Source: SIR
“Christian Churches and communities in the Middle East do not have to isolate themselves nor to become museums. Christians have to take up their responsibility in the country they are living in and should not emigrate. This is the only way they can see their rights recognised and maintained.” So spoke today Mgr. Paul Youssef Matar, Maronite Archbishop of Beirut, in his address at the meeting organised by the Community of Sant’Egidio on “the Value of the Churches in the Middle East – Christians and Muslims talking about it.”
For the bishop, Christian efforts must find an echo in “the Muslim communities’ commitment to working together and overcoming extremism whose obvious cause is the lack of humanity.” “For many years, Eastern Christians have been considered the Trojan horse for the occupation of the East by the West, which is false,” said Mgr Matar. “Fortunately, now it is no longer the case, as this conception is changing through dialogue and a better mutual understanding”.
A concept also reaffirmed by Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Aleppo, Paul Yazigi: “Christians and Muslims have always lived together. Eastern Christians speak Arab, which enable them to dialogue. They are not foreigners but full citizens in their countries. It is also up to Christians to dispel the fears surrounding them.” “Despite these fears, Christians communities are strong. Their small but high-ranking churches are committed not to pursue political or military power but to be free inside so as to conquer friendships through culture. They want to be friendly but often they are not understood,” said Father Vittorio Ianari from the Sant’Egidio community.
