Outsiders are killing Syrian People, destroying Churches and mosques – Christian Bishop

Nadezhda Kevorkova,who is a war correspondent ,has interviewed  Metropolitan Luke whose  area of Responsibility is the Cathedrals of Saidnaya and Maaloula.

Metropolitan Luke is Speaking Arabic, using the usual Muslim expressions, such as “insha’Allah”, Which Means “God willing”;”ziyarat”, Which stands for “a pilgrimage to Holy Site”, ” Alhamdulillah “, Meaning ” to praise God”. He Greets People with  “as-Salam alaykum” and calls the Muslims HIS Brothers. Metropolitan Luke is the Patriarch’s right hand. His area of Responsibility is the Cathedrals of Saidnaya and Maaloula, which have one of the oldest icons in the world. Removing your shoes before entering these cathedrals is a must, just like in a mosque.

“Our culture implies no intolerance towards Islam. It’s the basic principle of our relations. We call Muslims our cousins,” says Metropolitan Luke.

 Following is the full text:

Nadezhda Kevorkova: Do you think that the events in Syria are a sign of God’s wrath?

Bishop Luke: I do not think so. God is love. This is the Holy Land. Saul was christened and took the name Paul here. The burial-place of John the Baptist is here. Ananias lived here, as well as John Damascene. How could God be angry at the believers? What’s been happening here is in no way connected to faith. If we are being killed by the outsiders, it doesn’t mean that God is angry at us. In our holy country people believe in God, and that’s why they want to destroy us. This crime was initiated from outside Syria. Now that Lent has begun we say prayers every day. We are under attack, all of the Syrian people. These people say they act with Syrian people’s best interests at heart, but it’s not true. We are the Syrian people, and they have been sent to our country from the outside.

NK: Do the militants target Orthodox Churches?

BL: They kill people. They do not care about people, about human lives. And that’s more important than churches and cathedrals, because if there are no people, there’s no need for cathedrals. They do not care about having killed hundreds of our people, let alone destroying churches or mosques.

NK: Why do the militants resent Christians so much? Is it because they serve in the army?

BL: There are people from different communities serving in the Army, all of them citizens of one country. If you look around, you’ll see that young Muslims protect the territory of this cathedral and our other churches.

NK: Are there any Orthodox Christians in the Opposition?

BL: There are none among the militants. There are two Christians in what so-called the “National Council “in Istanbul, but neither of them has the conscience or moral values of a Christian. One of them, Michel Kilo, has no idea what a church is. Same goes for George Sabra. These are the leaders of the militants who open fire in Christian neighbourhoods and kill priests. Our young generation and the Muslims fight them together. We are ready to die to defend our country and our people.

NK: The grave of Abel, killed by Cain, is in a Mosque in Syria. Are Christians allowed access to it?

BL: This shrine is taken care of by Muslims. Muslims and Christians in Syria are equal in their rights, including the right to pray. We are on the same terms in our country, and we can pray all over Syria, at any sanctuaries. The Umayyad Mosque, which houses a shrine that contains the head of John the Baptist, can be freely attended by Christians, so Orthodox believers go there to pray.

There is a minaret right in front of the cathedral – it was erected as a token of Christians’ welcoming Muslims in Damascus. This minaret symbolizes peace between us and therefore is called white. All Orthodox holidays, as well as Islamic ones are for everybody – we are used to facilitating each other on them.

NK: The ancient city of Antioch is now occupied by Turkey, all the cathedrals and sanctuaries are torn away from Syria and now belong to Turkey and are called Antakya, which is a Turkish province. How does the Church look at this?

BL: I am among the leaders of the campaign for returning Antioch to Syria. Muslims take part in this campaign, too. I really hope we will get it back. We do believe that we will manage to overcome these hardships and will not only return Antioch but will get back other territories to Syria as well. Damascus is running Antioch’s cathedrals. Turkish culture is fostered in Arab kids in Turkey from early childhood. They face difficulties in terms of language, studying and praying – children speak Turkish and don’t have a command of the language, in which divine service is performed. Basically there is no Orthodoxy in Turkey left, neither are there any cathedrals, sanctuaries or Christians. Russia is the only stronghold of Orthodoxy left.

NK: How do you Keep in Contact with this Part of the Church, Given the War and Turkey’s Involvement with it?

BL: Our patriarch’s Metropolitan Pavel Brother serves in Aleppo. The Church commissioned him to go to Antakya on a regular basis and pray there.

NK: Are there any Orthodox Palestinians in your Church?

BL: Yes, there are some among our parishioners. We also have two Palestinian priests in Beirut.

NK: Can Orthodox believers of Syria go to Jerusalem and Bethlehem as they used to do two thousand years before the establishment of “Israel“?

BL: We would love to be able to visit our shrines, but we as Christians do not feel like entering the occupied territories. Not a single Syrian priest has ever gone on pilgrimage since 1967. These Lands are oppressed by occupation.

Source:RT

M.D