(ANS) – In a brief but heartfelt message, the Salesian Superior of the Jesus the Adolescent Province of the Middle East (MOR), Fr. Simon Zakerian, invites the entire Salesian Family worldwide to support with their prayers the peoples living in the troubled lands of the Middle East.

Fr. Zakerian chooses his words carefully in the video he released—not only because he speaks in Italian, which is not his mother tongue as he is originally from Syria, but also because he seeks to fully convey the suffering, fear, and, at the same time, the hope and desire for normalcy of populations long affected not just by recent wars, but by decades of almost uninterrupted conflict.

“Our young people in the Middle East have been dreaming of days of peace and stability for many years, just so they can live their lives normally. Alas, this does not happen: one war ends in a Middle Eastern country, and another war begins!” says the Salesian.

His message is simple, aimed first at expressing gratitude for the prayers already offered to God for peace in the Middle East, and second, encouraging continued prayer so that those who live “in anxiety, worry (…) and fear” do not feel alone, forgotten, or abandoned.

The complete video of the MOR Provincial’s message is available in the original Italian version on ANSChannel, the YouTube channel of the Salesian Info Agency.

Full Transcript

Dearest members of the Salesian Family,

Many of you have written to me and sent messages asking about the situation we are experiencing in the Middle East during this delicate and difficult time. I am speaking to you from Don Bosco House here in Lebanon, where the situation is very serious, very difficult, and very delicate, as it is throughout the Middle East. People are still frightened: there is a lot of fear because of this cruel war, a war causing suffering for both young and old.

Here in Lebanon, schools and universities have not held classes for days, yet there are many dead and many wounded. Throughout the Middle East, bubbles of revenge, war, and hatred are growing. It is heartbreaking—unfortunately, it is something very difficult. For many years, our young people in the Middle East have been dreaming of days of peace and stability, just so they can live their lives normally. Alas, this does not happen: one war ends in a Middle Eastern country, and another begins.

For this reason, I ask you for a special prayer, dear friends, on behalf of all the Salesians in the Middle East and the entire Salesian Family: young people, children, and teenagers. Pray! The most beautiful thing you are doing—and continue to do—is pray. Let us pray for peace, as Pope Leo XIII asked, and as the Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops of the Middle East have requested. Let us pray for peace, because in the Holy Land, our situation is very difficult: frightened by so many missiles, all our homes and all ordinary people live in anxiety and worry. And then, in Lebanon, Iran, and across the region…

This message has only one purpose: to thank you for all the affection, support, and prayers of the entire Salesian Family and beyond; and secondly, to ask that you continue to pray with us for peace, saying:

“Lord, give us your peace, you who are the King, the Prince of Peace,”

and asking for the intercession of Mary Most Holy, Help of Christians, Queen of Peace, Mary Our Mother.