The archbishop said “a true Christian should stand on the side of the oppressed, the suffering and the tormented, and not on the side of unjust people who practice their violence and oppression.”
Archbishop Atallah Hanna, head of the Sebastia of the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem, criticized US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday after he appeared publicly having marked his forehead with a cross on Ash Wednesday.
“We are not required to condemn anyone while we are in the period of Lent (Don’t condemn so that you won’t be condemned),” the archbishop wrote in a Facebook post, according to a Google translation, accompanied by a photo of Rubio bearing the cross mark.
“However, it should be noted that whoever wants to decorate themselves with the cross and be proud of their cross, must learn from the cross the value of love, mercy and humanity,” he added.
Hanna said “a true Christian should stand on the side of the oppressed, the suffering and the tormented, and not on the side of unjust people who practice their violence and oppression.”
The archbishop said that whoever “wants to be proud of the cross … must confirm and admit that there is a historical injustice that has been faced by our Palestinian people, and this injustice must go away so that our people can be blessed with the freedom and peace they long for.”
“As for him to be a bearer of the cross and supporter of injustice, tyranny and oppression for the sake of our people, then we have the right to ask where are the Christian values from all this?!” he emphasized.
He also questioned the meaning of politicians “harming Christianity and distorting its message as if they are an internal enemy of the Church targeting it from within.” He said “they have nothing to do with the values of faith and the message of the Gospel in our world. (more...)
‘Christians Stand with Oppressed’ – Atallah Hanna Rebukes Rubio for Cross Mark
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