The Priest who Broke his Oath

All of a sudden, the Italian Father Paolo Dall’Oglio, who has been living in Syria  for more than three decades took a surprising step  in severely criticizing  the Syrian government and holding it responsible for the bloodshed  taking part in the country.

Under the direct care and prompt support of the Syrian government for rev. Dall ‘ Oglio, Mar Musa has become a centre of interfaith dialogue between Christians and Muslims and a destination for others who arrive and stay awhile, provided they are prepared to take part in cooking and cleaning

Most  of the Syrians  including  a Christian majority who used to follow up the events he had run under slogans of  dialogue of religions, were shocked finding him  just a mere  hypocrite  when he alienated himself from the ” sublime divinely message” which  he claimed and instead started to infuse hatred and provoke sectarianism among the Syrians.  He flagrantly interfered in the internal affairs of the country saying : ” The international community cannot turn its back on the Syrian people, who are being tortured, jailed and killed for the simple act of demanding freedom of expression.” 

In May 2012,  and in another provocative action, he sent a letter to special UN envoy Kofi Annan calling for the deployment of 30,000 UN troops to protect Syrian civilians from harm.

In the tours which took him to Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Los Angeles and New York, and other areas in Canada, he justified  the terrorist acts carried out  in various parts of Syria, though in  each passing day  more evidence is clear that al-Qaeda fighters have been arriving in the country to carry out ‘jihad’ against the Syrians and their country.

 Unsatisfied with  his  continued accusations ,the Syrian Foreign and   Expatriates Ministry expressed  regret over Dall ‘ Oglio’s  non- abidance  to his spiritual duties and his participation in the disinformation campaign against Syria,  which hosted him  and facilitated his mission  as her honorable guest for a long time.

The ministry said in a statement  on September 20th  “Rev. Paolo Dall‘  Oglio, who  was an eye witness for  great  achievements made in various political, economic and social spheres in Syria, instead of calling for national reconciliation  among the people he alleged to care for , he  launched  hostile campaigns attacking Syria and justifying terrorist acts carried out by armed guerillas  and Salafi jihadist and other al-Qaeda affiliated groups. “

Rev. Paolo ‘s tour and  malevolent statements   came  following his deportation by concerned ecclesiastical authorities in Syria, because he had deviated and alienated himself from  the  religious mission he dedicated himself to   and his  interference in the internal affairs of Syria , in  favor of terrorist groups. A matter which wasproved  in later  statements Dall ‘Oglio , demanding  the imposition of a no-fly on Syria outside the framework of the UN Security Council and thereby, placing   himself in the ditch of  the enemies of Syria.
In fact, what he has been doing is in contradiction  with  all moral principles  heralded by divine monotheistic  religions and comes as a free service  to the enemies of Syria.

Nevertheless,  Syria  will continue  to fight terrorism, which targets her own existence  and consolidate her  cultural and religious values,  and perpetuate  the  values and principles for  the unity of her  people . Syria will also continue to unmask all unholy  attempts made to tarnish her  image before the world public opinion in the service of  known agenda.

However, the  monastery of Mar Musa, which was built  in the 6th century and  is perched high up on a cliff in desert hills, about 80 kilometers to the  north of Damascus, will remain a symbol for Syria ‘s  national unity, interfaith and tolerance.

The visitor to the monastery who has to ascend hundreds of stone steps  before reaching  its church with unmatched priceless frescoes depicting the Jesus ‘s last Supper will always find true priests or Sheikhs, who do not break their oaths.

 Tomader Fateh