The Voice of the suffering in Middle East

“When I was young, my relationship with God was good, but since then, I’ve struggled at times. I always ask, ‘Why, Lord, why all this pain?’”

The village was badly damaged during the fighting of recent years but the Christian community has returned—in large numbers. By now, 405 of the 580 homes that were destroyed in Bashiqa have already been rebuilt and about half of the Christians, or 1,585 people, have returned.

"What happened in Homs was very hard. Still, we did not think about emigrating because we have strong commitments here and ties with our local community—the idea of emigration was totally unacceptable to my father. He feels rooted in the land and leaving Syria is not for him."

“We do not know if every family will return to the Nineveh Plains, but we do believe that all Christians have a duty to shape the identity of the region. We want to live on our land, and we ask that our people stand with us. We must preserve our identity and history for the sake of children of the diaspora—our enduring presence here must not be compromised.”

“As long as we have faith, there is no need to worry or fear. Whenever we encounter disaster, we grow closer to God, so we should never despair. Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you and to share what is inside of me.”

“Of course there is still so much pain and suffering for so many of us, but to be finally back home and able to re-start our lives is a huge step forward and an important sign of hope.”