to the Aramaic spoken by Jesus.
The mass ended with a distribution of soft drinks and coloured eggs in the courtyard by a French group, SOS Chretiens d’Orient (Christians of the East.)
ISIL gave the region’s Christians an ultimatum – pay a tax, convert to Islam, or die by the sword. Most of them fled to the autonomous Kurdish region, across the Zab river to the east.
More than 350 families returned to Tel Esqof, which has been more secure since October, when US-backed Kurdish and Iraqi forces launched an offensive to force the militants from Mosul, taking back dozens of villages along the way. For many, though, Tel Esqof is not really home, but a place where they feel safe.
Madeleine Roufael, a 70 yearold widow, is still waiting to return to Mosul, about 20 kilometres to the south.
“Thank God,” she repeated, grateful to be celebrating Easter once again. “God willing, we will return home.”
“I wish peace for Iraq, for Syria, for Lebanon,” said Aws Hermez, deacon of the church. “Peace for the whole world.”
‘ Yesterday saw the latest vile attack on fleeing refugees Pope Francis