This was the question posed by Chaldean Archbishop of Erbil, Msgr Bashar Warda during the launch of ACN’s Religious Freedom in the World Report by ACN Malta on April 29.
The Archbishop was referring to Christians in the world today who are silent on the plight of their brothers and sisters who continue to suffer persecution on account of their faith.
“There are nearly two billion Christians representing 30% of the total world population. Yet, Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world. Why are they so silent?”, he asked.
Quoting a saying by Martin Luther King that “in the end, it is not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”, the Archbishop decried blindness to the situation of persecuted Christians in Iraq and other parts of the world stressing that “it is as good as saying we do not matter, should have no voice and do not exist”.
“This is another form of persecution as we need our voice to be heard in the international community; we need the world to help us to survive as minorities”, he added.
He called on Christian journalists and Christians in authority not to ignore the suffering of their brothers and sisters:
“We are disappearing. Please help us or it will be the end of our ancient minorities”
In line with this, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama, ACN project partner and guest speaker from Nigeria said:
“Our Christian leaders must speak out. They must be bold. This is not happening and I believe if we are together, we will have a formidable body that can bring justice to Christians who are suffering.”
