Terrorists targeting Maaloula should be a line in the sand, not the Assad regime that has been trying to defend/protect its inhabitants
Maaloula is a Christendom treasure. Specifically, it is one of three villages where the inhabitants speak Aramaic (the ancient language Jesus also spoke). Due to its mountainous isolated location, the mostly Christian (Orthodox) inhabitants of Maaloula have managed to hold onto their culture and language. It is the site of ancient Christian monasteries -Mar Taqla and Mar Sarkis-- that have withstood the Muslim conquest of the region. It is a mystical/magical place.
In October of 1991, I wandered Syria. From Dimashq to Halab (Aleppo) and many towns and villages in between (like Hama, Homs,Tartus and Maaloula), and the last Crusader stronghold to fall in 1302 AD on the island of Arwad/Ruad. Days and nights spent with local Syrians in public places, and in their homes. A highly intelligent and civilized Arab/Levantine people, who impressed me with their frankness, kindness and hospitality.
The original plan had been to take a bus trip from Dimashq north to Istanbul and back to Dimashq. But the Syrian Embassy in Islamabad was adamant: They refused to issue a multiple entry visa on my American passport. It was in and out of Dimashq or nothing. And the female Lebanese Ambassador informed me that they were prohibited from issuing a visa to Americans due to safety concerns. So taking a day trip to Beirut via taxi was also out. It was to be an "in and out" trip although I could stay awhile.
When I arrived at the Dimashq airport and took a taxi into the city, the initial plan was to spend some nights at a place run by nuns in the old city, before heading north. It was here that I "bumped" into Siham in the front lawn after I'd checked in and headed out to explore the old city.
The original plan had been to take a bus trip from Dimashq north to Istanbul and back to Dimashq. But the Syrian Embassy in Islamabad was adamant: They refused to issue a multiple entry visa on my American passport. It was in and out of Dimashq or nothing. And the female Lebanese Ambassador informed me that they were prohibited from issuing a visa to Americans due to safety concerns. So taking a day trip to Beirut via taxi was also out. It was to be an "in and out" trip although I could stay awhile.
When I arrived at the Dimashq airport and took a taxi into the city, the initial plan was to spend some nights at a place run by nuns in the old city, before heading north. It was here that I "bumped" into Siham in the front lawn after I'd checked in and headed out to explore the old city.
Siham (I won't disclose her last name) was one of very few Syrians who spoke English fairly well. She was an attractive, intelligent young woman of x years (according to her Govt issued ID). We were intended to become "best buddies" while I roamed the country (often with her, her brother and some friends -Muslim & Christian).
Did manage to take a solo trip via bus to Halab/Aleppo,and stayed in the famous --though somewhat dilapidated due to the ravages of time--Baron's Hotel still run by a distinguished Armenian family. The patriarch in his mid-80s was proud to kindly provide me with photocopies of Agatha Christie, as well as T.E. Lawrence's, hotel bills.
Did manage to take a solo trip via bus to Halab/Aleppo,and stayed in the famous --though somewhat dilapidated due to the ravages of time--Baron's Hotel still run by a distinguished Armenian family. The patriarch in his mid-80s was proud to kindly provide me with photocopies of Agatha Christie, as well as T.E. Lawrence's, hotel bills.
Back to Siham. She's Christian whose mother tongue is Aramaic. Her family has lived in Maaloula since .....well forever. Siham, unbeknownst to her, provided a fascinating insight of daily life in Syria from a Syrian Christian female's prism .
Her views and insights will remain confidential, but they served to reinforce some deep seated concerns vis-a-vis interfaith relations in the region. Had she known I was a Muslim (rather than another secular American--she never asked me about my faith), I doubt she would have been so candid. I acknowledged her concerns, although they saddened me: centuries of religious persecution and hate have cultivated masked personas in order to survive/thrive. Siham's deep seated fears became apparent during an incident in the Ummayyad Mosque in Dimashq.
Today, I'm worried about Siham and her wonderful extended family who made me --a complete stranger--feel so welcome in their Maaloula home. We lost touch after a few letters and this was before the advent of email. The Christian community in Maaloula was different. These were peaceful people who hated violence and just wanted to be left alone to cultivate their faith.
The fact that the Obama administration has been clandestinely supplying some Syrian thugs/beasts (and increasingly/ predominantly foreign jihadis, many dislodged from Saudi and other Arab prisons) with weaponry paid for by American tax payers to kill Christians, Kurds, secular Sunnis, Alawites (a moderate Muslim sect who experienced horrific persecution at the hands of Sunnis and Shia throughout history; as did the Druze) is mind boggling. It is insane, unless Al Qaeda et al have indeed managed to hijack our foreign policy via proxies.
This is the first time in my life --since I psychologically/culturally became an American-- that I'm ashamed of my country. Specifically, it is the elitist/Washington beltway agenda that sickens. How so many can willingly sell their souls (and their nation's best interests) for short term rewards is disconcerting, to put it mildly.
But after the horrific attack on 9/11, to have Washington (both political parties) capitulate and bend over for forces of evil and their paymasters/puppeteers is like a nightmare that never ends. Surreal. Scary. And, absolutely unnecessary. Sure, if one could peel away the layers, the malevolent motives behind such policy would reveal themselves. But most of us --average Americans-- aren't privy to the machinations of those in power.
This isn't going to end well. This century is going to make the last one look downright benign, notwithstanding two World Wars, if we continue on this insane trajectory.
Below is an article on Maaloula. Where is the pope*, the head of the Orthodox Christian Church, Muslim rulers and ulema (who defend the religion of peace 24/7)? Their silence is criminal.
*Update: The Pope --although not head of the Greek Orthodox or Melkaite Church-- has put aside the ancient schism between Byzantine and Rome to issue a statement against war as the antidote to the current violence. This is a good move at a time when politicians mislead their populaces on the volatility of this civil war.
Her views and insights will remain confidential, but they served to reinforce some deep seated concerns vis-a-vis interfaith relations in the region. Had she known I was a Muslim (rather than another secular American--she never asked me about my faith), I doubt she would have been so candid. I acknowledged her concerns, although they saddened me: centuries of religious persecution and hate have cultivated masked personas in order to survive/thrive. Siham's deep seated fears became apparent during an incident in the Ummayyad Mosque in Dimashq.
Today, I'm worried about Siham and her wonderful extended family who made me --a complete stranger--feel so welcome in their Maaloula home. We lost touch after a few letters and this was before the advent of email. The Christian community in Maaloula was different. These were peaceful people who hated violence and just wanted to be left alone to cultivate their faith.
The fact that the Obama administration has been clandestinely supplying some Syrian thugs/beasts (and increasingly/ predominantly foreign jihadis, many dislodged from Saudi and other Arab prisons) with weaponry paid for by American tax payers to kill Christians, Kurds, secular Sunnis, Alawites (a moderate Muslim sect who experienced horrific persecution at the hands of Sunnis and Shia throughout history; as did the Druze) is mind boggling. It is insane, unless Al Qaeda et al have indeed managed to hijack our foreign policy via proxies.
This is the first time in my life --since I psychologically/culturally became an American-- that I'm ashamed of my country. Specifically, it is the elitist/Washington beltway agenda that sickens. How so many can willingly sell their souls (and their nation's best interests) for short term rewards is disconcerting, to put it mildly.
But after the horrific attack on 9/11, to have Washington (both political parties) capitulate and bend over for forces of evil and their paymasters/puppeteers is like a nightmare that never ends. Surreal. Scary. And, absolutely unnecessary. Sure, if one could peel away the layers, the malevolent motives behind such policy would reveal themselves. But most of us --average Americans-- aren't privy to the machinations of those in power.
This isn't going to end well. This century is going to make the last one look downright benign, notwithstanding two World Wars, if we continue on this insane trajectory.
Below is an article on Maaloula. Where is the pope*, the head of the Orthodox Christian Church, Muslim rulers and ulema (who defend the religion of peace 24/7)? Their silence is criminal.
*Update: The Pope --although not head of the Greek Orthodox or Melkaite Church-- has put aside the ancient schism between Byzantine and Rome to issue a statement against war as the antidote to the current violence. This is a good move at a time when politicians mislead their populaces on the volatility of this civil war.
The Telegraph
By Ruth Sherlock, Beirut and Magdy Samaan
A branch of al-Qaeda fighting in the Syrian civil war has seized one of the few remaining villages where the original language of Christ is still spoken, residents say.
"First they took a brick factory owned by a Christian guy, who is now missing," said the resident. "Then at around 5.30am, a car bomb detonated at the checkpoint at the entrance to the village.
"Some of the rebels entered a home near the checkpoint belonging to Yousef Haddad, a Christian. They tried to force him to convert to Islam."
A nun living in a convent in the village told the Associated press that 27 orphans living in the convent were taken to nearby caves for shelter.
Video footage posted on YouTube showed rebel fighters on a pick up truck with an anti-aircraft gun mounted on the back firing erratically from inside the mountain town.
Christians, who make up approximately 10 per cent of Syria's population, have increasingly become targets in the conflict as sectarian-minded foreign jihadists gain influence in the opposition ranks. Almost a third of the Syriac Christian population has fled the rebel-held northern town of Hassakeh after Christians became targets for kidnappings and assassinations.
