Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II commemorates Sayfo Genocide in Daramsuq

DARAMSUQ — On 15 June, Sayfo Genocide Remembrance Day, Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East Mor Ignatius Aphrem II headed an evening prayer for the martyrs of the Sayfo Genocide at St. Georges Patriarchal Cathedral in Bab Touma in Daramsuq (Damascus).

The Patriarch delivered a sermon in which he said, “We gather today to pray that peace may prevail in the whole world, especially in our eastern countries, and that the Sayfo Genocide against our Syriac people or any other people will not be repeated.”

“We, as Christians, are called to love and forgive not only our neighbor but also our enemy, so we forgive those who committed this heinous genocide,” said the Patriarch. “But we pray to God that they repent and know their mistake. We invite them to confess the evils of their fathers.”

After the evening prayer ended, Patriarch Aphrem, accompanied by several other Metropolitans and a number of believers, walked in a candlelit procession to commemorate the souls of the Sayfo martyrs. They started from the Patriarchate’s headquarters and walked towards the Syriac Martyrs’ Garden near Bab Sharqi, where the Patriarch performed a prayer for the souls of the martyrs and lit the torch of fire at the monument.