6 August: a day of sorrow, but also the day that God saved us

On 6th August 2014, more than 120,000 Christians were forced to flee from their homes as militants from the terrorist organisation Daesh (ISIS) invaded Qaraqosh. The life of the church in Iraq was changed forever as thousands were made to live as destitute refugees inside or outside of the country. To commemorate the day, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) is holding an international prayer event to remember those who... are still internally displaced within their homeland one year later.

Speaking to ACN, Baghdad-born Chaldean priest Father Douglas Bazi who works with Iraqi refugees in Erbil added his voice to the call for prayer: “The 6th of August is a day of sorrow, but also the day that God saved us. We are, after all, still alive. We will celebrate a mass. We cannot forget what happened. However, we will ask God to forgive the perpetrators and to change their thinking.”

ACN has been able to support Christian refugees in Iraq in many ways. Immediately following the events of 6th August last year, a delegation travelled to Iraq to assess the situation and since then about 7 million euros* have been spent to house and care for the people and construct a number of schools for refugee children. Today, on 6th August 2015, ACN asks for prayers for Christians in need in Iraq.

 

For more information visit www.acnuk.org

ACN compete in the British 10k London Run

ACN staff and friends did an excellent job this weekend as they participated in the British 10K London run despite the crowds and gloomy weather.

Aid to the Church in Need team members John Pontifex, who is ACN UK’s Head of Press and Information, Kathy Hodgson, Marie Foster and Juan Aguila completed the challenge in aid of raising money to support projects in Syria.

The team have so far raised nearly £2,700 towards their £3,000 target to help to provide emergency support for Christians and others in northern Syria.

The group from ACN were among more than 20,000 who ran past London landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and Trafalgar Square, before crossing the finish line at Whitehall, just past 10 Downing Street.

The ACN team would like to extend their thanks to all that have sponsored them so far, with one team member describing the amount raised to date as “absolutely astonishing”. 

The money will go towards providing fuel, oil, gas, electricity and rental costs for displaced families in Aleppo and Hassake, two Syrian cities which have often been on the front-line of conflict between government and rebel forces.

For information about ACN’s work in Syria, visit www.acnuk.org/syriacrisis or go to https://www.justgiving.com/team-acn/



Kathy Hodgson & John Pontifex



Juan Aguila

ACN staff and friends to compete for a second time in the British10K London run this weekend.

Staff and friends of Aid to the Church in Need will be dusting off their running shoes again this year as they compete for the second year in a row in the British 10K London run.

ACN UK’s Head of Press and Information John Pontifex will be joined by supporters Kathy, Maria and Juan on Sunday 12^th July to raise money for suffering families in Syria.

Mr Pontifex, who has witnessed the suffering in Syria first hand and is running his fourth race for ACN, said the run was an important way to raise awareness as well as funds.

“The weather’s threatening rain just when we’re running so it’s going to be a bit of a challenge. We’re so close to our final fund-raising target so any last donations would be very gratefully received.”

Families in Syria affected by the violence have been forced to leave their homes and villages and it is thought that as many as 4 million people are internally displaced in the country.

Houses, schools and places of worship have been have been bombed as they are driven out by the Islamic terrorist organisation, Daesh (IS).

As a priority country, ACN has been able to offer emergency aid for displaced people in Syria including food, shelter and pastoral support.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, ACN provided more than £8.5 million (12 million euros) helping the Church in Syria and Iraq.

Marking the 15^th anniversary of the run this year, the route has been adapted to incorporate even more iconic London landmarks including Oxford Circus, St. James's Palace and Big Ben before finishing at Royal Horse Guards & Banqueting House after a final run past the Prime Minister’s residence in Downing Street.

Runners who complete the race will be awarded with a special medal commissioned to mark the anniversary  described as “the best finishers medal of any road race I have ever seen in over 40 years of being involved in athletics” by Event Founder & Director Mike O’Reilly.

ACN has already reached more than 80% of £3,000 target in sponsorship to support future projects in Syria.

If you would like to make a contribution before Sunday’s run, please visit the ACN British 10K London Run 2015 page at https://www.justgiving.com/Team-ACN/ or text LHUU78 to 70070 to donate.

 

Fr Ziad Hilal remembers his kidnapped colleague, Fr Jacques Mourad, in an interview with ACN

Jesuit priest and key project partner Fr. Ziad Hilal, friend of kidnapped Fr. Jacques Mourad, visited the ACN UK offices last Friday and spoke movingly about his missing colleague.

Describing Fr. Mourad as a “figure of leadership” for both Christians and Muslims in Syria, he begged for his friend’s safe return.

He said: “Please, let him go free because he is a good man. He wanted to help the Syrian people.”

Fr. Mourad was kidnapped by armed masked men on 21 May along with a companion. Their whereabouts are still unknown.

Fr. Mourad had lived and worked at the monastery of Mar Elian in Qaryatayn and in the hours before his abduction, had sent an email to ACN thanking the charity and its benefactors for their ongoing support.

Since the end of 2011, ACN has been able to donate more £71,000 (100,000 euros) to help displaced Syrians at the monastery of Mar Elian and has provided more than £8.5 million (12 million euros) in aid for the Church in Syria and Iraq.

Please continue to pray for the safe return of Fr. Jacques Mourad and his companion. If you share his story, you can tweet us at @acn_uk using the hashtag #PrayingForFatherMourad.

 

ACN Summer Bake Off

Staff at the ACN office had their own Summer Bake Off competition yesterday with a variety of treats raffled to raise money for persecuted Christians in Syria. The sensational selection was judged by National Director Neville Kyrke –Smith and Head of Press and Information John Pontifex who certainly enjoyed their roles as official cake-tasters!

If you love to bake and think your cakes taste delicious, then why not organise your own “Bake Off” competition with family, friends, colleagues or in your parish to fundraise for persecuted Christians and especially Christians in Syria at this time?

Once you have completed your Bake Off, you can e-mail us at acn@acnuk.org  and send your proceeds to our donation page or you can post your cheque with a note to UK Head Office (Sutton, Surrey) or to the Scottish Office (Motherwell).

We’d love to see your photos or videos of your “Bake off” event too! Send them to Facebook and Twitter at @acn_uk.

Team ACN!

 

There is only one month to go until Team ACN take on the 2015 10k London Run this July! The money raised by our ACN staff and friends will go towards supporting suffering Christians in Syria, something head of Press and Information John Pontifex has witnessed first-hand.

“I will be running the 2015 British 10k London Run for Aid to the Church in Need (UK) because I want to support families suffering in Syria” – John Pontifex

By giving as little as £3 Aid to the Church in Need is able to provide emergency help for families who have been affected by the crisis in Syria. With your support we are able to continue to send basic aid including food, shelter and medicine.

Do something amazing for Syria this summer and support our ACN team by texting LHUU78 to 70070 to make a £3 donation or visit https://www.justgiving.com/Team-ACN/

Hour of Prayer at The Courtauld Gallery

The Courtauld Gallery of the Courtauld Institute, one of the smaller, yet outstanding art collections in London, granted special permission on Monday for its ground floor to be used as a setting for prayer and devotion.

We were invited by organiser Maria Cristina, a gallery lecturer and artist and specialist in Christian Iconography, to join the group as they gathered to use the Christian art held in the gallery for their original purpose – worship.

Maria Cristina spoke movingly about a select number of paintings and private devotional panels from the late medieval and early renaissance period before leading the group in saying the Rosary. Speaking of the religious paintings, she told us: “They are not precious objects that will fetch huge prices at auction, they are objects made for prayer and to lead us in prayer.”

The group, made up of about 10 worshippers, listened with interest as the history and symbolism of each piece was explained by Maria Cristina before joining in prayer. The experience of using such ancient and beautiful depictions of the life of Christ and of the Virgin to say the Rosary was one that brought a new dimension to such a well-known meditation. Though not all of the images directly represented the mysteries of the Rosary in isolation, images within the collection certainly reflected different narratives of familiar Gospel stories, bringing an excellent focus to the event.

When asked how the collection was being used when saying the Rosary, Maria Cristina replied: “The moment you start exploring [the painting], it begins to unfold the meaning of the Mystery.” Father Peter Burns of the diocese of Westminster agreed, adding: “When you’re praying it brings meaning out of the picture.”

A wonderful and innovative way to witness the faith in the heart of London, the success of the event will almost certainly mean the exercise is repeated. As guests, we were struck by the generosity of the group who attended the event in aid of persecuted Christians in the Middle East at the Courtauld gallery and we continue to keep all of our kind benefactors in our prayers. Not only was the occasion a celebration of the rediscovery the richness of our Christian heritage in the museum, but a display of the compassion of our charitable supporters.

Copyright: Aid to the Church in Need UK

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