Damascus Tears September 2004

Barbara negotiating Frisky’s release from Damascus

Their youngest child had left his pet dog, ‘Frisky’ in a hotel when they transited Damascus. Many tears had been shed and emails sent. Our mission (‘should we choose to accept it’) was to rendezvous at the hotel in the Kurdish quarter and make the exchange. Numerous phone- calls and a mad taxi ride took us to our destination. Frisky was there in the reception, hanging tortuously by his collar.The hotel owner released Frisky, but then whisked out a calculator and forced him to calculate the cost of his own prolonged stay. ‘Another week and we would have made him a Syrian citizen’ quipped his guard. But now he was, at last, free to go. You can imagine the relief experienced by all, when Barbara later reunited him with his owner back in UK. ‘When I see that child, and the look in his eyes, that’s all the thanks that I need’. It brings a whole new dimension to understating the vital work of ‘setting captives free’ !

Damascus is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world and we went on a walkabout to get a ‘feel’ of its oriental delights. We were travelling with Aziz, one of our regional advisory group, who himself originates from Mosul in Iraq, a near neighbour. We met some fascinating (and literate) people. In a local Kebab restaurant, the gregarious owner quoted Freud among his many jokes and later the night-watchman, in the Orthodox hostel we were staying in, confessed to reading Nietzsche and Shakespeare, which seemed to feed his own internal angst. Aziz spoke to him for hours in Arabic, whilst I spoke with him briefly in English and left them to it.

A street called straight 

We went on another trail – a sort of church crawl – in search of the lost Anglican church. It was definitely on the wall-map I spotted in the Franciscan Church of Anayas. But our search revealed there is no such church. But we visited many on the way, down narrow cobbled streets – St. Mary's Greek Orthodox, on the Street called Straight; the church commemorating Paul being let down over the city walls in a basket; a mass in a Chaldean Catholic, presided by a priest we also met in the mosque; the Syrian Orthodox (where everyone knew Aziz); an Armenian church with an erratic mass of cables overhead; and finally the 'Injeeli' Presbyterian (which the map makers had confused with Anglican). Mind you, the Bishop in Jerusalem does have plans to build a church in Damascus, at the invitation of the president. Possibly on the commonwealth war graves commission lot, between another Franciscan church and a mosque. 

We certainly had an ecumenical feast that day.

But it is the old city itself that is magnetic. The covered bazaar, street vendors, restaurants and cafes. Lots to distract and tempt even experienced travellers. The Old Souq is a shoppers delight. Good prices are to be had by a persistent barterer.

Saladin's statue, outside the city wall, dominates the area and commemorates the ‘liberation’ of Damascus, his victory at the Horns of Hattin and subsequently Jerusalem in 1187. Whereas there was unmitigated slaughter of Muslims, Jews and Orthodox Christians, accompanying the Crusader’s capture of Jerusalem in 1097, Saladin retrained his men at its recapture.

Saladin liberating Damascus and triumphing over his enemy King Richard. Their relationship is explored ‘Warriors of God’ by James Reston (Doubleday  2001) the more civilised Saladin comes out streets ahead of his ‘barbaric’ rival.

Through the Souq itself, is the Omayyad Mosque, built in 705 on the site of a Cathedral. It contains 2 tombs for Saladin – one commissioned by Kaiser Wilhelm II after his visit in 1898 for whom he was something of a hero. There is also a large tomb inside the mosque – the mausoleum of Head of John the Baptist. A group of pilgrims from Gujarat was visiting with a tour guide. I chatted with them in Urdu and suggested to them that John the Baptist pointed the way to the Christ. 

The Old Damascus mosque also has what is called the Jesus Minaret. According to the shopkeeper in the ‘Jesus Minaret Souvenirs’, who Aziz spoke to, this is where Christ will return ‘and the first thing he will do is destroy all the crosses on the churches’. The cross remains one of the biggest stumbling blocks to Muslims.

We met with Eldon and Jane, a Mennonite couple from Kansas and Cairo who are a seeking to be ‘faithful presence’ in Damascus, supporting the ancient through church teaching English at the seminary. and peace-making and bridge-building. In their charming house in the Old City, with its courtyard in middle - facing inwards, we sipped tea and cookies.

He introduced me to the Lebanese writer Amin Malouf: ‘The Crusades through Arab Eyes’ (Saqi, 2004). He talks of the ‘tears of Saladin’, his response when confronted with the news of the death of a friend and also when faced with a widowed ‘Franj’ (the generic Arabic name for crusaders) who had lost her baby. He comes over as compassionate, as well as a brilliant military strategist.

But the book also indicates just how deep rooted are the feelings and how alive the ‘Crusades’ are as a metaphor: 

Today on the eve of the third millennium the political and religious leaders constantly refer to Saladin, to the fall of Jerusalem and its recapture In the popular mind, and in some official discourse too, Israel is regarded as a new crusader state’ (265)

Over the centuries, many tears have been shed by widows and orphans in this part of the world. Manouf concludes: ‘

The Arab East still sees the West as the natural enemy. There can be no doubt that the schism between these two worlds dates from the crusades, deeply felt by these Arabs, even today as an act of rape.’ (266)

From your own correspondent

September 2004

The Metropolitan and the Mufti Aleppo Sept 2004

Christians are better off in Syria than anywhere else in the Middle East. Other than Lebanon, this is the only country in the region where a Christian can really feel the equal of a Muslim – and Lebanon of course has many other problems. In Syria there is no enmity between Christian and Muslim. If Syria were not here, we would be finished. Really. It is a place of sanctuary, a haven for all the Christians; for the Nestorians & Chaldeans driven out of Iraq, the Syrian Orthodox and the Armenians driven out of Turkey, even some Palestinian Christians driven out of the Holy Land by the Israelis. Talk to people here and you will find that what I say is true’

Mar Gregorios in Dalrymple’s book 

From the Holy Mountain (Flamingo 1998) page 150

When William Dalrymple, author of the ‘From the Holy Mountain’ met the Metropolitan he described him as a

‘small round figure’ who walked in backwards telephone in hand, talking animatedly ‘He turned a pirouette and advanced towards me his free hand extended. He finished his telephone call, snapped shut the phone with a flick of his thumb and popped it into his cassock pocket.’ He then showed him some architects plans and blueprints that were on a table.

The scene was almost exactly re-enacted for us. Archbishop Yohanna 

Ibrahim showed us plans for an old people’s home in the new Syrian quarter – on 7537 metres of land given by the government. The blue print had 4 floors of hospital and 2 floors of an old peoples’ home. ‘How can CMS help with the construction?’ was the implied question.

Christians are a sizable presence here. Christians are now around 5% of the population but at one point there were as many as 50%. There are 11 denominations: 6 of them Catholic and many churches. The Syrian Orthodox church is growing and rebuilding itself, even though many are still leaving for the West. ‘But Syria is still a place where a Christian can feel an equal citizen with a Muslim.’ the Archbishop assured us. 

Like so many in the region, the archbishop hospitably dropped everything to show us around his diocese. 

Our tour included 2 Schools, a Clinic, a Hospital and a Church.First a private co-ed school - Ben e Talub – which has 800 primary students in years 4 to12, around 300 of them on scholarships, supported by World Vision. According to the register, the St Ephraim dispensary saw 17,164 patients in 2002. It is a converted old ‘Bohemian’ house in popular city centre, where about 25 are treated and a further 25 referred per day. While we were there, a young Muslim woman in Hijab (head covering) was visiting the dentist, whilst she happily let her baby be looked after by the Christian staff. 

At the second dispensary, in the Syrian quarter of Hay Sulemania, a dentist and a general medic see around 5000 patients per annum.The Diocese also has a Hospital, started by Dr. Altonian in 1918. He is famous for bringing the first X-ray to Syria. We saw a display case of old instruments, including gold nails for orthopaedic work and ivory ophthalmology instruments.A nurse was nursing her father who had recovering from a RTA. Another Armenian nurse ran the gynae ward. The hospital had 2 operating theatres, a delivery room and an ophthalmic theatre.

In Azizi the Church of St George celebrates the story of King Abgar. He wrote to Jesus to come and heal him. According to tradition, Jesus sent one of 70, the disciple Adai, with the‘Mendellion’, a face cloth, which produced the necessary miracle and healed the king. This became the first principality to be baptised Christian. 

The church has an attached school, built with $ 1/4 million, donated by a parishioner in Belgium. ‘It was reburbished a week ago. We are still getting organised’ explained principal Sarah Ghramji. CMS-Interchange may be able to arrange for her to visit schools in UK to help improve the standards. Not so much investing in buildings, but more in people.Mar Gregorios was apologetic: ‘We have everything here, but on a small scale’. He certainly has big vision.

'The Mufti of Aleppo'   Ahmad Masoun

“Once a child asked me ‘why does religion came from hot country ?’ I told him it was to raise the temperature in the cold countries!”

The Archbishop took us to meet the Mufti. ‘Pepper and Salt’ I called them. His house had a special reception room for guests – with chandeliers and walls lined with bookcases, full of Islamic books and treatises. ‘Mufti’ means the ‘one who gives interpretation’. His base is the mosque of Rowda garden where 30-40,000 go to listen to him in mosque. With the recent death of the Grand Mufti of Syria, he is a possible candidate. He was charming, open and full of hope, good news in the midst of so much bad interfaith. Over honeyed tea, he spoke of many things. About the need for real dialogue - not just a constitutional dialogue. Aleppo is a good example of this. Inter-faith is in the open – it’s on the street. The two faiths work closely together.

Syria and Palestine are the seed-bed of religion. The prophets came from here – It is the place that God chose.Christians, especially Arab Christian, have a lot to contribute –‘It was a fatal mistakes to evacuate minorities from the area’…‘Christians and Muslims have been brought up here as brothers, We even shared the same wet nurse….Local mothers feed each others babies.’

There is an old old tradition of Mariam's feast (sufra) to remember Jesus birth, because there was no one there to celebrate, when He was actually born. ‘So we also celebrate today, as Muslims. This is a tradition my grandmother taught me.'

There was great openness between the faiths until the Zionist state was formed. Then it went bad…This ‘clash of civilization’ is not of God. Religion does not clash in itself. Although Protestant religion is ‘man-made’, he corrected ‘they use the Bible as a front - But there should be no fight between two prophets. The war in Iraq has severely damaged co-operation. Everyone knew what would happen. I said you must think before you open fire…this fire will burn you… it opens the doors to hell. It is always more difficult to rebuild than to destroy. The key to hell is in the hands of politicians: the key to heaven is in the hands of religious leaders.

We always pray for Palestine, but together the politicians seem determined to keep the door of heaven firmly closed. The Sons of Abraham should not be teaching animosity and war! My hope is that pain will cause people to return for healing, but are we ready to comfort the people as they return to God?

He was very happy and proud and most encouraged by the example of men of faith. He sent warm greeting to the Archbishop of Canterbury, together with Prince Charles, especially appreciating their stand and statements in the arena of interfaith. ‘But not to all religions leaders in Britain’ he added, ‘some are failures!’ His parting message to the people of the UK, who keep carrying the message of peace:

‘‘if the flames continue, everyone will catch fire… we can only extinguish them by light.’

The Mufti showing a model of the Kaaba. - He has suggested that, in the spirit of openness, Christian groups should be allowed to visit. Maybe this will be the first ‘Praxis Mecca’ !

The Archbishop of Aleppo’s words about coexistence certainly seemed true. The Syrians Christians we met appear to experience refreshingly good relations with Muslims. But the last word goes to our driver, Raymond, an accountant who recently returned from Saudi.

‘We have a good future between the religions. I have seen it with my own eyes. We do not need to leave. His eminence is giving us a good hope’.

From your own correspondent
Aleppo: Sept 2004

‘Lift Jesus higher’ on Mount Nebo Jordan Sept 2004

Mount Nebo Siyagha Memorial of Moses (Christian Holy Place)

On Moab’s mountain - Mount Nebo - overlooking the Dead Sea and Jordan valley, where Moses died (Deut 3:27, 34: 1, 5) there is a cross, designed by the Franciscans, which is simply stunning. Go up into the Abarim Range to Mount Nebo in Moab, across from Jericho and view Canaan the land I am giving.’ (Deut 32:49) This is where Moses saw a glimpse of the Promised Land before he died (Deut 34:10)This memorial of Moses is part of the monastic work of the Terra Sancta. The Franciscans acquired the ancient site in 1930s and other than an interruption during WW2, continued work on the monument until the 1960s, when it took its current form as a site of tourism and pilgrimage. Much is made of the Popes visit in 2000. Postcards are readily available.

But even in the 5th century Peter the Iberian reports:

‘All the inhabitants of that region together hurriedly brought building materials; this temple was built in the name of the great Prophet and Lawgiver, and he proclaims publicly to every man and so that no doubt is possible his goodness and power by means of signs and wonders and cures, which since that time have occurred at this place without interruption. For it is a place of cure both for the souls and for the bodies, and a place of refuge for all those who come here from all places and are afflicted in soul and affected with many kinds of sufferings of the body’    (Michele Piccirillo Custodia Terra Sancta Jerusalem)

The 6th/7th century Basilica is peaceful and cool with impressive mosaics and chapel. Malcolm and Veronica’s congregation have their Easter Sunrise service and breakfast in the chapel and grounds. A magnificent setting to celebrate the Risen One.

But it is the Cross made by Italian artist Giano Paolo Fantoni that drew me. Representing both Moses’ snake (Num 21 8-9) and the crucified Christ. Beneath is written in Arabic the text of John 3:14. I asked a lady to read it for me

‘Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert so the son of man must be lifted up’

It is in a prominent position. People stand and look over the plane below. One old man in mourning black, searches through binoculars for reminders of the past – maybe even looking for his home, now in occupied territories. And a young woman in jeans stands with hands held open in supplication. Mouthing prayers of intercession.

It is an impressive symbol, stunning, overt, not subtle. Not what I have come to expect in this region. I was left wondering how we can lift Jesus higher, so that people are drawn to him - ‘But I when I am lifted up from the earth will draw all men unto myself’ (Jan 12: 32) Is this just talking of the cross, which is such an anathema to the majority population in this region of the Middle East. Or are there other ways of lifting Jesus higher, even in this difficult context. Maybe this Franciscan cross is the clue and that healing, signs and wonders is the key. Plus dedicated Franciscan service. 

As we were leaving we looked again at the cenotaph, a huge Monument of Stone, reminded us: ‘God is Love’ in Arabic. Here in the Bible Lands ‘even the stones cry out’.

From your own correspondent
September 2004