A Religious Center in Syria

Azza Al-Bittar, 42, lives together with her husband and her son in Homs, where the war began in 2011. She tells us, “My faith was born and grew in a wounded country. I lived through the civil war, with all its devastation and instability. Then the pandemic struck, raising a great question mark over our life and death. And in 2023, as though we had not already suffered enough, the earthquake shook the ground beneath our feet.” But then she adds: “I have also known liberation and resurrection. God has revealed Himself, even in the darkest moments. Each day, I brought my sufferings before God and repeated inwardly the words of the Psalm: ‘Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you!’”

For Azza, faith was never just an idea or a mere tradition. “For me, it is a living relationship that is tested in adversity. I would often ask God, ‘Why is all this happening?’ Each time, I heard in my heart an echo of His words: ‘In the world, you will have trouble but have courage; I have overcome the world.’”

Although she herself is often tired and exhausted, she nonetheless supports young people, helps with catechesis, and cares for children with disabilities. “War brings division to people, but Christ teaches us to love. So I decided to cling to my inner peace, even when it was difficult,” she says with conviction.

The Jesuits in Homs, to whom Azza owes her profound faith and inner healing, are currently setting up a center in this city deeply wounded by war. This center will be a place of inner renewal, reconciliation, and peace. All who come here will find help to gain new confidence, with all their heart, mind, and spirit. As a place of hope, it will act as a counterweight to both the despair in so many human hearts and to the profound divisions within society.

It will cost $532,300 to complete this center. Please help us so we can aid them in rebuilding these broken llives and souls.

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