Between past and future

Syria's Present in the Words of Archbishop Mourad of Homs

During a visit to the Arsenal of Peace, we had the opportunity to interview Father Jacques Mourad, a key figure in Muslim-Christian dialogue in Syria.

Inspired by the spirituality of the Deir Mar Musa monastery and the legacy of Father Paolo Dall'Oglio, Archbishop Mourad is a Syriac Catholic monk who was kidnapped by ISIS in 2015 and appointed Archbishop of Homs by Pope Francis in 2023.

After 14 years of war, now that much of Syria is at peace, what is the situation and what are the prospects?
Poverty has become a nightmare. In Syria, we never imagined that one day we would be searching for food in the garbage: every day I find at least a couple of people, even elderly people, doing just that. Our people are truly tired, with little strength to avoid this situation that afflicts so many every day: I think of families who perhaps eat only once a day; who have no means of heating in the winter. They experience great injustice, as in many other countries around the world, even risking persecution. There would be food for everyone, agriculture allows it, but few have what they need to buy it. This is why so many come to us every day: to ask for a little money to buy bread. They don't want money for anything else, just to buy bread; they don't even think about anything else, like meat. It's sad to say that there is a huge social divide in Syria, between a small community that has become rich, and everyone else. This is also a challenge for the Church. The Church's witness is very important: we cannot expect to have everything we need when people don't even have the bare minimum.

What is the Church's witness in these difficult years?
I must say that the Church is the only point of reference for the Syrian people, because it seems that international organizations think that everything in the country has been resolved, and therefore there is no longer any need for help.
Since the beginning of the crisis in Syria, the Church has played a very important role in society, supporting and helping Christians and others, all the people. This is a very important testimony; and for this reason, our role is crucial at this time, because the Church can truly play a fundamental role in reconciliation and also in hope.

Nearly 6 million Syrians have emigrated seeking refuge from the violence, including a large portion of the Christian community; after the fall of Assad, only one million have returned so far...
It makes me very sad to see so many Christian families fleeing because of the situation, the lack of security; it is the primary reason that drives people to seek a way out of the country. The second reason is stability: there is no clarity about the future, and this is terrible in the life of a father, a mother, a small family with children, who cannot see a future for their sons and daughters. It's enormous psychological suffering: we can't understand unless we put ourselves in their shoes. And the third is human dignity, the economy: because we don't see a better future in Syria; therefore, people are looking for a country where they can live with a minimum of human dignity.
This is our reality. This is why we are committed to supporting our people and encouraging them that perhaps there will be a better future. We fight to bear witness to it.
Aware that people are not stupid, and they understand everything.
Before the war, the largest Christian community was in Aleppo, but during these years Aleppo has been almost entirely destroyed, emptied; before there were 170,000 Christians, now 20,000.
Today, the largest Christian community in Syria lives in the Homs area, around 100,000 people. Most of them live in small towns and villages, earning a living from agriculture. Unfortunately, sometimes attacks by fanatics occur, and there is no way to defend ourselves. The only weapon we have is our voice.
Christians, the Church, can and must truly be a bridge to reconciliation.
This flight from the country is a forced choice. Christians, like everyone else, emigrated by force, not by choice.

What is the attitude toward the Church?
The government's attitude toward Christians is officially very good.
However, we are experiencing the same situations as our neighbors in the country. In some ways, injustice affects everyone, and we can't simply ignore it, even when—as a Christian community—it doesn't directly affect us.
We need to start living a little again, working a little, and not be so hungry anymore.
We need to realize that the sanctions and their effects, which affect the people, not the government, really need to be lifted; we need to reintegrate Syria into the international economy.
This needs to be done quickly: we've been crying out for this for a long time, but no one is listening.
This way, we can create the conditions for freeing ourselves from corruption. Unfortunately, even with political change, the officials who came after act like those who came before, living off the people.
If the sanctions are truly lifted, we can hope that it will once again be possible to engage in projects, work, and construction...

A country where everything needs to be rebuilt, structures and society, and it hasn't even begun yet. A great challenge for your mission...
We never imagined we'd sink so low; for a country, for such a good, generous people, to end up living like this is truly terrible.
Today, our people need everything, their daily needs: rent, food, help with living. But I think we also have a responsibility to try to create projects that can help the people develop, like schools, like producing the basic necessities of life.
What we do is certainly very important: thanks to your help, and that of so many others, we have saved the lives of the sick, of people who were in hospital but were not receiving treatment, even of young university students who could not continue their studies. University in Syria is free, but rent is very expensive, as are transportation for the many young people who come to Homs every day from surrounding villages, and the cost of everyday life... Even in universities, some professors have been bribed to pass an exam: the young people who have endured this also learn how it's done, and will then impose it on themselves.
So, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your commitment and your human sensitivity. Thank you to all these benefactors who think of the poor, the tired, the hungry. We hope that, with the help and support of prayer and compassion, a way out of this vicious cycle of suffering can be found. Resisting, [until] we do.

Mauro Palombo
Focus
NPDecember 2025