Outgoing artillery shook St Elias church as the priest reached the end of the Lord's Prayer. The small congregation kept their eyes on the pulpit, kneeling when required and trying to ignore the regular thuds that rattled the stained glass windows above them. Home to one of the oldest Christian communities in the world, the hard to reach Syrian agricultural town of Izraa has stood the comings and goings of many empires over the centuries. But as the country's civil war creeps closer, it is threatening to force the town's Christians into permanent exile: never to return, they fear. "I have been coming to this church since I was born," said Afaf Azam, 52. "But now the situation is very bad. Everyone is afraid. Jihadists control villages around us." A Canaanite city that was mentioned in the Bible, Izraa has lived through Persian and Arab rule, with St Elias's Church being built in 542AD - 28 years before the birth of the Prophet Mohammed in Mecca. During the past four years of Syria's war, its Christian population has largely stayed put, despite the war destroying much of the surrounding province of Deraa. In the last two weeks however, men from the al-Qaeda linked Jabhat al-Nusra and other rebel groups have captured the nearby towns of Nawa and al-Sheikh Maskin, bringing the frontline to less than two miles away. They are now trying to assault Izraa. Some of the rebels were vetted by the CIA as "moderate Muslims" and subsequently trained and armed in Jordan, as part of a US-led program to bolster a non-sectarian opposition to President Bashar-Assad. But past experience has rendered such distinctions irrelevant to Izraa's Christians. After all, in Syria - and on this frontline - the "moderates" continue to work in alliance with Nusra. And the conquest of other Christian villages by the opposition has shown that more moderate factions frequently do little to stop the jihadists imposing their will. "It's simple," said Father Elias Hanout, 38, who led the prayers at Sunday's service. "If the West wants Syria to remain a country for Christian people, then help us to stay here; stop arming terrorists." The pews were sparsely occupied for last Sunday's service in St Elias, with the choir missing its tenors and altos. Mrs Azam, who led the hymns, was reluctant to acknowledge the exodus at first, saying the singers were absent "because of work". But as the tempo of the falling shells increased outside, she admitted: "People from here are leaving. Many are applying to emigrate." Exactly how many Christians have left Syria is difficult to say, but according to the Christian charity Open Doors, some 700,000 have left the country, which equates to some 40 per cent of Syria's pre-war Christian population. Christian leaders in the country warn of an exodus on the scale of Iraq, where the 1.5 million-strong community that lived there prior to the first Gulf War is now down to as little as a tenth of its former size. The threat to towns like Izraa will be uppermost in the mind of the Pope during his visit to Turkey this week, amid warnings from Christian leaders worldwide that their religion might soon lose its foothold in the very region where it was born. Looking around his 1,500 year old church, Mr Hanout warned: "In this land the Word started. And if you delete the Word here, then Christianity across the world will have no future." Evidence of the Church's heritage is everywhere in Izraa's narrow streets. Across from St Elias, lies the chapel of St George, an octagonal stone building that is said to be one of the most ancient churches in the world. Dating to 515 AD, it was originally converted from a pagan temple, and an inscription on its stone lintel reads: "Hymns of cherubs replaced sacrifices offered to idols and God settles here in peace, where people used to anger him." Today, Izraa remains a mixed down of both Christians and Muslims. And in early 2011, when the uprising in Syria was defined by popular protests rather than war, a small number of Christians had welcomed the calls for regime change. That changed when the Islamists began to dominate the rebel ranks. "Nobody wants these men to advance," said one resident said, who asked not to be named. "They are frightened of their town being overrun by Islamists," Instead Izraa's Christians have sought solace in the government's defences, and increasingly blame the West for their suffering. Mrs Azam added: "When evil comes you have to defend your country. We love our government, just as we love our country." The picture in Izraa is one repeated across other Christian pockets of Syria. Christian homes in Deir Ezzour, Raqqa, and in Hassakeh, home to the Syriac Christians, the oldest denomination on earth, are all devoid of their inhabitants. From Homs too, a major Christian stronghold, many have left. Some Christian residents initially remained in the Christian town of Ghassaniyeh in northern Latakia province when it first fell to the rebels in mid-2012. A few weeks later however, Islamic extremists took control of the terrain. Christian men were kidnapped, captured or forced to flee. They desecrated the church, ransacked homes and murdered the priest. Even in Bab Touma, the Christian quarter in the old city of Damascus, residents told the Telegraph they were looking to leave. Eva Astefan, 43, said she applied to the United Nations for asylum, after her 14-year-old daughter, Adel was shot and killed by a rebel sniper in 2012. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...s-Help-us-to-stay-stop-arming-terrorists.html
He's right, Washington is to blame. The sociopaths there have nothing better to do than to instigate friction between different groups whenever they want a regime change. I can't believe what they're doing to Syria, because if Washington wanted to they could stop the fighting immediately. It seems they're supporting one group, and then the other so it can keep on going forever. I guess in the minds of the exceptional nation it's population control. Who in the world do they think they are, God? It's not up to them who lives and who dies. So much for democracy. I cry for Syria. Take care of yourself and I wish you the best.
It seems American version of Christianity becomes rather a tool for brainwashing Americans by Zionists from Israel. Now, it is called Judeo-Christian faith, not Christian any more. They have no reason to worry about other Christians in Syria or elsewhere.
Americans wont hear the pleas of the Syrian Christians due to the TV networks and other mass media historical disdain for Christianity. If Muslims, gays, or other PC popular types were the people suffering, look out! They would push their granny aside and trample her body to be the first to hump their network broadcasting equipment to the crime scene. So, considering the truth of the above, I am not surprised that I haven't heard about it until I read about the mistreatment here at PF. Thanks SyrianGirl!, I will ask my church membership to pray for our Syrian christian brothers and sisters. ~reva
Lol, there are no European,, African, Australian, or American versions. IMO there is only one geographic version that is accurate enough for all uses. However I do use a kind of comparative analogy of a trees structure to show how all the valid versions of the bible are the same where it counts. There are tens of thousands of different kinds of trees. Probably more. There are thousands of ways Christians believe and interpret the bible etc. As long as a tree has a trunk roots and leaves its a tree, even if some leaves are tiny, others as big as half the size of a Peterbuit's tire. Even if the trunk is wrinkled or smooth, its still...you guessed it a tree! A Christian is a christian if they accept Jesus as their lord and Savior and repent of their sins. They are a christian if they do the latter even if they do not get baptized, or don't handle serpents, or do! It's that easy. reva
The west, pretending to support 'multiculturalism' left those Christians to the mercy of the different Muslim sects. These people are hostages for the whims of this tyrant or that Muslim gang leader. The west cannot care less for the religious war going on in the ME.
This is all dirty politics. Did you watch TV channels about Jewish Christianity, Jewish Jesus, so-called Messianic Jews and Greater Israel? It is nothing but geopolitical propaganda, using Christianity as a tool for promotion expansionist idea. Pure ideology in disguise of faith. I never saw those people interviewed by 60-Minutes 'inquisitive' reporters.
The house of Saud is truly an evil dictatorship. Those that hate individual rights and freedoms and wish to force religious beliefs on others through physical violence should themselves should be treated how they want to treat others. Thus says God according to the prophets.
The US created this conflict, by opposing Bashar Assad in the first place. Every single time the US has supported some Muslim rebel group, it has come around to bite us in the ass. You'd think we'd learn by now, but with the Muslim in chief headed out the door, maybe things will start to improve.
Was you who brought up "evil dictator". Saud is one of them. If you can't stand the heat(facts), get out of the kitchen.
There's nothing "evil" about the Saudi monarchy..... Your problem seems to be ignorance of the facts.
Tis you who ignore the facts: Stoning for Adultery, Women can not be educated without approval from a man. No alcohol dancing or religious freedom. Death for apostasy. Saudi Islamist ideology is an ideology of hate. Children are taught in school to hate Christians and Jews. Saud exports its extremist militant Salafi ideology all over the world. Taliban, Al Qaeda/Al Nusra, ISIS, Boko Haram, Al Shabaab and a host of other extremist nutters all share the same Saudi inspired extremist ideology. Your shilling for your beloved house of Saud is well known. This may work on the ignorant but certainly not with those who have a clue.
