Planting Seeds of Peace in Syria: Helping Suffering Refugees
The war in Syria is complex and catastrophic. The United Nations has called this conflict one of the very worst humanitarian disasters the world has seen. Check out these chilling facts:
Over 100,000 Syrians have been killed
2,000,000 have fled Syria and live as refugees in surrounding countries
4,000,000 have been internally displaced
Chemical weapons have been unleashed on innocent civilians
Women and children are suffering the most
The Syrian opposition is divided and includes Al-Qaeda related groups
Not a pretty picture. Even worse, the governments of the world seem incapable of helping. So what can people of faith do about this?
Here’s what Peace Catalyst Denver did to plant seeds of peace for the sake of Syria’s future:
We put on a fundraising event for Syrian refugees on November 19th at Ali Baba’s Grill in Golden, Colorado. Over 70 adults gathered to learn about what's happening in Syria and to find out what they can do for the most vulnerable and needy in this war zone.
To help Syrian refugees, Christians and Muslims are partnering with Global Refuge International (GRI), an organization whose mission is to “provide an emergency lifeline to victims of disease, war and disaster” – a great description of what’s happening in Syria. During the course of the evening, Jaden McNeely of GRI shared amazing stories - including stories of drinking tea with terrorists - and gave insight on Syria's opposition groups.
Mahmoud and Fiyahd, the owners of Ali Baba’s Grill, donated half the profits from the night's meals to the GRI relief effort and committed themselves to supporting GRI’s work in Syria in an ongoing way. Other Muslim guests also gave to the cause. We may not be able to stop the war in Syria, but we can do something.
What a great event - Muslims partnering with Christians to bring relief to Syria’s suffering refugees!
