Pope donates funds to local Church in Syria

April 03, 2012: Pope Benedict XVI has donated $100,000 to the Catholic Church in Syria to help people affected by civil war, the Vatican announced on Saturday. The Holy Father has made several appeals for an end to the violence in Syria, and has called for dialogue and reconciliation between the those involved in the conflict, in view of peace and the common good. The donation was made through the Pontifical Council ‘Cor Unum’, the Pope’s Charitable organisation. Monsignor Giampietro Dal Toso, the Secretary of ‘Cor Unum’ delivered the gift of Pope Benedict XVI to the Greek-catholic Melkite Patriarch Gregory III, and bishops representing all the rites of Syria.
The papal envoy said that the gift of Benedict XVI was a sign of his proximity to the Syrian people especially Syrian Christians. This donation is intended to support the works that the Church in Syria is doing to help displaced persons, refugees and people who are in distress.
The Catholic Church is active in charitable work throughout Syria, especially in the area of Homs, Aleppo and Damascus. The Christian minority in Syria is very valued and recognized, the prelate added.