Barnabas launches urgent petition on behalf of Christians in Syria

 

Barnabas launches urgent petition

on behalf of Christians in Syria

Syria

 

Barnabas Fund is today launching an urgent petition calling on Western governments to take action on behalf of Syria’s endangered Christian minority. We need your help to get as many signatures as soon as possible as the conflict escalates and their plight deepens.

Syrian Christians, who comprise around ten per cent of the country’s population, are increasingly vulnerable as the brutal civil war rages on. A siege over the last week at the Christian village of Maaloula – one of the most famous and historic centres of Christianity in the world – has magnified the stark threat to the minority community’s very survival in the country.

Al-Qaeda-linked rebels seized control of the village, where Aramaic, the ancient language spoken by Jesus, is still used; fighting against government forces is ongoing. The rebels have been attacking Christian homes and churches, destroying Christian symbols.

   

The bodies of Christians killed in the violent takeover have been left lying in the streets, and Christian residents have been threatened with beheading if they do not convert to Islam. Six young Christians have been taken captive.

Maaloula has been left a ghost town, as most of its population of around 3,000 has fled.

Many Christian communities in other parts of Syria have been ravaged in this horrific manner throughout the civil war. They are being deliberately targeted by Islamists among the opposition forces because of their faith.

The future of the Church in Syria, which dates back to New Testament times, is now hanging in the balance as Christians run out of safe havens. Around 600,000 have fled the country, and even more are internally displaced.

Barnabas Fund’s petition therefore calls on Western governments to take action to protect and help the vulnerable community.

Please sign the petition and forward it to others. You can download a copy to print and circulate in your church and community; paper copies can be obtained by contacting your nearest Barnabas Fund office. You are welcome to photocopy the sheet.

Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, International Director of Barnabas Fund, said:

When we see the distressing footage from Syria on our television screens, we want to do something to help but feel incredibly powerless. Signing and circulating our petition is something you can do to make a difference. We must work together to make the plight of Syria’s Christians known to those with the power to intervene and influence events.

Human Shields in Homs - Please Pray

Below is an exert of a letter from Dr Patrick Sookhdeo of Barnabas Fund.

A human shield in Homs

Let me tell you about one incident, which has not been reported internationally. It concerns Homs, and in particular the Christian neighbourhood of Hamadiya in the old city. A large proportion of the 60,000 Christians of Homs used to live there before the crisis, but almost all have fled. Rebel forces now occupy their homes. However, 86 Christians were kept in Hamadiya as a human shield. I have a list of their names. Church leaders told me that the rebels are holding the hostages to deter the government from attacking Hamadiya with full force. Without food supplies, apart from what they had in their homes months ago, without any medical care at all, several of the 86 Christians have already died during their captivity. The church leaders estimated last week that there are around 80 still alive. 
At one point the Red Crescent managed to get a little aid in for the Hamadiya Christians, but had to retreat again hastily. The Syrian government has assured church leaders it is willing to help get the Christians out. The Free Syrian Army has also told church leaders they would allow the Christians to leave Hamadiya. But the Salafi, al-Qaeda and other Islamist extremist elements of the rebel forces refuse. And so the Christians remain, month after month, dying one by one.

Message from Dr Patrick Sookhdeo: The Tragedy of Christians in Syria (Click for full message)

Christians in Syria receiving food packages from Barnabas Fund.

Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Syria.

Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church: 1 November 2012

Please follow this link to Barnabas Fund's website in order to download a prayer guide.

Prayer Needed: There is a Church in Syria

https://barnabasfund.org/

There have been Christians in Syria since Biblical times, and today the country is home to a flourishing Christian population of 2.3 million. Hundreds of thousands of Christian refugees from Iraq have also escaped there from anti-Christian violence and cruelty in their homeland.

Until last year Syria was the one of the easiest places in the Arab world to be a Christian. The churches could practise their faith without much interference, and they were respected by the Muslim majority and even by the government.

But with the Arab Spring their conditions changed -- very much for the worse...

Please pray for our brothers & sisters in Syria.

Christian News: Hundreds more Christians reach South Sudan - Barnabas - Christian persecution

Hundreds more Christians reach South Sudan | Barnabas - Christian persecution

Published: Thursday 04 October 2012

Hundreds more Christian women and children airlifted to South Sudan

Project(s): 48-1078

Country: Sudan, Middle East and North Africa, South Sudan

Almost 500 vulnerable Christians have so far been airlifted to South Sudan as part of Barnabas Fund’s major operation to rescue 2,000 women and children trapped in Sudan.

The neediest Christian women and children have been identified

The second and third flights from Khartoum to Juba took place on Sunday (30 September) and Tuesday (2 October) respectively, following the first successful airlift on 19 September. We are prioritising the most needy women, around two-thirds of whom are widows, and children.
The returnees have received a grand welcome. The first arrivals were featured on South Sudan’s TV news, and the minister of humanitarian affairs has been at the airport in Juba to greet them. He congratulated our partners, Africa Inland Church – Sudan, for facilitating the evacuation of the South Sudanese from Khartoum.
The rescue mission is ongoing but will now be on hold for around three weeks because the airlines and aviation authorities in Sudan are occupied with the mass transportation of Muslim pilgrims to Saudia Arabia for the hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca).

Background

On board the plane home to South Sudan

After the South voted to secede, people of Southern origin – most of whom are Christians – remaining in Sudan were stripped of their citizenship and given a deadline to leave. Their place in the country has become increasingly endangered as President Omar al-Bashir has repeatedly declared his intention to make the country’s next constitution 100% Islamic and strengthen sharia law.
While many Southerners have made their own way to South Sudan, hundreds of thousands remain trapped in a country that is increasingly hostile to their presence.
Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, International Director of Barnabas Fund, said: “We have pledged the funds to rescue 2,000 of the neediest Christian women and children from Sudan but we eagerly desire to be able to help more of those stranded in such a dangerous and inhospitable place. So please do give whatever you can towards this endeavour and let’s together get these vulnerable Christians home.”
The cost per person is £175 (€220, US$275, AU$260, NZ$345).

 

Please Pray:

• Give thanks for the successful transportation of almost 500 Christians from Khartoum to Juba so far. Pray that they will receive all the support they need to quickly establish new lives in South Sudan.
• Pray for those waiting to return to Juba, that the Lord will give them patience and grace, and keep them safe from all harm.
• Pray that the Lord will provide the funds so that we can transport many more than the originally planned total of 2,000 Christians to South Sudan.

 For further information & to donate, please visit:
http://www.barnabasfund.org/UK/News/Latest-emergencies/Hundreds-more-Christian-women-and-children-airlifted-to-South-Sudan.html