The West is failing Middle Eastern Christians
Recently, Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan of Antioch and all the East of the Syriacs visited ACN’s offices in Germany. There he explained to ACN the problems facing Christians in Lebanon and how he believes Western politicians are not interested in helping Middle Eastern Christians.
By ACN Staff
Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan of Antioch and all the East of the Syriacs at ACN’s offices in Germany. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)
Lebanon is facing a political and economic crisis. Lebanon has the highest percentage Christians in its population of any Middle Eastern country. Before the current crisis Lebanon has over 2 million Christians who made up around 35% of the population. Lebanon has been a safe haven for Christian refugees from other countries in the region such as Syria and Iraq and is one of the few countries in the region where Christians have full political and religious rights.
Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan of Antioch and all the East of the Syriacs speaking with ACN. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)
In the last few years Christians in Lebanon have felt the impact of the economic pressures hitting Lebanon. Over half of Lebanon’s population live under the poverty line. These economic pressures, in addition to political instability, has caused many Christians to seek to leave Lebanon. This is very concerning, as many fear these Christians will not return. The economic pressures have been worsened by the explosion in Beirut’s harbour in August 2020. There has also been political instability. Seven people were killed in a gunfight in Beirut following a protest to have Judge Tarek Bitar removed from the investigation into the August explosion.
Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan of Antioch and all the East of the Syriacs spoke with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) during a visit to ACN’s international headquarters in Germany. The Patriarch expressed his concerns about the Christian exodus from Lebanon:
“We are very, very scared that if this crisis continues it will be the end of Christians in Lebanon and the whole of the near East in a few years. Normally when Christians leave, as happened in Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, they don’t return. They ask, ‘Why should we return when we can’t guarantee our children a decent life nor religious freedom?’”
The city of Zahlé in Lebanon. Over 90% of the city’s population are Christians, the vast majority of whom are Catholics. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)
He also explained that the number of Christians leaving Lebanon is very alarming:
“One of our clergy went to get a residency permit and an official told him that they issue 5,000 passports a day, and that they estimate that at least 3,000 of these are for Christians who then leave. We can’t convince them to stay because they say, ‘How can we endure this situation? There is no hope for our future.’ You have to look at the problems in Lebanon and tell the politicians that enough is enough. Perhaps it’s no more in the interest of the Western politicians. They have other issues to deal with.”
The Patriarch is unhappy with the efforts made by western governments to help Christians in the Middle East. He felt that European governments were more concerned with animal rights and pandering to secular groups than helping to uphold Christian’s rights in the Middle East.
ACN has provided more than 5.4 million Euros in aid for Lebanon following 2020’s dockside blast, including emergency aid and repairs for church buildings in Beirut’s Christian quarter. In 2021, ACN has so far supported more than 100 projects in Lebanon and Syria.