A year on from the fall of the Assad regime, Christians in Syria are looking to Christmas with hope after a period of instability.
“Last Christmas, it was very tough for Syrian Christians,” Reverend Nadim Nassar explained to Premier Christian News, “the fear was, at the top level, that we were under threat of being slaughtered.”
A Christmas tree in Suqaylabiyah was set alight on Christmas Eve last year. In the days before, gunmen opened fire at a Greek Orthodox church in Hama, and services in the country were held with tight security.
Rev Nassar believes the situation is “much better” this Advent, having just returned to Britain from a trip to Syria, where he lit the Christmas tree in his home city of Latakia. He was joined by the bishop, the imam and the mayor, who is Muslim.
“They all talked about the importance of living together, the importance of keeping Syria one, united," he said. "How to live together, how to go beyond the hatred and the frustration of the past.”
He added: “The atmosphere was extremely friendly, extremely encouraging for Christians, so far. I don’t want to exaggerate the optimism, but I am hopeful. It takes time.”
Threats to "worshippers of the cross"
Hayaat Tahrir al-Sham, known as HTS, swept to power on 8 December 2024, ending a brutal civil war and the autocracy of Bashar al-Assad. The Islamist militia promised to respect the rights of all religions and ethnicities.
Rev Nassar shared his concern about “Islamic fanaticism” in government institutions, the continued presence of mercenaries, and how attacks on minorities have harmed and killed Christians. In March, Christians were among those killed in massacres of the Alawites, to whom Assad belonged. A church was also bombed in June, with 25 killed.
“When minorities face massacres, of course the other minorities say ‘when is it our turn?’," Rev Nassar said. "There were threats, ‘your turn is next’. They call us ‘the worshippers of the cross’. So the situation is difficult and the pressure is there.”
Having the "courage to forgive"
As founder of the peace-building Awareness Foundation, Rev Nassar has been countering revenge-fuelled violence with ideas of restorative justice. His speeches at interfaith dialogues have caught the attention of regional political leaders, who wanted to learn more about the ideas of reconciliation.
“At the moment, the government feels that any admission of mistakes is a weak position," he said. "And I said this is the opposite of the truth. The truth is, when you face what happened, the reality, and you admit the mistakes, You are strong, not weak. You then have the courage to apologise, and then you have the courage to forgive.”
There was also interest in the Ambassadors for Peace – young people who work with the Awareness Foundation – and their vision for the future of Syria. Among their priorities was respect for religious and cultural pluralism, a state which guarantees freedoms, and respect for the role of women and children.
Reflecting on his recent visit, Rev Nasser said it felt like “for the first time, I could breathe".
“The way forward is to, all together, pray for unity, for awareness, for love and for justice that is based on the truth," he said. "And praying for courage to forgive, this courage to admit that everybody has committed mistakes and and sins, and we all need to forgive each other.”