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Last Updated: 06 May 2018

www.churchinneed.org - WITH MEDIA focused on the Syrian regime, aided by Russian planes, killing some 250 people in a rebel-held suburb of Damascus, rebel attacks on the Syrian capital’s Christian neighborhoods go largely unreported. According to a report by Caritas Internationalis, the situation there is critical, as Christian suburbs have been hit by mortar attacks since late January 2018.
Christians are under siege throughout the Middle East and Aid to the Church in Need works to protect them, including in Damascus

“More than 200 mortar shells have hit Damascus’ eastern neighborhoods, causing more than 28 killed and 90 injured,” Caritas has reported. Attacks are ongoing at this writing. Official figures hold that more than 42 people have been seriously injured and that a dozen people have been killed. The actual numbers may be much higher.

Several of the mortars hit very close to the convent that is home to Sister Annie Demerjian. She told us that she and the other residents of the convent narrowly escaped death when a mortar fell but “thanks be to God did not explode.” Otherwise, she and several of the University students, Sister Annie said, “would have been injured or killed.” Sister Annie, who belongs to the congregation of Jesus and Mary, said: “Yesterday [Feb. 21, 2018] was like hell. It was raining bombs. There were so many people injured.”

Caritas reported on a Feb. 8, 2018 attach during which “some 70 mortar shells hit many neighborhoods in Damascus, leaving more than 30 people injured, 5 killed and causing huge material damages to apartments, shops and cars.”

As Caritas further reported: “People in Damascus are very depressed nowadays. They were optimistic in the last few months, and they felt that they had reached the end of war; but they feel now that they are back to zero. Most of the families who are living in the eastern part of the city stopped sending their children to school after the Jan. 22, 2018 attacks. The main streets and squares that are usually very crowded during the day are now almost empty. All the people are very cautious in their movements.”
Christians are under siege throughout the Middle East and Aid to the Church in Need works to protect them, including in Damascus

The increasing violence is connected to a broad offensive launched by Al-Qaida-linked groups to capture a key military base in the eastern countryside just outside Damascus. This base, known as “The Vehicle Base,” houses large numbers of soldiers, as well as big weapon depots. The civilian population in territory held by both sides suffer from the continuous fighting between armed rebel groups and the Syrian army.

“Please pray for us in Syria, and help us talk loudly about this part of the story, which is neglected, and which is severely affecting our lives and the lives of our loved ones,” the Caritas report concluded.

Father Andrzej Halemba, who oversees our projects in Syria, called for prayers “for the Syrian Christians, who are living through some extremely difficult moments at this time.” He said that hundreds of civilians, many of them Christians, are living in terror night and day on account of the incessant attacks.”
—Maria Lozano

https://www.churchinneed.org/christians-damascus-coming-heavy-fire/

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Last Updated: 06 May 2018

Cairo (Agenzia Fides) - The Egyptian government has provided full legal certificates to 53 churches with annexed service buildings already built before the new law on the construction of Christian buildings of worship passed by the Egyptian Parliament on August 30th 2016. A meeting of the government Commission set up specifically to conduct a census and examine the legalization of church buildings built before 2016 ratified the full compatibility of the 53 "legalizied" places of worship with the parameters defined by the new legal provisions. The Egyptian Premier, Sherif Ismail, in addition to technicians and representatives of the ministries of construction, interiors and justice, took part in the meeting, which took place on Monday 26 February.

The 53 legalized" churches represent only a first "block" of the more than 3 thousand Christian places of worship that must be taken into examination by the Government Commission to verify whether they meet the standards established by the new law.

In past decades, many of the Christian places of worship to be submitted to the assessment of the Government Commission were built spontaneously, without all the necessary authorizations. In some cases, these buildings built by local communities were used as a pretext by Islamist groups to foment sectarian violence against Christians.

The law on places of worship, approved at the end of August 2016 (see Fides 23/8/2016) represented for the Egyptian Christian communities an objective step forward with respect to the so-called "10 rules" added in 1934 to the Ottoman legislation by the Ministry of interior, which forbade inter alia to build new churches near schools, canals, government buildings, railways and residential areas. In many cases, the rigid application of those rules had prevented the construction of churches in cities and towns inhabited by Christians, especially in the rural areas of Upper Egypt.

The law approved in August 2016 already prefigured the establishment of an ad hoc commission called to verify the compatibility with the new legislative provisions of the buildings of worship and of the buildings of the different Churches and Christian communities built in previous years (see Fides 3/2/2017). Before August 2016, and in the absence of precise legislative references, the different Churches and Christian communities, in order to meet their own pastoral needs, had built buildings - buildings of worship, but also houses and premises for collective use that often still result without the specific licenses now contemplated by the current legislation.

The legal representatives of the various Christian Churches were asked to provide the Commission in charge, by September 2017, with a list of the properties belonging to the different ecclesial communities, to assess their congruence with the general laws governing the construction of public and private buildings, and proceed to their eventual "legalization".

In the various ecclesial communities, involved in the census operations of the buildings in question, some concerns circulated about the future management of the entire dossier by the government apparatuses: "We hope", said the then Botros Fahim Awad Hanna, Catholic Coptic Bishop of Minya to Agenzia Fides, "they know the reality of the different situations in the individual regions, that the destinations of the buildings, which often carry out functions serving the entire local population, and not just Christians, are taken into account". (GV) (Agenzia Fides, 1/3/2018)

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Last Updated: 06 May 2018

February 23, 2018

USCIRF Concerned by Denial of Lautenberg Refugees from Iran

“These refugees face the imminent danger of return to Iran, where the already dire situation for religious minorities is steadily deteriorating,” said USCIRF Chairman Daniel Mark

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is concerned by recent reports that roughly 100 members of Iranian religious minorities, who sought resettlement to the United States, have been denied asylum and could be returned to Iran where they may face discrimination and persecution.

The refugees, most of whom are reported to be Assyrian or Armenian Christians, were seeking refuge in the United States under the Lautenberg Amendment. The Lautenberg Amendment, enacted in 1990, was expanded in 2004 to allow members of Iranian religious minorities, including Christians, Zoroastrians, Baha’is, and others, to apply for refugee status under a special category in recognition of their status as persecuted minorities.

“National security must remain a priority for all U.S. government policies,” commented Chairman Daniel Mark. “Yet we also must make timely security assessments in keeping with the intent of the Lautenberg Amendment. These refugees face the imminent danger of return to Iran, where the already dire situation for religious minorities is steadily deteriorating.”

Typically, Lautenberg Amendment processing takes only a few months and has a high rate of approval for admission into the United States. This group of Iranian religious minorities has waited in Vienna for over a year, despite reportedly being vetted before being invited to Vienna, as is common practice for refugees under the Lautenberg Amendment.

“Recent public statements by the administration regarding the plight of religious minorities in the Middle East as well as President Trump’s national security strategy evince a clear commitment to the protection of religious freedom as a U.S. foreign policy priority, and few policies embody this commitment more than the Lautenberg Amendment,” continued Chairman Mark.

USCIRF repeatedly has recommended that the Lautenberg Amendment be renewed in order to offer protection to Iranian religious minorities like Christians and Baha’is who face persecution, discrimination, or harassment at the hands of the Iranian government. Since 1999, the State Department has designated Iran as a “country of particular concern” for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.

For more information, see USCIRF’s 2017 annual report chapter on Iran.

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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission, the first of its kind in the world. USCIRF reviews the facts and circumstances of religious freedom violations abroad and makes policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the Congressional leadership of both political parties. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Isaac Six, Associate Director of Congressional Affairs (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. +1-202-786-0606).

http://www.uscirf.gov/news-room/press-releases/uscirf-concerned-denial-lautenberg-refugees-iran

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Last Updated: 06 May 2018

ugcc.org.ua - The issue of wages and social justice is one of the most urgent in Ukrainian society, but it is also the most painful one. Thousands of Ukrainians, due to circumstances, are forced to seek a better fate in other countries. And those Ukrainian citizens who still remain, do not feel that their work is properly appreciated. After all, wages should not only ensure physical needs of a person, but also his/her maximum development, including dignity. That is why the state, employer and employee must take on social responsibility for improving their well-being.

In general, the Father and the Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, spoke about this on Saturday, February 17, during the live broadcast of the Open Church program on social justice.

"When we talk about decent wages, we primarily rely on the concept of the dignity of a human person. We understand that salary is not only to assure some of his basic needs, but also to feel his own dignity. A person should know that the society and the employer treat him with due respect. After all, everyone needs the necessary conditions for the development of their gifts and talents, spiritual and cultural level," said the spiritual leader at the beginning of the program.

The hierarch claims that he is very upset when we often talk about wages and we are subconsciously thinking of such a payout, which our country now puts forward, in terms of basic or minimum wages. In his opinion, the minimum wage not always can ensure decent development of an individual in Ukraine.

So the Church does not say so much about a certain amount, as about other aspects that must be assured. After all, there are professions that require long-term training, a large personal contribution on the part of a person. The concept of decent wages is based on this.

The Head of the UGCC during the program also answered questions about the unofficial salary. He believes that "salary in envelopes" is a great offense and falsehood. "I think that this kind of salary is a disdain for the person who works. Why? On the one hand, such a salary does not provide all the necessary social guarantees for an employee. Therefore, it is not worthy of the employee who sacrifices his personal skills, efforts, time and attention in order to work," stressed the Head of the Church. - "On the other hand, it is a great offense for the state, because it can not then properly develop and provide decent conditions for creating common good. Therefore, every employer must feel his duty of social responsibility!"

His Beatitude Sviatoslav added that now skilled managers (who understand how to develop their businesses) are aware that they also need to invest in their employees. Instead, the shadow wage is a refusal to invest in a person who works. It is clear that such a relationship between the employee and the employer (where part of the salary is hidden in the shade) creates such circumstances when a person will not work in such a place for long because he feels not properly respected.

"It is interesting and pleasant to see that after the Revolution of Dignity, there was a social request to abandon "wages in envelopes." The state should create appropriate conditions, circumstances in order to motivate employers not to pay their employees "wages in envelopes," said the Head of the UGCC.

In addition, he urged the viewers to get used to the fact that we have a duty to pay taxes, because otherwise we refuse to build our own state. However, fair relations between the state, the tax system and those that create jobs (avoiding excessive taxes, tax pressure, etc.) should be established.

"The state must respect those who give salaries, who develop businesses which create jobs for its citizens! Unfortunately, I have such a feeling that the relationship between an honest employer, an honest worker and an honest state that duly respects both the first and the second is not yet regulated! "- emphasized His Beatitude Sviatoslav.

Department of Information of the UGCC

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Last Updated: 06 May 2018

(from Beirut) “How can you talk of peace when some are fuelling wars in the Region? What are the consequences of the conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Libya, and Yemen? Only death, hatred, and violence! Where is the democracy that some wanted to bring? We see nothing but desolation. Despite everything, I believe we can still hope and live in dignity and respect”. Father Paul Karam, President of Caritas Lebanon, said this yesterday as he met a group of delegates from some Italian Diocesan Caritas on their solidarity visit to Lebanon promoted by Caritas Italy. “Lebanon – the Maronite priest said – can no longer pay the bills of other people’s wars unleashed on our borders” – a clear reference to the conflicts in Iraq and Syria which have pushed into the Country of the Cedars over one million Syrians and countless Iraqis, who add their numbers to the decades-long presence of Palestinians. It is estimated that one third of the Lebanese population is made up of refugees, with serious social, political and economic repercussions for the country. And their numbers are rising. According to Father Karam, “in the first half of 2017 alone, 170 thousand children were born to refugee families. These children have no rights or citizenship, they are born invisible”. Father Karam explained that Caritas “is trying to do its utmost to meet the needs of both local and refugee populations with dedicated projects, also thanks to the support of other bodies such as Caritas Italy. The Lebanese have increasingly been the focus of our projects. Indeed, recent studies have shown that about 35% of Lebanese people live below the poverty line. And the conditions of Palestinian refugees are also worsening”. To revive its aid programs, Caritas Lebanon has launched a Lenten campaign based on three actions, to “help, donate and support, where material aid goes hand in hand with sharing and spiritual support. Let us not be fooled by large buildings, by shopping malls full of lights, by building sites that churn out luxury apartments”, the President of Caritas said. “Many of these, approximately 60%, are owned by businessmen from the Gulf countries. Here in Lebanon, the poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer. The middle class no longer exists. Young couples struggle to get married, to find a home and a job. Were it not for the remittances of the approximately 18 million Lebanese of the diaspora, Lebanon today would be on the verge of bankruptcy. Families live on the aid they receive from their relatives abroad”.

https://agensir.it/quotidiano/2018/2/21/lebanon-father-karam-caritas-the-country-can-no-longer-pay-the-bills-of-other-peoples-wars/

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Last Updated: 06 May 2018

The Interreligious Council in Russia has issued a statement on the attack made on February 18, 2018, against believers who were coming out of the St. George church in Kizlyar. As a result of the shooting opened by a criminal five women were killed and several people were wounded.

We, heads and representatives of the traditional religions in Russia, were pained by the news about an attack against Orthodox believers in the town of Kizlyar in which five people were killed. The perpetrator of the crime purposefully shot at Orthodox believers at the moment when they were coming out of the church after a divine service.

The killer carried out his attack on the Forgiveness Sunday – the day when the Orthodox Christians traditionally seek to reconcile themselves with all. It exposes the misanthropic ideology of extremism manifesting the true face of the Satan’s servants who cover up their true face with the name of God. The aim of the terrorist and his inspirers is to stir up interreligious discord, to destroy the age-old tradition of peaceful coexistence between Christians and Muslims in Russia. The religious leaders of our country call to do everything possible to prevent it.

In these mournful days we appeal to all to refrain from provocative actions. The terrorist act in Kizlyar again and again makes us all to pay attention to the danger of spreading extremism and intolerance, especially among the youth. In this connection, we call upon the Russian State and public and religious institutions to give the closest attention to the moral education of young people, which is called to guard them against the threat of extremism.

Once again it has become clear that today children and youth stand in the vital need to receive the right notions of religion, to learn to distinguish between age-old religious traditions and imported pseudo-religious teachings and extremist sects.

We call upon the special services leaders and officers to do all that is possible to detect and neutralize those who have joined terrorist organization and become imbued with misanthropic ideology before they will commit crimes.

We call our whole society to peace, accord and solidarity. Let the common grief that has befallen us make us rally even more strongly.

https://mospat.ru/en/2018/02/19/news156970/