“Christians have not received one reassuring sign
from the various groups that make up the rebel militia or from Islamist
fundamentalists. So if there is a ceasefire, all Christians will think
about doing is fleeing.” This is how the Armenian Catholic Archbishop of Aleppo, Boutros Maryayati described the prevailing fears and sentiment among the Christians of Aleppo, the northern Syrian city which has been isolated for months as anti-Assad forces have been holding the city under siege.
According to Marayati, the atack on the town of Maalula is also symbolic . And the question is, why didn’t they carry out the attack before?” The prospect of a U.S. – led military attack “gave everyone further reasons to be afraid. Think what may happen if a missile hits a warehouse with chemical weapons… This idea now seems to have been scrapped but everything still appears bleak: this war has destroyed Syria not just its buildings but the hearts of its people. There is no longer any hope of bringing back the peaceful co-existence that existed before.”
Aleppo’s Churches joined Francis in his prayer vigil for peace, holding their own vigils on Friday 6 September, a day before the Pope’s. Those who could, watched the international vigil in St. Peter’s Square on 7 September and many heard the powerful words pronounced by the Bishop of Rome at the Sunday Angelus, when he spoke of “commercial wars” fomented by arms trafficking.
“The Pope spoke out loud and clear and said what he had to say,” Marayati remarked. “But those who hold the fate of the war in the palms of their hands prefer not to listen. The general feeling is that we are involved in a game that is bigger than any one of us. We walk in the shadows. We have no idea how all this will end. And we continue to pray.”