Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Damascus (Agenzia Fides) - "The Church and the Monastery of Santa Maria in Deir Ezzor, on the banks of the Euphrates River, were destroyed by an explosion on Saturday, October 27. It is an event that shocked us and so we ask for your prayers and your help for Syria": This is what His Exc. Mgr. Eustathius Matta roham wrote in a heartfelt message sent to Fides Agency, Metropolitan Syro-Orthodox Archbishop of the Archdiocese of "Jazirah and Euphrates," in Eastern Syria, after the attack against the only Syro-Orthodox church in the town of Deir Ezzor (see Fides 27/10/2012). The Archbishop told Fides: "The Christian community of Deir Ezzor had already escaped, almost entirely in the summer, due to heavy fighting in the city. Many displaced Christians have fled to Hassake, where there is a center of our Archdiocese. The Christian community had worked tirelessly and with great sacrifices, for ten years, from 1994 to 2004, to build the church and the Christian school of 'Al-wahda'. Criminals destroyed this beautiful work in less than a minute. We ask ourselves: Are these the fruits of the Arab Spring? ". The message sent to Fides ends with an invitation to all Christians and all people of good will: the Archbishop calls for "prayers and concrete action to stop the relentless destruction of God's creation in Syria." (PA) (Agenzia Fides 05/11/2012)
