Who Can Be Inattentive to Such a Message?
Archbishop Timothy Dolan spent Easter Week in Lebanon and Syria visiting the ancient Eastern churches in communion with Rome. He accompanied a New York priest (and an old friend of mine), Monsignor Robert Stern, who is the Executive Director of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association.
Archbishop Dolan reflects on his trip on his blog. Here are some of his impressions:
They suffer! Yes, the destruction of past wars and violence are still obvious; Christian refugees from Iraq cried as they shared with us their anguish at a center offering food, clothing, and healthcare run by the Melkite patriarch as funded by CNEWA; and pastors told us that weekly their faithful people leave these biblical lands to emigrate to countries offering more hope; and Catholic Palestinian refugees in Beirut, in a camp where CNEWA is present, told us of their near hopelessness after over sixty years of exile.Thank God for those brave souls, who remain, committed to these honored, historic Christian communities! Thank God for organizations such as CNEWA that brings support and encouragement to these inspirational people.
Each of the religious communities thanked us for the much needed sustenance they receive from agencies such as CNEWA and Catholic Relief Services (CRS); each of them especially asked that we convey to you, our people in America, their gratitude, plus their message: “We are still the land of the Bible! We have been here since Jesus, Peter and Paul! And we intend to stay! We need your solidarity in prayer and concern, and we promise you our own!”
Who can be inattentive to such a message?
Yes, these historic Christians are but a wee minority in overwhelmingly Islamic countries. While it has not always been so, now, in Syria and Lebanon, out older brothers and sisters in the faith mostly enjoy freedom and friendship, and their communities are vibrant and respected.
It was so clear to us that, by their perseverance in the faith, by the depth of their prayer and liturgy, by their service in education and charity, by the cohesion of their families and their communities, and by their tenacity in clinging to their homelands, they are indeed a light to the world.
Over and over again we heard them exchange the old Easter greeting:
“Christ is risen!”
“Christ is truly risen!”
The Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA) publishes a bi-monthly magazine, “One.” It is a delight to read and always has splendid photos. It provides a small, but valuable way to foster one’s awareness of the Church Catholic and to support their wonderful mission.
“The Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA) publishes a bi-monthly magazine, “One.” It is a delight to read and always has splendid photos. It provides a small, but valuable way to foster one’s awareness of the Church Catholic and to support their wonderful mission.”
If I may be indulged to selfishly plug CNEWA, let me say that in addition to the magazine and in furtherance of Archbishop Dolan’s remarks, CNEWA provides a wonderful opportunity to sponsor projects across the spectrum of activities including preparing future Church leaders, building social and religious institutions, educating children, and providing health and emergency aid services. Opportunities for support range from as little as ~$350 per annum and up. I personally quite enjoy receiving letters in particular from the seminarians and some children I support through CNEWA. They also have Mass offerings which help support priests in the Near East as well, including Gregorian Masses for the deceased. They have a very good website so hopefully people will visit and perhaps help support the Eastern Rite Churches.
For us Western Christians, the Catholic Near East Welfare Association offers an informative online resource, i.e., THE EASTERN CHRISTIAN CHURCHES – A BRIEF SURVEY (7th edition) by Rev. Paul Roberson, CSP.
It’s available at http://cnewa.org/generalpg-verus.aspx?PageID=182
Thanks for this info, MAT and Joseph.
I became interested in knowing more about the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches as the result of what was almost a terrible tragedy. An Eastern Rite church not far from where I live literally blew up during the early morning hours several years ago, the result of what was later determined to be a gas leak. If the explosion had taken place just a few hours later, the church hall would have been crammed with people preparing food for a parish event. Luckily, no one was injured.
Some believe the lack of any injuries was a miracle. Some also believe another miracle took place that day. Though the church building was completely leveled by the blast, the statue of the BVM that stood just outside the church was unscathed. A new church–with its beautiful onion dome–stands today on the same spot, and, of course, the statue of Mary has become legendary as it continues to stand guard. :)
It is great to see Archbishop Dolan getting into his role in CNEWA and the Middle East. As a reporter at Newsday, I trailed Cardinal John O’Connor and Msgr. Stern on a trip through the Middle East in the early 1990s. It was fascinating to see the church’s very useful role in that region up close – helping desperate refugees from Iraq in Amman; running an orphanage and refugee camp on the West Bank; aiding those who lived in bombed-out buildings in Beirut. I also saw that CNEWA was very respected in the region.
The Arab Christians badly need a voice in the U.S., and maybe Archbishop Dolan will be that voice.