Syrian hierarchs kidnapped, driver murdered

Metropolitan Paul Yazigi
(OCA) - In a portion of a letter dated April 22, 2013 and signed by His Grace, Bishop Basil, Secretary of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America to all member hierarchs, prayers were requested for two Syrian hierarchs who had been abducted earlier that day.

The text of the letter reads as follows.

“Metropolitan Paul Yazigi of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Aleppo (brother of His Beatitude Patriarch John X of the Great City-of-God Antioch and all the East), and Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim of the Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese of Aleppo, were both abducted this morning, Monday, April 22nd, while they were traveling together on the road between Antioch (Antakya, Turkey) and the north Syrian city of Aleppo. The driver of the vehicle in which they were traveling was killed in the attack. Your prayers are requested.”
And also...
Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim
BEIRUT (Daily Star) - Two Aleppian bishops were kidnapped by Syrian rebels in the outskirts of the city Monday evening, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported.

The driver of Boulos al-Yazigi, the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Aleppo and Iskandaroun and Yuhanna Ibrahim, the Syrian-Orthodox Metropolitan of Aleppo, was killed during the attack.

The NNA reported that Ibrahim, Yazigi and the third man, also a priest, were driving from a village near the Turkish border to Aleppo. As they approached the city, they were met with an armed group that forced them out of the car.

The bishops are believed to alive and efforts are ongoing to secure their release.

Comments

  1. TruthApril 22, 2013 at 2:42 PM

    This is true islam. The islam that kidnapps, kills, rapes and shows its true face. The rule of Muhammad. Unfortunately the west is promoting this. Without the US involvement in the internal affairs of Syria, non of this would have happened. Thank you Hussein Obama :(

    ReplyDelete
  2. Samn!April 22, 2013 at 2:53 PM

    Both as-Safir and an-Nahar are reporting that the group that committed this kidnapping includes Chechens.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Matushka AnnaApril 22, 2013 at 3:21 PM

    I'd call them animals but that wouldn't technically be correct and would be an insult to the animals. I'm sick to death of hearing about Islam as a religion of peace and all Muslims who are involved in murder are "radical Islamists". They're just devout Muslims. And this is the fruit of a demonic religion.

    ReplyDelete
  4. EliasApril 22, 2013 at 4:22 PM

    It makes me sick to think the United States is funding and supplying these Rebels with weapons. sick sick sick.

    ReplyDelete
  5. OrthocathfacingeastApril 22, 2013 at 4:43 PM

    Interesting interview with Mar Gregorios on Huffington dated 10/25/2012 4:43 pm EDT. In his own words (paraphrased): "we do not have a problem with Islam if its teachings are followed...we will have a problem if harsh interpretations of the Koran prevail". That unfortunate analysis appears to have been eclipsed, following the merger of Syria's Jabhet al-Nusra and the Islamic State of Iraq (Al Qaida) group (source: RUSI | www.rusi.org). Christian prelates would make obvious targets, particularly as much of the external aid, mercifully, is now being diverted away from these radical groups who are trying to provide social services to the local populace in an attempt to win hearts and minds. Lord have mercy.

    ReplyDelete
  6. John (Ad Orientem)April 22, 2013 at 6:19 PM

    Lord have mercy.

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousApril 23, 2013 at 7:39 AM

    ....and nary a word from the main stream media. It boggles my mind that this country is giving hundreds of millions of dollars to these terrorists. We did that in Afghanistan many years ago when the Russians were there....and we see how well that went.

    Lord have mercy!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

OCA takes strong stand for canonical Orthodoxy

( Orthochristian.com ) - The primate of the Orthodox Church in America, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon of Washington and All America and Canada, will concelebrate with the primate of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine, in western Ukraine later this week. The Ukrainian Orthodox Diocese of Chernivtsi and Bukovina “awaits the visit of the primate of the Orthodox Church in America on June 1–2, 2024. Solemn services will be held in the Cathedral of the Descent of the Holy Spirit in Chernivtsi, with the participation of both primates.” The Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America formally rejects communion with the schismatics of the “Orthodox Church in Ukraine,” recognizing only the canonical UOC under Met. Onuphry. The Ukrainian primate was the honored guest at the OCA’s 18th All-American Council in July 2015.
Read more

Big news for the Western Rite, ROCOR, and Bp. Jerome

Image
NEW YORK: July 12, 2013 ( ROCOR ) - An Extraordinary Session of the Synod of Bishops is Held On Wednesday, July 10, 2013, an extraordinary session of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia was held, presided over by its First Hierarch, His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York. Participating in the meeting were permanent members of the Synod of Bishops: His Eminence Archbishop Mark of Berlin and Germany; His Eminence Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco and Western America; His Eminence Archbishop Gabriel of Montreal and Canada, and His Grace Bishop Peter of Cleveland, Administrator of the Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America. Deliberating on the matter of Bishop Jerome of Manhattan, the Synod of Bishops made a decision as follows: “During a meeting of the Synod of Bishops on Wednesday, July 10, 2013, presided over by the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, A DECISION WAS MADE: on the activities of Bishop Jerome of Ma...
Read more

Sr. Vassa: There's no ontological impediment to priestesses

Image
Is the male-only priesthood a discipline or essential to the nature of being a priest? Sr. Vassa (again unflinchingly taking up a contentious topic by climbing up the ladder to the highest platform and then jumping into the deep end head first) dives right in and says there is no reason beyond personal preference to not have female clergy. You know, when people ask me about women in priesthood, they say, 'Sister, why can't women be priests?' And I say, 'Women CAN be priests. We don't WANT them to be priests.' Because you see, God can do anything, and the Church, by divine authority, uh, can do anything, but, the Church doesn't want to - and that's a legitimate reason. What I don't like is when we TRY to pretend that there are other reasons for this, because it's legitimate not to want something, and there are reasons not to want this - right? - but, we shouldn't pretent that there's some... reason, that, for example, the maleness...
Read more