Card Sandri, Minister of the Eastern Church of the Holy See, is visiting Syria until November 3. On October 26, the prince had the opportunity to meet with the Catholic Greek-Melquita Patriarch Abs and the Syrian Catholic bishops. Later, the cardinal and the young people embraced, and these young people have tasted the bitter fruits of conflict over the past ten years. The priest of the main church in Aleppo said: “We have entered a war of enduring hunger from a war of missiles all around.”
(Vatican News Network)Cardinal Sandri, Minister of the Eastern Church of the Holy See, is visiting Syria at this moment, bringing the comfort, unity and care of the Pope to this country that has experienced ten years of war and is now in ruins. On October 26, Card Sandri held a number of meetings at the first stop in Damascus to visit the people of God of the Catholic Greek-Melkita Patriarch Church.
Accompanied by the Holy See’s Ambassador to Damascus, Cardinal Zenari throughout the process, Sandri had the opportunity to meet with the Syrian priesthood and announced that the Holy See’s Eastern Church Department would continue to donate in the name of the Pope to every Catholic diocese in the country to support The most urgent situation identified by each bishop. In addition, Card Sandri also announced that a meeting will be held in Damascus in March 2022. All charity workers from the various dioceses of the Eastern Catholic Church will also participate in coordinating the emergency response plan, especially the “poverty bomb” and The tragedy of population migration.
This event will be held under the leadership of the Holy See Eastern Church Department, the Holy See’s Embassy in Damascus, the relevant institutions of the Holy See and the Aid Eastern Church Societies. Card Sandri reiterated that there are two levels of efforts that need to be strengthened: one is to strive to provide precise and necessary assistance in reconstruction, and the other is that the international community must conduct appropriate introspection. Card Sandri also talked to the priests about the process of the Conference of Bishops recently initiated by Pope Francis.
In the afternoon of the same day, the Minister of the Eastern Church of the Holy See and Patriarch Abs presided over the sacred rites of Byzantium in the Melkita Cathedral, which kicked off the process of the local conference of bishops. Later, Card Sandri and the youth gathered together in the auditorium of the Patriarchate and had a sincere conversation. During the meeting for about two hours, participants shared their pain and pointed out that they need to be more cautiously nurtured, more lively to participate, and to let people hear the voices of youth during the process of the World Conference of Bishops. Card Sandri invites young people to devote themselves to the revolution of love under the guidance of Pope Francis and the encyclical “Brothers”. The youth invited Pope Francis to ask questions about Syria through Card Sandri as a sign of new hope. Both Card Sandri and Ambassador Zenari pledged that the Pope will always care about Syria; the current situation is still very difficult, and once all conditions permit, the Pope will readily consider this proposal.
At the same time, Father Ibrahim Alsabagh, the director of the Aleppo Latin Auditorium, also witnessed at this opportunity. The timing of Card Sandri’s visit is very important, because the local area has gone from a war of bullets to a war of starvation. “More than 95% of residents live below the poverty line, and their basic salary is not enough to support their families. People are desperate and depressed. The crisis in Aleppo is still severe. Looking at the winter, there is a shortage of natural gas and gasoline, and prices are high. “The priest in this church emphasized that there is an urgent need to restart the emergency plan, distribute food, and initiate contingency measures in accordance with the needs of various health conditions.
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