Pope Francis' Prayer Intentions For September 2013

The Pope's general prayer intention for September is: “That people today, often overwhelmed by noise, may rediscover the value of silence and listen to the voice of God and their brothers and sisters.”

His mission intention is: “That Christians suffering persecution in many parts of the world may by their witness be prophets of Christ's love.”

Syrian Minister: US Strike on Syria 'Would Benefit Al-Qaeda'

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

• Any US military action against Syria would amount to "support for al-Qaeda and its affiliates," Damascus has said.
• Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad also told the BBC that armed groups backed by America - not Syrian troops - had used chemical weapons.
• The US says it has evidence that Damascus used the nerve agent sarin in a deadly attack in August.
• President Barack Obama has vowed punitive action but wants Congress to vote on the issue first.

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Syrian Minister: US Strike on Syria 'Would Benefit Al-Qaeda'

A Troubling Call From Syria

The following excerpts are from AINA:

• Early this morning [August 26] I received a phone call from Mary, a friend in Sweden who was born in Syria. She wanted me to check my Facebook account. A young Syrian woman, Nour, wanted to become friends with me. I accepted the request. A minute later, Nour wrote me her first message. She had pictures from Tabqa, a town that was totally emptied of Christian Assyrians [AINA 8-2-2013, 8-4-2013, 8-9-2013]. Nour also had the contact information of victims of fundamentalist Islam. They, the victims, want the world to know what has happened to them. A group of non-Syrian Mujahedeen drove them out of their homes.The message from the perpetrators was "convert to Islam or leave". I called one of the victims, and heard horrifying stories about religious and ethnic cleansing.
• Christians in Syria are a vulnerable group. They comprise approximately 8 percent of the population. Tabqa used to be a modern city with cinemas, hairdressers, fashion boutiques and restaurants. Now it is driven by men in beards who no longer allow any of that.
• An hour after my interview with that refugee, US Secretary of State John Kerry declared "there must be accountability" on behalf of the victims of a chemical weapon attack. Considering all the evidence emerging from witnesses, from images, from human-rights groups and from medical information provided by Doctors Without Borders, Kerry said "these all strongly indicate" that "chemical weapsons were used in Syria," and that they were fired by the Syrian government.
• Doctors Without Borders didnt' appreciate its medical reports being used as a justification for possible military action. It issued a statement stressing that only "an independent investigation" can determine whether the hundreds of boides arriving at hospitals Aug. 21 were killed by chemical weapons, and that the organization has not placed blame anywhere.

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A Troubling Call From Syria