SYRIAN CHRISTIANS; Congressional Record Vol. 160, No. 15

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SYRIAN CHRISTIANS

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from

Virginia (Mr. Wolf) for 5 minutes.

Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, last week the Drudge Report featured an

article with a striking headline, \\\`\\\`The World's Most Ancient Christian

Communities Are Being Destroyed--and No One Cares.'' This sentiment was

expressed in no uncertain terms yesterday at an event in my district at

St. John the Beloved in McLean, Virginia.

People from around the Greater Washington, D.C., area gathered to

hear directly from five senior Syrian Christian leaders, part of a

delegation from the war-ravaged country and the first of its kind that

I know of to visit the U.S. since the hostilities began. These men will

speak at The Heritage Foundation at 1 p.m. today and will meet with

Members of Congress tomorrow. Their story and that of their communities

bears telling not only to policymakers, but to the American church at

large, for they represent the very cradle of Christendom. They spoke

movingly of their identity as Syrian Christians with ancient roots

predating the apostle Paul.

Today these communities face violence, kidnapping, sexual assault,

displacement, and more. According to the Barnabus Fund, which is

hosting this delegation, an estimated 600,000 Christians in Syria have

already fled the country or lost their lives. Of course, general

violence plagues Syria, but this ancient Christian community finds

itself targeted by Islamist elements in the country, including a

significant number of foreign jihadists who have flocked to the

battlefield.

Several messages emerged at the talk yesterday, but one held

particular relevance for the faith community in America. These Syrian

Christian leaders made a plea for engagement from the church in the

West. Specifically, they sought for American churches to \\\`\\\`adopt''

specific Syrian churches--to commit to praying on their behalf and

advocating for them when possible. The need is great, but so too is the

opportunity.

The plight of Christians in Syria, while horrific, is in some

respects a

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similar story. Time and again, Syrian Christians remark that they fear

their fate that befell their brethren in Iraq, where hundreds of

thousands fled after being targeted by rival Islamist groups. Today,

Iraq's Christian population has fallen from as many as 1.4 million in

2003 to roughly 200,000 today. In fact, throughout the Middle East,

Christian communities are increasingly under siege and imperiled.

Christianity is at risk of being ripped from the very fabric of the

Middle East when, for centuries, it has been part of the rich tapestry

of that region.

Will we permit it to happen on our watch? Will we answer their pleas

for help, or will their cries fall on deaf ears? I pray it is not too

late.

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