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Juneau Empire, AK
sept 15 2013
May peace reign in Syria
By BISHOP EDWARD J. BURNS
Two weeks ago I celebrated the final Mass of the summer season at the
Shrine of St. Therese. After Mass I met a group of about 25 Armenian
Christian pilgrims who had come to the Shrine to pray. They shared
with me that about half their number had emigrated from Syria, which
has a small but ancient Armenian community.
My brief encounter with these good people was a reminder to me not to
lose sight of the human dimension of the current Syria crisis. Over
100,000 Syrians have been killed in the past two years of civil war.
An estimated 2 million Syrian refugees have sought refuge in the
countries that border Syria - in desperate need of food, water,
shelter, medicine and above all, in need of an end to the conflict so
they can return home.
The intensifying conflict between the dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad
and the various groups that have risen up in rebellion against his
regime has been a tragedy of violence and destruction that has
affected all of the various religious and ethnic communities that make
up the Syrian nation.
The conflict escalated on Aug. 21 with the presumed use of sarin nerve
gas, a chemical weapon, by the Assad forces against neighborhoods in
Damascus held by rebel forces. A thousand or more civilians, many of
whom were children, were killed and many more were poisoned with these
horrific weapons.
This attack, in turn, has led President Obama and his administration
to threaten a military assault against Syria, both to punish the Assad
regime's use of chemical weapons and to deter the future use of these
internationally outlawed weapons by countries that continue to possess
them.
Military action by our country, however, carries with it the real
possibility of a wider regional conflict that could involve both the
United States and some or all of the states that border Syria, some of
which, like Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States support the
rebels; and others, such as Iran, Russia and Iraq, support the Assad
government.
Catholic moral teaching absolutely condemns the production, possession
and use of chemical weapons, which by their nature cannot discriminate
between innocent civilians and legitimate military targets. While
Catholic moral teaching always favors peace between nations, it also
recognizes that in some very limited circumstances the resort to
military force may be justified.
I am grateful that Pope Francis responded to the threat of an
escalation of the war in Syria by calling on Catholics around the
world to a day of prayer and fasting for peace - this took place last
Saturday on Sept. 7. He invited members of other Christian communities
and other faiths, as well as all men and women of goodwill, to join us
in this spiritual endeavor. Although his call to prayer came at very
short notice, I was moved by the generous response to his call for
prayer and fasting here in Southeast Alaska and around the world.
An integral aspect of the call of the Church, as expressed by the Holy
Father in this critical moment, has been the summons that the
international community makes a renewed effort toward a peaceful
solution rather than a military one in Syria. The Church, following
the guidance of the Holy Father, desires to be a catalyst for a
non-violent solution to the crisis in Syria; a solution that is just,
respects the dignity of persons, and is careful not to deepen the
tensions that exist.
Fortunately, in the past week, the possibility of a peaceful solution
to the crisis has developed. The Russian government proposed that
Syria agree to give up its chemical weapons. Syria has admitted its
possession of chemical weapons, has expressed its desire to sign the
treaty banning them and has said it is willing to place them under
international control. In response, President Obama has postponed
seeking Congressional authorization for military action while pursuing
a diplomatic solution that would lead to the destruction of all Syrian
chemical weapons and the dismantling of production facilities.
Last Saturday's day of prayer and fasting was a timely reminder that
peace, whether in the individual heart, in families or between
nations, depends upon our openness to the divine will of God - the
very source of compassion, mercy, forgiveness and sacrificial love. As
this crisis continues to unfold, it is important that we continue to
pray that peace may reign in Syria, the Middle East and throughout
world.
http://juneauempire.com/opinion/2013-09-15/may-peace-reign-syria#.UjZgEcRzZMs
sept 15 2013
May peace reign in Syria
By BISHOP EDWARD J. BURNS
Two weeks ago I celebrated the final Mass of the summer season at the
Shrine of St. Therese. After Mass I met a group of about 25 Armenian
Christian pilgrims who had come to the Shrine to pray. They shared
with me that about half their number had emigrated from Syria, which
has a small but ancient Armenian community.
My brief encounter with these good people was a reminder to me not to
lose sight of the human dimension of the current Syria crisis. Over
100,000 Syrians have been killed in the past two years of civil war.
An estimated 2 million Syrian refugees have sought refuge in the
countries that border Syria - in desperate need of food, water,
shelter, medicine and above all, in need of an end to the conflict so
they can return home.
The intensifying conflict between the dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad
and the various groups that have risen up in rebellion against his
regime has been a tragedy of violence and destruction that has
affected all of the various religious and ethnic communities that make
up the Syrian nation.
The conflict escalated on Aug. 21 with the presumed use of sarin nerve
gas, a chemical weapon, by the Assad forces against neighborhoods in
Damascus held by rebel forces. A thousand or more civilians, many of
whom were children, were killed and many more were poisoned with these
horrific weapons.
This attack, in turn, has led President Obama and his administration
to threaten a military assault against Syria, both to punish the Assad
regime's use of chemical weapons and to deter the future use of these
internationally outlawed weapons by countries that continue to possess
them.
Military action by our country, however, carries with it the real
possibility of a wider regional conflict that could involve both the
United States and some or all of the states that border Syria, some of
which, like Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States support the
rebels; and others, such as Iran, Russia and Iraq, support the Assad
government.
Catholic moral teaching absolutely condemns the production, possession
and use of chemical weapons, which by their nature cannot discriminate
between innocent civilians and legitimate military targets. While
Catholic moral teaching always favors peace between nations, it also
recognizes that in some very limited circumstances the resort to
military force may be justified.
I am grateful that Pope Francis responded to the threat of an
escalation of the war in Syria by calling on Catholics around the
world to a day of prayer and fasting for peace - this took place last
Saturday on Sept. 7. He invited members of other Christian communities
and other faiths, as well as all men and women of goodwill, to join us
in this spiritual endeavor. Although his call to prayer came at very
short notice, I was moved by the generous response to his call for
prayer and fasting here in Southeast Alaska and around the world.
An integral aspect of the call of the Church, as expressed by the Holy
Father in this critical moment, has been the summons that the
international community makes a renewed effort toward a peaceful
solution rather than a military one in Syria. The Church, following
the guidance of the Holy Father, desires to be a catalyst for a
non-violent solution to the crisis in Syria; a solution that is just,
respects the dignity of persons, and is careful not to deepen the
tensions that exist.
Fortunately, in the past week, the possibility of a peaceful solution
to the crisis has developed. The Russian government proposed that
Syria agree to give up its chemical weapons. Syria has admitted its
possession of chemical weapons, has expressed its desire to sign the
treaty banning them and has said it is willing to place them under
international control. In response, President Obama has postponed
seeking Congressional authorization for military action while pursuing
a diplomatic solution that would lead to the destruction of all Syrian
chemical weapons and the dismantling of production facilities.
Last Saturday's day of prayer and fasting was a timely reminder that
peace, whether in the individual heart, in families or between
nations, depends upon our openness to the divine will of God - the
very source of compassion, mercy, forgiveness and sacrificial love. As
this crisis continues to unfold, it is important that we continue to
pray that peace may reign in Syria, the Middle East and throughout
world.
http://juneauempire.com/opinion/2013-09-15/may-peace-reign-syria#.UjZgEcRzZMs