Tag Archives: saudi arabia

Beyond tolerance – Syria as a model for religious integration and harmony

Father Dave has just returned from a moving visit to war-ravaged Syria. One of the hard lessons he learned is that, in the face of aggressive, ‘takfiri’ Islam, Australians might need to rethink their attitudes to religious tolerance. DIVINE Service … Continue reading

Posted in Article, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pope Francis calls for peace in Syria

“How can you believe in someone who caresses you with the right hand and strikes you with the left hand?” These are the powerful and pointed words of one of the greatest spiritual leaders the church has seen in my … Continue reading

Posted in Press Release, syria news, syria now | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Syria has won the war! (almost)

Traditional wisdom tells us that we shouldn’t count our chickens before they hatch. Even so, it is hard to resist celebrating the most recent developments in the war on Syria. Thanks to a bit of help from mother Russia, it … Continue reading

Posted in Article, syria news, syrian civil war, syrian rebels | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Syria is like a hunted animal, being slowly killed one American arrow at a time

The following article is written by my friend, Declan Hayes – a passionate Irishman. I was with Declan in Damascus in April of this year. He has been back to Syria twice since then and spent the bulk of his … Continue reading

Posted in Article, syria news, syrian civil war | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Is the violence in Syria and Iraq really sectarian?

We’ve been sold this line for a long time – that the violence raging across the Levant, most obviously in Syria and Iraq, is of a sectarian nature. It is Sunni against Shia, Muslims against fellow Muslims and non-Muslim minority … Continue reading

Posted in syrian civil war, syrian rebels | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Understanding the war in Syria – a sketch video

This is an engaging attempt to explain the violence in Syria, if a little simplistic. I would question it at two points. Firstly, I’m not convinced that the Syrian war ever did start as a purely democratic uprising. I suspect … Continue reading

Posted in syrian civil war | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Syrian Christian leaders create a stir in Washington!

It’s not often that Christian bishops have US politicians walking out on them and shouting! According to the Judicial Watch blog though this is exactly the treatment visiting Syrian church leaders received from one US Senator in a recent briefing held … Continue reading

Posted in syria news, syrian civil war | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why the Saudis want to get rid of Assad

Here’s an excellent interview with Toby Jones (professor of Middle East history at Rutgers University) shedding light on the role of the Saudis in Syria. Most of Assad’s other enemies have clear motives. Doha wants to put a natural gas pipeline … Continue reading

Posted in Media coverage, syria news | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment