Holy See: "Worrying exodus" of Middle East Christians
(Vatican Radio) The Holy See has expressed its concern about a “worrying exodus” of
Christians from Middle East countries which have been their homelands for nearly two
thousand years. The Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the United Nations in New York,
Archbishop Francis Chullikatt, said Christians often targeted by “fundamentalist and
extremist forces” in the region.
He was speaking during the UN Security Council
Open Debate on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.”
“The
Holy See stands ready to support all religious communities in their efforts to reach
new understandings and the restoration of trust after these years of violence, revenge
and recrimination.,” Archbishop Chullikatt said.
The full text of Archbishop
Chullikatt’s intervention is below
Intervention of H. E. Archbishop
Francis Chullikatt Apostolic Nuncio, Permanent Observer of the Holy See
to the UN in the Security Council Open Debate on “The situation
in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question” (New York, 20 January
2014) Mr. President, My Delegation congratulates you on this
month’s Jordanian Presidency of the Security Council and commends your convening of
this timely open debate on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian
question”. Jordan’s leadership draws on insights into the region of great benefit
to this Council, and it will be from Amman in your own country that His Holiness Pope
Francis, as a witness to peace, will begin his own pilgrimage of prayer to the Holy
Land on May 24th of this year. For the Holy See, the resumption of peace talks
between Israelis and Palestinians constitutes a positive development, in regard to
which Pope Francis has expressed the hope that “both parties will resolve, with the
support of the international community, to take courageous decisions”.[1] Courageous
decisions are seldom easy ones and can make demands on us that may be politically
difficult and unpopular. Yet when faced with the reality of conflict in the Middle
East all right-minded people see the need for change. Peace is not simply the absence
of war but requires that the demands of justice are met for all peoples and communities.
My Delegation, accordingly, joins its voice once more with all people of good will
who welcome, with great hope, the re-engagement of direct, serious and concrete negotiations
so that a rejuvenated peace process may help unfold better prospects for the future. Of
great significance, furthermore, is the recent agreement of the Permanent Members
of this Council and Germany with Iran in respect to its nuclear programme, which offers
great hopes that an era of distrust may be displaced by a new climate of trust and
cooperation and it is hoped that it will be fully implemented and open the path to
a definitive agreement. Mr. President, The Holy See has urgently and repeatedly
voiced its clear concerns for the peace and welfare of all the peoples of the Middle
East. Most recently it has been the ongoing situation in Syria which has prompted
Pope Francis to renew the Holy See’s profound solicitude for the situation in the
whole of this region. Calling the Catholic faithful to prayer and fasting for Syria
in September last year, Pope Francis made a heartfelt plea “that the violence and
devastation in Syria may cease immediately and that a renewed effort be undertaken
to achieve a just solution to this fratricidal conflict.”[2] “Never has the use of
violence brought peace in its wake,” said the pope: “War begets war, violence begets
violence.”[3] Mr. President, May the Geneva II talks on January 22nd be an occasion
for a renewed reflection on the criteria needed to offer a new start for this beautiful
nation left prey to indescribable destruction and loss of lives! These must include
an immediate ceasefire without procrastinations owing to political preconditions,
including a renewed commitment to promoting initiatives of peace instead of the sending
and funding of arms, which has escalated the violence and conflict. At the same time,
this must involve an immediate roll-out of humanitarian assistance and reconstruction
for the countless refugees and displaced persons being housed temporarily in neighbouring
countries, where so many suffer life-threatening deprivations, inter alia, of nutrition,
safe drinking water and basic sanitation. The urgency of rebuilding peace trumps the
resolution of other political and social questions, though such rebuilding certainly
will need to include new forms of political participation and representation that
ensure the voice and security of all groups calling Syria their home. The Pope
has expressed his deep concern for those experiencing relocation and displacement
in efforts to escape incessant violence, as well as for those nations challenged by
the influx of a great number of refugees. The international community cannot stand
aloof to their praiseworthy efforts to assist. The Holy See – through its wide array
of educational, health care and social service outreach efforts – pledges to continue
to work alongside those alleviating the suffering of all marginalized, uprooted and
oppressed by conflict. Many of these refugees constitute a worrying exodus of Christians
from their bi-millennial homelands owing, among other causes, to the targeting and
instability visited upon them by fundamentalist and extremist forces. Interreligious
dialogue and reconciliation will be required, thus, to restore the balance in the
rich and complex pluralism of Syrian society. The Holy See stands ready to support
all religious communities in their efforts to reach new understandings and the restoration
of trust after these years of violence, revenge and recrimination. Mr. President, The
Syrian people have demonstrated by their history an ability to live together in peace.
Regional and international rivalries, therefore, that have little to do with the Syrian
communities themselves, must be set aside, so that at the heart of the discussions
are not these interests but rather those of the individual human person and the good
of Syria. To this end all the interested parties are called to work together if conditions
for lasting peace are to be put in place. The Geneva II talks must, accordingly, ensure
inclusive participation for all parties to this conflict, in the region and beyond.
The Holy See, by its presence, wholeheartedly wishes to support this objective. Finally,
I wish to call to mind the concern expressed by Pope Francis for the ongoing political
problems in Lebanon, and also for Iraq, which struggles to attain the peace and stability
for which it hopes. Mr. President, For the United Nations the challenges of
the Middle East are a clarion call for its peacemaking role, the very raison d’être
for this institution. May this open debate help muster the much needed political will
to spur the international community to make a real difference in the lives of the
peoples of the Middle East and help them to fulfil their dream of long-awaited peace!
The global economic situation no longer permits that the international community continue
indefinitely to fund growing refugee populations. Political solutions are the best
solutions even for the economies of these countries because peace is the necessary
precondition for the socio-economic stability capable of attracting development funds.
In his address to the members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See on
January 13th, therefore, Pope Francis urged the whole world with great insistence
to address the problems of the Middle East and to act, before any further deterioration
of the situation occurs.[4] I thank you, Mr. President.