ര​ണ്ട് വ​ർ​ഷ​ത്തെ രാ​ഷ്ട്രീ​യ അ​നി​ശ്ചി​താ​വ​സ്ഥ​ക്ക് വി​രാ​മ​മി​ട്ട് ജോ​സ​ഫ് ഔ​ൻ ല​ബ​നാ​ന്റെ പു​തി​യ പ്ര​സി​ഡ​ന്റാ​യി തെ​ര​ഞ്ഞെ​ടു​ക്ക​പ്പെ​ട്ടു. ബു​ധ​നാ​ഴ്ച ല​ബ​നാ​ൻ പാ​ർ​ല​മെ​ന്റി​ൽ ന​ട​ന്ന ര​ണ്ടാം ഘ​ട്ട വോ​ട്ടെ​ടു​പ്പി​ൽ 128 ​അം​ഗ​ങ്ങ​ളി​ൽ 99 പേ​രു​ടെ പി​ന്തു​ണ​യോ​ടെ​യാ​ണ് സായുധ സേന മേധാവിയായ അ​ദ്ദേ​ഹം തെ​ര​ഞ്ഞെ​ടു​ക്ക​പ്പെ​ട്ട​ത്.

ആ​ദ്യ​ഘ​ട്ട വോ​ട്ടെ​ടു​പ്പി​ൽ ഭൂ​രി​പ​ക്ഷം ല​ഭി​ക്കാ​തി​രു​ന്ന​തോ​ടെ​യാ​ണ് ര​ണ്ടാം ഘ​ട്ട​ത്തി​​ലേ​ക്ക് നീ​ങ്ങി​യ​ത്. മു​ൻ പ്ര​സി​ഡ​ന്റ് മൈ​ക്ക​ൽ ഔ​നി​ന്റെ പി​ൻ​ഗാ​മി​യെ തെ​ര​ഞ്ഞെ​ടു​ക്കാ​നു​ള്ള പാ​ർ​ല​മെ​ന്റി​ന്റെ പ​തി​മൂ​ന്നാ​മ​ത്തെ ശ്ര​മ​മാ​യി​രു​ന്നു ഈ ​സ​മ്മേ​ള​നം. യു.​എ​സി​നും സൗ​ദി അ​റേ​ബ്യ​ക്കും താ​ൽ​പ​ര്യ​മു​ള്ള സ്ഥാ​നാ​ർ​ഥി​യാ​യ​തി​നാ​ൽ ജോ​സ​ഫ് തെ​ര​ഞ്ഞെ​ടു​ക്ക​പ്പെ​ട്ട​ത് യു​ദ്ധ​ത്തി​ൽ ത​ക​ർ​ന്ന ല​ബ​നാ​ന്റെ പു​ന​ർ​നി​ർ​മാ​ണ​ത്തി​ന് ഗു​ണം​ചെ​യ്യു​മെ​ന്നാ​ണ് സൂ​ച​ന.

2022 ഒ​ക്ടോ​ബ​റി​ലാ​ണ് മൈ​ക്ക​ൽ ഔ​നി​ന്റെ കാ​ലാ​വ​ധി പൂ​ർ​ത്തി​യാ​യ​ത്. സി​റി​യ​ൻ മു​ൻ പ്ര​സി​ഡ​ന്റ് ബ​ശ്ശാ​റു​ൽ അ​സ​ദു​മാ​യി ബ​ന്ധ​മു​ള്ള വ​ട​ക്ക​ൻ ല​ബ​നാ​നി​ലെ ക്രി​സ്ത്യ​ൻ പാ​ർ​ട്ടി​യു​ടെ നേ​താ​വാ​യ സു​ലൈ​മാ​ൻ ഫ്രാ​ൻ​ഗി​യെ​യാ​ണ് ഹി​സ്ബു​ല്ല പ്ര​സി​ഡ​ന്റ് സ്ഥാ​ന​ത്തേ​ക്ക് നി​ർ​ദേ​ശി​ച്ചി​രു​ന്ന​ത്. എ​ന്നാ​ൽ, മ​ത്സ​ര​ത്തി​നി​ല്ലെ​ന്ന് ബു​ധ​നാ​ഴ്ച പ്ര​ഖ്യാ​പി​ച്ച സു​ലൈ​മാ​ൻ, ജോ​സ​ഫ് ഔ​നി​നെ പി​ന്തു​ണ​ക്കു​ക​യാ​യി​രു​ന്നു. 14 മാ​സം നീ​ണ്ടു​നി​ന്ന ഏ​റ്റു​മു​ട്ട​ലു​ക​ൾ അ​വ​സാ​നി​പ്പി​ച്ച് ഇ​സ്രാ​യേ​ലു​മാ​യി വെ​ടി​നി​ർ​ത്ത​ൽ ക​രാ​റി​ലെ​ത്തി​യ​തി​ന് ആ​ഴ്ച​ക​ൾ​ക്കു ശേ​ഷ​മാ​ണ് ല​ബ​നാ​നി​ൽ വോ​ട്ടെ​ടു​പ്പ് ന​ട​ക്കു​ന്ന​ത്.
Sources:azchavattomonline.com

Lebanon’s army chief Joseph Aoun has been elected as the country’s president, ending a power vacuum that lasted for more than two years.

Aoun secured 99 votes from the 128-seat parliament to win the presidency in a second round of voting on Thursday afternoon – a move that came weeks after a tenuous ceasefire agreement halted 14 months of fighting between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, as the country seeks aid for reconstruction.

“A new phase in the history of Lebanon begins today,” 60-year-old Aoun told the chamber after he was sworn in.

Aoun’s victory, which saw members of parliament erupting in celebration as he reached the required threshold of 86 votes, came on the legislature’s 13th attempt to find a successor for Michel Aoun – not related – whose term ended in October 2022.

“There is no doubt the election of Joseph Aoun is a new era in Lebanon,” said Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr, reporting from Beirut. “Joseph Aoun really is a favourite candidate of the international community, but … he really does enjoy support here.”

The balance of power in Lebanon had shifted, she said, noting that Israel’s war on Lebanon had “weakened” Hezbollah.

“This country needs billions of dollars of reconstruction money and that money won’t come in until Lebanon elects a president that the international community believes is reform minded, outside what they believe is a corrupt political class,” she said.

In his acceptance speech, Aoun had focused on “building” the nation and its army while sending the message that nobody had been “defeated”.

“This is a country where there are deep … political and sectarian divisions. If one community feels that they have been left out, then there cannot be civil peace. This country does not function if there is no consensus,” said Khodr.

The Mediterranean country had been without a president since the term of Michel Aoun ended in October 2022, with tensions between Hezbollah and its opponents scuppering a dozen previous votes.

In the first round of voting earlier in the day, lawmakers from the pro-Hezbollah bloc had voted blank, a source close to them said, leaving Aoun short of the required two-thirds majority to win outright.

The source said representatives from the bloc met Aoun at the parliament during a break before lawmakers returned for a second vote.

International pressure had mounted for a successful outcome with just 17 days remaining in a ceasefire to deploy Lebanese troops alongside United Nations peacekeepers in south Lebanon.

Aoun now faces the daunting tasks of overseeing the ceasefire and naming a prime minister to lead reforms demanded by international creditors to alleviate the country’s worst economic crisis in its history.

Aoun was widely seen as the preferred pick of the United States, as well as regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia.

US ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson, who attended Thursday’s session at the Lebanese parliament along with other foreign envoys, said she was “very happy” about Aoun’s election.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman congratulated Aoun on his election, according to Saudi state media.

Iran’s embassy in Beirut also welcomed Aoun’s election, stating on X that it was looking forward to working together and hoping “to cooperate in different fields in a way that serves the common interests for our countries”.

Christophe Lemoine, spokesman for the French Foreign Ministry, said that the result opened a new page for Lebanon, calling for Aoun’s election to be followed by the appointment of a strong government capable of carrying out reforms for “Lebanon’s economic recovery, stability, security and sovereignty”.

UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, welcomed the election “as a long-awaited first step towards overcoming Lebanon’s political and institutional vacuum”.

“A prime minister must be designated and a government formed without delay,” she said.

Joseph Aoun is Lebanon’s fifth army commander to become president, and the fourth in a row.

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In commemoration of Christ’s birth, millions of Christians have made a pilgrimage to the “Holy Land” throughout the years. This last Christmas season, of course, was different, with the war raging in the Middle East. With this multifront conflict involving Israel and neighboring countries hosting Islamist terrorists, the region’s Christian minorities likely experienced the brunt of the hardships. Considering this dire situation, I began to reflect on how the Christian presence has diminished in geographical areas referenced in the Bible, places where Christianity was birthed and the church was first established.

Most notably, in Palestinian-controlled Bethlehem, the birthplace place of Jesus, the percentage of Christians has dropped from about 85% in 1947 to about 10% in 2017. Due to discrimination by the majority Muslim population and lack of economic opportunities, Christians are leaving in droves. This year, with no tourism, there is scarcely any activity in Manger Square or a traditional festooned Christmas tree.(1)

In this article, I address declining Christian populations in other key biblical locations and explore the reasons for such declines.

Syria

In recent days, the overthrow of the brutal 50-year reign of the Assad regime in Syria has dominated the news. The coup was carried out by a rebel coalition called the “Military Operations Command” (MOC), comprised of various Islamist factions, including the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Army. The MOC is led by Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, head of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which has been designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and other nations. Formerly, al-Jolani was affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group (ISIS), although recently, he has tried to redefine himself as a statesman. He stated that he plans to establish a government “chosen by the people.” (2)

However, Christians and other minorities remember similar assertions made by the Taliban in the 2021 takeover of Afghanistan, which resulted in the establishment of Sharia law and extreme persecution. Not surprisingly, Christians are fleeing Syria in droves, and the refugees are in desperate need of essential items such as food, water, shelter, and medical care. International Christian Concern (ICC) is working diligently to assist these displaced Christians.

Christianity in Syria dates to the first century and is often described as the “cradle of Christianity.” (3) The conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus is recorded in the Bible in Acts 9:1-19. Throughout history, Syrian Christians have played a vital role in the development of Christian traditions and practices, including the establishment of some of the most ancient churches and monasteries, as well as producing three popes.(4) The largest Christian denomination is the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, followed by the Maronite Church and the Assyrian Church of the East.

Historically, Christians made up a sizable percentage of the population, around 12%. In 2011, there were 1.5 million Christians in Syria. Due to widespread persecution by Islamic terrorists and the Syrian Civil War, the number of Christians fell to just 300,000 in 2022, less than 2% of the population.(5) Syrian Christians have been subjected to intensified violence and discrimination by Islamic State fighters, who have controlled large portions of the country. Aleppo, the first city to fall in the recent coup, had a Christian population of 12% before the war, which fell to 1.4% in 2023. Churches have been destroyed, confiscated, and converted into military headquarters.(6) The Open Doors 2024 World Watch List ranked Syria as the 12th worst country for persecution of Christians.(7)

Turkey

Like Syria, Christianity in Turkey dates to the early days of the church in the first century. It is referenced as Asia Minor in the Bible and a destination of the Apostle Paul’s missionary travels. The first ecumenical councils forming the Catholic faith occurred in Turkey, where followers of Jesus were first called Christians.

In 1914, Christians comprised 20% to 25% of the population, dramatically declining to about 2% in 1927. The primary factor of the shrinking Christian presence has been genocide carried out by the Ottoman Empire: the Armenian genocide, Greek genocide, and Assyrian genocide followed by mass emigration in the early 1900s.(8) In addition, due to targeted pogroms of discrimination toward Christians, such as the 1942 tax levied on non-Muslim citizens in Turkey and the 1955 Istanbul pogrom against Greek and Armenian Christians, there was a mass emigration in the late 19th century continuing into the first half of the 20th century.(9) Although there is no specific census data available, it is estimated that Christians make up only 0.02% to 0.04% of the population today, between 180,000 and 370,000 people. Due to fear of discrimination and persecution, many formerly Muslim believers hide their faith.(10)

“In Turkey, religious freedom had been increasingly restricted in recent years and of growing concern to those monitoring the situation. ‘By reigniting Islamic Turkish nationalism, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has practically undone the secularization efforts of the early years of the Turkish Republic and has incited a jihad against Christianity’ wrote author and cleric Father Mario Alexis Portella in the Catholic Crisis Magazine. While building 17,000 mosques throughout Turkey and the world, he has simultaneously seized and closed churches. Hundreds of thousands of Christians, Yazidis, and Kurds have been displaced. While Christians make up less than half of a percent of Turkey’s population, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling Justice and Reconciliation Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi, AKP) depict them as a grave threat to the stability of the nation. Particularly since an abortive coup in 2016, there is a concerted government-orchestrated anti-Christian propaganda campaign accompanied by increasing restrictions of religious freedom in Turkey. ‘The reality is that Turkey is neither a democracy nor a secular republic. There is no division between government affairs and religious affairs. There’s no doubt that the government uses the mosques to get its message across to its grassroots supporters.’ lamented Istanbul pastor Yuce Kabakci.” (11)

The Open Doors 2024 World Watch List ranked Turkey as the 50th worst country for persecution of Christians.(12)

Egypt

According to tradition, Christianity began just a few years after Jesus’ ascension when Mark the Evangelist traveled to Alexandria to spread the gospel, resulting in many converts. Early Christian communities evolved into three denominations: the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, and the Coptic Catholic Church.(12) Under Roman rule, Christians faced extreme persecution for several hundred years. Since the 7th century, Egypt has been under Muslim rule. Throughout the years, Coptic Christians, as well as more recent growth of Protestantism, have endured varying degrees of discrimination under various governments. Despite discrimination, the Christian population is the second largest religion in Egypt, estimated to be about 10% in 2019, 90% of which are Coptic Orthodox. Although the numbers vary widely, ranging from 5% to 15%.(13)

The constitution states that “freedom of belief is absolute” and “the freedom of practicing religious rituals and establishing worship places for the followers of divine religions” [i.e., the three Abrahamic faiths, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism] is a right regulated by law. However, Islam is codified as the state religion, and Sharia law is the foundation of legislation.(14)

In recent years, the Muslim Brotherhood has held a prominent role in government and the implementation of laws and policies. As such, they have fomented anti-Christian rhetoric, resulting in church lootings and burnings and the persecution of Christians. Under the current regime, most of the persecution occurs at the community level, where Christians experience discrimination in employment and school and accusations of blasphemy. The most extreme persecution occurs in Upper Egypt, where Islamic hardliners are most prevalent and causing Christians to flee.(15) The Open Doors 2024 World Watch List ranked Egypt as the 38th worst country for persecution of Christians.(16)

In reviewing the three countries highlighted above, it is readily apparent that the declining Christian population can be attributed to persecution, most prominently from Islamic governments or communities. Another factor in the percentage decreases is that proportionately, Muslims tend to have much larger families than Christians. Given these trends, the global church must draw attention to and support our brothers and sisters under Islamic oppression. We pray daily for their protection, provision, and freedom. As we recently enjoyed the privilege of celebrating Christmas with loved ones, let’s pray for peace on earth and goodwill toward men. “Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie.”
Sources:persecution

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ജനുവരി ഏഴിന് നൈജീരിയയിലെ ഒനിറ്റ്ഷയിലെ കത്തോലിക്കാ അതിരൂപതയിൽനിന്ന് രണ്ട് സന്യാസിനിമാരെ തട്ടിക്കൊണ്ടുപോയി. ഇമ്മാക്കുലേറ്റ് ഹാർട്ട് ഓഫ് മേരി മദർ ഓഫ് ക്രൈസ്റ്റ് (IHM) സന്യാസിനീ സമൂഹത്തിൽപെട്ട സി. വിൻസെൻഷ്യ മരിയ നാൻക്വോയെയും സിസ്റ്റർ ഗ്രേസ് മാരിയറ്റ് ഒകോലിയെയും ആണ് തട്ടിക്കൊണ്ടു പോകപ്പെട്ടത്.

“ഒഗ്ബോജിയിൽ വൊക്കേഷണൽ അസോസിയേഷന്റെ മീറ്റിംഗിൽനിന്ന് മടങ്ങുമ്പോൾ ഉഫുമ റോഡിൽവച്ചാണ് അവരെ തട്ടിക്കൊണ്ടുപോയത്. അവർ എത്രയും വേഗം മോചിപ്പിക്കപ്പെടുകയും സുരക്ഷിതരായി ഞങ്ങളുടെ അടുത്തേക്ക് മടങ്ങിവരുകയും ചെയ്യട്ടെ എന്ന് പ്രാർഥിക്കുകയും ചെയ്യുന്നു” – സിസ്റ്റർ മരിയ സോബെന്ന ഇക്കിയോട്യുണി പറയുന്നു.

സി. വിൻസെൻഷ്യ മരിയ, ആർച്ച്ബിഷപ്പ് ചാൾസ് ഹീറി മെമ്മോറിയൽ മോഡൽ സെക്കൻഡറി സ്കൂൾ ഉഫുമയുടെ പ്രിൻസിപ്പലാണ്. സി. ഗ്രേസ് മാരിയറ്റ്, ഇമ്മാക്കുലേറ്റ ഗേൾസ് മോഡൽ സെക്കൻഡറി സ്കൂൾ നെവിയിലെ അധ്യാപികയുമാണ്.

നൈജീരിയയിൽ വർഷങ്ങളായി പുരോഹിതന്മാരെയും സന്യാസിനിമാരെയും സ്ത്രീകളെയും പുരുഷന്മാരെയും ലക്ഷ്യംവച്ചുള്ള നിരവധി തട്ടിക്കൊണ്ടു പോകലുകൾ നടക്കുന്നു. ആക്രമണങ്ങൾ, മോചനദ്രവ്യത്തിനായി തട്ടിക്കൊണ്ടുപോകൽ, ചില സന്ദർഭങ്ങളിൽ കൊലപാതകം എന്നിവ ഇവിടെ വ്യാപകമാണ്. നൈജീരിയയെ ഒരു ഇസ്ലാമികരാഷ്ട്രമാക്കി മാറ്റാൻ ലക്ഷ്യമിടുന്ന സംഘടനയായ ബോക്കോ ഹറാം 2009 മുതൽ രാജ്യത്ത് ഒരു പ്രധാന വെല്ലുവിളിയാണ്.
Sources:azchavattomonline.com

Two members of the Sisters’ Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Mother of Christ (IHM) in Anambra State, southeastern Nigeria were abducted on the evening of Tuesday, January 7, 2025.
Sr. Vincentia Maria Nwankwo, the Principal of Archbishop Charles Heerey Memorial Model Secondary School in Ufuma, and Sr. Grace Mariette Okoli, a teacher at Immaculata Girls Model Secondary School in Nnewi, were kidnapped along Ufuma road on their way back from their Vocational Association’s meeting at Ogboji.
A police spokesperson said that a joint security operation has begun to track down and free the two nuns.

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