The Voice of the suffering in Middle East

Due to visa restrictions and financial difficulty, many young Christians in Syria and Lebanon were unable to travel to Portugal for the event. But with the help of ACN, they organized their own activities, in parallel with the official WYD, and participated in the experience.

Over the past 30 years, ACN has been involved in more than 700 projects for Christians in Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, including over 100 in partnership with the Latin Patriarchate. But according to Akroush, this cooperation is about to be more significant than ever before.

On August 6, 2014, the world watched in horror as ISIS jihadists poured into Iraq’s Nineveh Plains, forcing hundreds of thousands of Christians to flee their ancestral land to save their lives.

Sanctions in addition to the mass emigration of young people facing low salaries and few jobs, make it increasingly likely that the political and military events of recent years will lead to the gradual disappearance of Christians in the Middle East.

In an interview with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), the Patriarch said that reversing the decree was part of a political campaign to silence him, render him powerless and seize control of churches and other Chaldean buildings.

More than 1,000 young people are expected to attend the gathering on Mount Lebanon, which will take place as Pope Francis meets the young people in Lisbon and is designed to mirror the traditional set-up of the WYD, with a Via Crucis, an adoration, catechesis sessions, and workshops, as well as a large final Mass.