A Tomb that Illuminates the Journey - Letter from Maronite Archbishop of Damascus

A TOMB OF LIGHT:


Father Franz VAN DER LUGT (1938-2014) was a Dutch Jesuit living in Syria since 1972. Fluent in Arabic, he had a PhD in psychology. Father Franz advanced dialogue between Muslims and Christians, especially through youth ministry, retreats, and gatherings. He gave care especially for the mentally handicapped. He began an agricultural cooperative for the disabled, advocated for needed childcare, and assisted in the restoration of churches and parish centers in the small rural area.


To demonstrate his confidence in his fellow Muslims, Father Franz refused to leave the old city of Homs, where he was also the only priest to serve dozens of Christians abandoned by their pastors. He was martyred in Homs on April 7, 2014. There was no priest to celebrate his funeral. Father Franz was buried in the courtyard of the convent. He was buried by a small number of Muslim and Christian refugees who form a community of “cloistered” life, living with scarcity and in fear.


His tomb now attracts a large number of Muslim and Christian visitors. By his life and death, father Franz shows the way to the future in Syria through a message of brotherhood among men and women. Both in life and in death Abouna Franz is an apostle of love and peace embodying the life of his MASTER, witnessing the values ​​of justice, truth, and total self-giving.


A SIGN IN OUR MIDST – A NEW PRIEST WITHOUT PARISH MINISTRY:


Syria, plunged into violence and suffering, continues to be a fertile ground for vocations, a sign of hope. Numerous youth are responding to the call of the Lord, despite dispersion, exodus, great suffering, and difficult prospects.


Maroun, a deacon from Homs, has been preparing for the priesthood for twelve years. He will be ordained a priest, for a diocese torn by war and violence, on August 15, 2014 at the Maronite Cathedral in Damascus. Maroun will not have a parish or a specific duty, other than the social care of refugees, families and the moral and spiritual support of the youth. His ordination is the future of the Syrian Church and hope in the restoration of peace. This spiritual vitality is encouraging. Maroun’s is a vocation that risks in a Christianity that refuses to die. This new priest is a sign in the midst of a people proud of its martyrs.


I confide in the prayers of Father Franz and in your prayers,

May 22, 2014, Feast of St. Rita, Patron saint of impossible causes.

+Samir NASSAR
Maronite Archbishop of Damascus