Fr. Pier Jabloyan, Director of the Salesian Oratory of Aleppo, calls it “the brutal force of war”: that capability of violence to kill not only people, but also dreams, projects, ideals, especially among the youth. The will to survive replaces the will of living.
This is something that affects religious people as well. Before they only had to peacefully take care of their flock of faithful, whereas now they have to divide this time to find water, food…
The case of Syria abroad is often misunderstood. “When they ask me about Aleppo, I realize that people are terribly misinformed”. The sole thing that is clear to everybody is that “a vicarious war is ongoing, a dirty and concrete war”, where diverse interests have found in Syria “a battle field” where “those who pay, even with their own lives, are civilians”.
Yet, Fr. Jabloyan states, “as Salesians we hope in a better future: because of this we stay with the youth and work with them. If we stopped, it would mean that we have lost hope. But even the slightest glimmer of light keeps us going, and when the war will be finished, our great mission will be to reconstruct what has been demolished, not only from a physical point of view”.
This is why it is still possible to find some positive aspects: the fear of war also brought the capability to appreciate small things, to feast on the slightest occasion. “This is what I try to transmit on Facebook when I share the “smile of the day”, testimonies of the spaces of life that still remain for us, of the awareness that every moment that passes is a precious one”.
Besides, precariousness has strengthened the faith of many, transforming them in their turn into announcers. “We feel as if we were living once again the reality of the First Christians, and as it happened then, there is the awareness of a possible martyrdom. Nobody looks for it, but the attitude is the one of those who say: ‘Lord, we do not want it, but let your Will be done’”.
