Patriarch Gregory III Laham, the head of the Melkite Catholic Church, said a US attack against Syria would be “a criminal act, which will only reap more victims”.
The Patriarch lamented that the US and other Western nations have done nothing to stop an influx of “Islamic extremists from all over the world (that) are pouring into Syria with the sole intent to kill”. Today the country needs stability, he said, and “an armed attack against the government really has no sense at all”.
He reflected the concerns of Christians in the Middle East when he said that if Islamic militants come to power the lot of Christians there would be no realistic hope for democracy in Syria.
Pope to visit refugee centre in Rome
Pope Francis seems set to continue emphasising the refugee problem by visiting Centro Astalli, a Jesuit centre for refugees in Rome.
L’Osservatore Romano reported Fr Giovanni La Manna, SJ, director of the centre, saying that the Pope phoned him twice to organise a date for the visit.
He told the newspaper that “Rome is a second landing place” and so is different from Lampedusa. “There is the difficulty of daily life that consists of so much bureaucracy and constant shortages due to a crisis for which the lowliest pay the highest price. Indeed, the resources we would like in order to give a dignified response to the refugees’ needs are not always available.”
Anniversary of March on Washington
In a statement marking the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, at which the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr, delivered his famed “I Have a Dream” speech, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church, said: “We join our voices to those who call for and foster continued dialogue and non-violence among people of different races and cultures, and who work tirelessly for the transformative, constructive actions that are always the fruit of such authentic dialogue.
“We rejoice in the advances that have occurred over the past 50 years, and sadly acknowledge that much today remains to be accomplished.”
Christians defend Grand Imam
Ahmed el-Tayeb, Grand Imam of al-Azhar and president of al-Azhar University, the world’s leading centre of Sunni Muslim learning has been strongly attacked by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan but defended by the Council for Christian Churches in Egypt.
Erdogan lambasted the Imam for supporting the overthrow of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi. He told a newspaper: “History will curse men like him, as history cursed similar scholars in Turkey before.”
On the other hand, according to the Fides news agency, the Imam was described as a man of virtue and high stature by Fr Bishoy Helmy, the secretary general of the Council of Christian Churches in Egypt.
Quebec mulls ban on religious symbols
The campaign to ban the wearing of religious clothing and crucifixes by public employees was given momentum by comments made by the Prime Minister of Quebec, Pauline Marois.
The campaign called, Charter of Quebec Values, is proposing the banning of the wearing of turbans, kippas, hijabs, and visible crucifixes by public workers such as doctors, teachers, and public day care workers.
The Prime Minister lent her support by stating that “we’re moving forward in the name of all the women, all the men, who chose Quebec for our culture, for our freedom, and for our diversity”.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)