The Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Rai, says Christians always pay
the highest price when conflicts erupt in Middle East countries such as
Egypt, Syria and Iraq.
Cardinal Rai also said that outside countries,
especially in the West but also elsewhere, are helping to foment these
conflicts.
"Speaking
in an interview with Vatican Radio, Cardinal Rai says the situation in
the Middle East is becoming more and more critical as each day passes.
He said whenever a conflict breaks out in the Middle East, whenever
chaos ensues, Muslim groups attack the minority Christian community,
as if they were always the scapegoat.
The Lebanese Patriarch said
all Christians are asking for is security and stability and spoke of how
throughout the Arab world Christians respect the institutions, the
authorities and the constitution. Thanks to the presence of us
Christians and our daily life in all these Arab countries, he said, we
have created a certain moderation in the Muslim world.
Speaking
about the tensions between Muslim Brotherhood supporters and the
Christian community in Egypt, Cardinal Rai said it was a known fact that
once in power, the Muslim Brotherhood were seeking to introduce
Shariah law. Certainly, he said, the Christians are against this and
want a reformed and democratic Egypt, an Egypt that knows how to respect
human rights.
When asked how he sees the future, Cardinal Rai
spoke of his belief that there is a plan to destroy the Arab world for
political and economic interests. There’s also, he added, a plan to
exacerbate as much as possible the inter-confessional conflicts between
Sunni and Shiite Muslims. The Maronite Patriarch said he had already
written to the Pope to express his concern about this issue on two
occasions."