Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Patriarchs and others attend a meeting in Cairo Nov. 25-29, 2019. The Council of Catholic Patriarchs of the East called upon officials of their homelands to "ensure safety, peace and tranquility and stability for their citizens." (CNS photo/Syriac Catholic Patriarchate)

CAIRO (CNS) -- Amid deadly protests in Iraq, a people's uprising in Lebanon and continued suffering in Syria, Catholic leaders of the Middle East called upon officials of their homelands to "ensure safety, peace and tranquility and stability for their citizens."

Meeting in Cairo November 25-29, the Council of Catholic Patriarchs of the East addressed political, economic and social difficulties that many countries are suffering as a result of unrest, violence, extremism and terrorism as well as the situation of displaced people and the inevitability of returning to their villages and homes.

Massive demonstrations against the political ruling class have plagued Iraq since Oct. 1 and Lebanon since Oct. 17.

Despite some confrontations with security forces and supporters of established parties, protesters in Lebanon have largely been spared the violent crackdown seen in Iraq. There, about 400 people have died and thousands have been wounded in protests.

In their final statement, the patriarchs called on the political authority in Iraq "to take courageous action to get the country out of this great crisis so that the bloodshed will stop and life will return to normal by building a strong state on sound foundations, in which true democracy, justice and human dignity prevails, combating corruption." They also called for "revealing who killed and kidnapped peaceful demonstrators" and asked authorities to hand the killers "over to the judiciary."

The patriarchs appealed to all to work to "uproot the terrorist ideology of the Islamic State." While acknowledging the "adversity and tribulation" in Iraq, the patriarchs encouraged Iraqi Christians "to take root in their land and preserve the heritage" of their ancestors.

Turning to Lebanon, the patriarchs said they "support the demands of the Lebanese people in general and the youth in particular, in their movement," expressing their hope that peace and patriotism be maintained.

The Middle Eastern patriarchs urged Lebanon's political authority to expedite the formation of a new government "whose first task will be to respond with the popular movement to find radical solutions to the current situation, by transcending personal and factional interests and working to achieve the common good, and freeing the national will from all outside interference." The patriarchs also stressed the need for the return of refugees and displaced persons to their homelands. Lebanon is host to some 1 million Syrian refugees.

While council members said they "are optimistic about the stability achieved in Syria in most of the country," they expressed their pain regarding human suffering and damage caused by bombings.

The patriarchs called on "all components of the Syrian people to join hands" to rebuild what is destroyed and to promote the economy.

They also called on "global decision-makers to stop interfering" in Syrian affairs and to help "all the good Syrians to work hard to recover Syria from its long-standing ordeal."

The council expressed "full support for the Palestinian people tormented by the occupation."

"We reiterate our call on the international community to recognize the Palestinian state, with Jerusalem as its capital, within the framework of the two states, and the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes," the patriarchs said.

As for Egypt, the Catholic leaders commended the Egyptian state's achievements "that have contributed effectively to improving the situation of Egyptians" at all levels, including "practical steps" in consolidating the foundations of citizenship and society.

During the meeting, the patriarchs met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and urged him to work toward reconciliation and dialogue in the countries of the Middle East, especially in Lebanon, Iraq and Syria.

They also met with Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II.

More: US Church / Iraq / Syria

We don’t have comments turned on everywhere anymore. We have recently relaunched the commenting experience at America and are aiming for a more focused commenting experience with better moderation by opening comments on a select number of articles each day.

But we still want your feedback. You can join the conversation about this article with us in social media on Twitter or Facebook, or in one of our Facebook discussion groups for various topics.

Or send us feedback on this article with one of the options below:

We welcome and read all letters to the editor but, due to the volume received, cannot guarantee a response.

In order to be considered for publication, letters should be brief (around 200 words or less) and include the author’s name and geographic location. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

We open comments only on select articles so that we can provide a focused and well-moderated discussion on interesting topics. If you think this article provides the opportunity for such a discussion, please let us know what you'd like to talk about, or what interesting question you think readers might want to respond to.

If we decide to open comments on this article, we will email you to let you know.

If you have a message for the author, we will do our best to pass it along. Note that if the article is from a wire service such as Catholic News Service, Religion News Service, or the Associated Press, we will not have direct contact information for the author. We cannot guarantee a response from any author.

We welcome any information that will help us improve the factual accuracy of this piece. Thank you.

Please consult our Contact Us page for other options to reach us.

City and state/province, or if outside Canada or the U.S., city and country. 
When you click submit, this article page will reload. You should see a message at the top of the reloaded page confirming that your feedback has been received.
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

A Reflection for Friday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time, by Valerie Schultz
Valerie SchultzNovember 05, 2024
Much ink has been spilled over this presidential election—but not nearly as much as was used in a long history of presidential memoirs and biographies.
James T. KeaneNovember 05, 2024
As I sit sore and tired, I cannot also help but think that the N.Y.C. Marathon for me is a thin space, a space where I can easily see God’s presence in the world.
Robert McCarthyNovember 04, 2024
Archbishop Domenico Battaglia of Naples has been named as one of the prelates Pope Francis will make a cardinal on December 7th.