With all of the death and horrible violence that Muslim terrorists have visited on Christians in Syria, it is wonderful news to report that President Asad of Syria- a Muslim who the US Government and her “allies” denounced as an evil man and tried to depose- took his entire family and celebrated Christmas with Syrian Christians at a monastery dedicated to Our Lady:
Syrian President, accompanied by his wife and his children, we celebrated Christmas by visiting, Sunday, Dec. 25, at the monastery of Our Lady and the Christian village of Saydnaya. The Assad family was ovated by hundreds of village Christians where she spent several hours. Last year, the President and his family had visited the Christian village of Maaloula at Christmas … I note the facts, I give the information and I refrain from any comment … (source)
Like I said in my last article, Christmas is the miracle of the Incarnation, where God became man so that man might become like God. If God would so lower Himself in order to try and uplift us to Him, then we as Christians must do what we can with what we have in order to, as is possible, to bring Muslims to Christ, and that for most people will be through prayer and fasting.
Make no mistake, I am not saying that Christians cannot or should not fight against Islam. Christians- many times, have an obligation to stand up to and engage in military combat with Muslims. What I am saying is that, just as God dispenses mercy before justice, Christians need to follow His example because another man’s salvation may depend on this.
Look at the photos of President Asad- is this a man who hates Christians? If so, let his deeds be his judge, and what have his deeds been other than to fight against the people who brought Muslim terrorists into Syria and to ally with the Russians in order to combat them. Not only that, but throughout that entire time, he supported the Christians as he could and now that the Christians have been able to return to Aleppo, he visits them during one of their High Holy days and even goes to a monastery.
Now look at America and specifically, President Obama and his supports and the leaders of our so-called “allies” in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the EU. Ask yourself what these people have done? Likewise, let their deeds just them- tell us, before we deposed the Christians in Syria- or forget about the Christians, take the whole nation- what did Syria look like under Asad? Enlighten us, how much “better” was life under the foreign-created “Islamic State” build by Muslim terrorists- i.e. “Syrian Rebels” or “freedom fighters”- that under Asad?
Nobody is saying that atrocities did not happen on both sides. The question is what life was like under each, and to judge them by their deeds.
So who do you prefer?
Likewise, notice this celebration also took place at a monastery dedicated to Our Lady. Note that Our Lady has always been closely tied to the Catholic and Orthodox opposition to Islam throughout the centuries. Wherever there was a successful opposition, there was also considerable Marian devotion- Our Lady of Covadonga, Almudena, Mercy, the Holy Rosary, Guadalupe, Kazan, Fatima, and countless others have histories that connect back to the wars against Islam. As the American Servant of God Bishop Fulton J. Sheen once wrote:
Missionaries in the future will, more and more, see that their apostolate among the Moslems will be successful in the measure that they preach Our Lady of Fatima. Mary is the advent of Christ, bringing Christ to the people before Christ Himself is born. In any apologetic endeavor, it is always best to start with that which people already accept. Because the Moslems have a devotion to Mary, our missionaries should be satisfied merely to expand and to develop that devotion, with the full realization that Our Blessed Lady will carry the Moslems the rest of the way to her Divine Son.
She is forever a “traitor’ in the sense that she will not accept any devotion for herself, but will always bring anyone who is devoted to her to her Divine Son. As those who lose devotion to her lose belief in the Divinity of Christ, so those who intensify devotion to her gradually acquire that belief. (Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, The World’s First Love. 1952. Page 208.)
Think about it for a while, and Merry Christmas.
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Notice the crescent moon upon which she is standing