Christmas carols bring solace to Libya’s fearful Christians

TRIPOLI—In the capital of war-torn Libya, a dwindling Christian community of foreign workers leave their fears and anxieties at the church door as they gather for Christmas carols and laughter.

Lisa, a 47-year-old Filipina nurse, said she had just celebrated the festival of lights “for the tenth consecutive year” at Saint Francis Church, referring to the start of advent and the Christmas season.

Lisa, who has worked at a private clinic in Tripoli for 15 years, held a candle in one hand and adjusted her Santa Claus hat with the other.

Around her, excited children ran around before being directed to Bible class, as rooms in the church filled with the sounds of hymns and laughter.

Since the 2011 fall of dictator Moammar Gadhafi, the small community’s fears for its safety had increased, espe- cially after jihadists claimed to have killed dozens of Christians in the country this year.

But every Friday, men and women from the Philippines, India and several African nations flock to Saint Francis, one of the capital’s only churches still open, to pray and support each other.

More than 100,000 Christians lived in Libya before the 2011 revolution that toppled Gadhafi, said Father Magdi, an Egyptian priest who arrived in Libya before the uprising.

“Today, we’re only about 5,000—and less than 1,000 in Tripoli,” he said.

The Islamic State jihadist group has exploited the chaos in Libya since the uprising to expand its influence in the country. Earlier this year, it claimed to have executed 21 Coptic Christians—all but one of them from Egypt—and 28 Christians from Ethiopia.

The Christian expats view church as a source of relief from wider political tensions.

“It’s important for me to go to church each Friday,” said Benjamin, a Ghanian security guard. “For a few hours every week, it feels good to be with my African brothers and sisters. I forget I’m in Libya… I feel I’m at home.”

Fellow worshippers Anthony and Rebecca are among the rare African expats to be staying in Libya legally.

“What happens to the Libyans happens to us too. When they feel insecure, we do too,” said Anthony, a security guard. “No one knows what will happen tomorrow.”

But Rebecca, who works as a cleaner, remains optimistic: “We pray for Libya every week at church… We pray that this country finds peace.”