by Father Rick Van De Water
After the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, H.B. Fouad Twal, visited the Archdiocese of L.A. on September 22-26, he continued on his way to speak at the annual meeting of the Midwestern Lieutenancy [of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher] in Indianapolis.
His talk in Indianapolis included an important message of peace. In particular, Patriarch Twal encouraged the knights and ladies to be advocates for peace in the Holy Land because, he said, America “has the key to peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”
“You have a great responsibility toward the implementation of peace,” he said. “It is important, though, to realize that working hard for true peace is to everyone’s advantage. In our region, peace is either for all the inhabitants of the Holy Land or for no one.”
Patriarch Twal also asked his listeners to pray for peace in Syria, still engulfed in a bloody civil war. He also expressed concern that various countries, including the United States, have been involved in fomenting that war with the goal of regime change in Syria.
Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, has accused the U.S. of fueling the violence there by financing the supply of weapons to the militants of the opposition. Arab allies of the U.S. have also been accused of sending mercenaries to fight against the Syrian government.
On July 17, Melkite Patriarch Gregoire III Laham of Damascus echoed that charge that there has been "interference from foreign elements -- Arab and Western -- who bring weapons, money and one-sided information" into the country, inflaming passions on all sides and "weakening the voice of moderation.”
The mainstream media in the U.S. have been criticized for portraying the conflict as an attempt by the Syrian people to oust an oppressive regime. According to Father Andrew Halemba, the Middle East projects coordinator for Aid to the Church in Need, news agencies have misrepresented the situation, and their reports about the country should be treated critically and with great caution.“The situation is much more complex and difficult to assess than the media in the West make it out to be,” he said. “They seem to be ignoring that there are also internal power struggles and religious tensions between the different Muslim groups. Tribal feuds and acts of vengeance are a daily occurrence, and crime is rising in the country due to the unstable situation.”
“Syria needs reforms, I am sure,” Patriarch Twal said in Indianapolis, “but I’m asking if this violence is the way to have reform in Syria. We don’t want to have Syria as another Iraq. We wait. We pray. We are against any kind of violence.” Patriarch Twal also voiced the fear of the Christian community there that new rulers might not be so favorable to them as the current government headed by Bashar al-Assad. For years, Christians, who make up around 20% of Syria’s population, have fared well under the Assad government.
During his flight en route to Lebanon in September, Pope Benedict asserted that those countries who are supplying arms to fuel the conflict in Syria are committing a “grave sin.”
"[T]here must be an end to the import of arms: without weapons, war could not continue. Instead of importing weapons, which is a grave sin, we should import ideas, peace and creativity. We should accept others in their diversity and make visible the mutual respect of religions, the respect for man as God’s creation and love of neighbor as a fundamental element of all religions. We must promote all possible actions, including material ones, to support the end of war and violence so that all can contribute to the rebuilding of the country,” he said.
Following the lead of Pope Benedict and Patriarch Twal, members of the Order can do a great service to our country by voicing support for a foreign policy that promotes justice and peace in the Middle East, rather than weapons and war.
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