For , Bishop Martinelli considers it “urgent” to relaunch the “presence” of the Church in the country tormented by conflicts and violence. The testimony of the nuns, the work of Cáritas and the local Christian reality. Houthi missiles towards Israel, Gulf neutrality and the fragile balance with Riyadh and Tehran. The House of Abraham as a model of encounter, confrontation and prayer.
Rome () – “Recovering the relationship with Yemen.” For Monsignor Paolo Martinelli, apostolic vicar of southern Arabia (United Arab Emirates, Oman and Yemen), it is “urgent” to relaunch the mission in the country torn by more than a decade of civil war, which on several occasions has escalated to become a regional conflict by delegation. A bloody confrontation between the Houthis, linked to Iran, and the government army recognized by the international community (supported by Riyadh), which in recent months has also been the scene of attacks on Israel by militiamen or assaults on ships in the Red Sea. An escalation, linked to the events in the Strip, that is causing enormous damage to international trade and that has returned to the headlines a nation relegated to the margins of world politics. “We have to thoroughly evaluate the situation, understand how we can intervene,” warns the prelate, “and, as soon as the possibilities arise, start again.” A nation abandoned for a decade and victim of a conflict that seems to interest few. Therefore, as soon as I can, I intend to go there and give the sign of a renewed presence, with calm and humility, that a small Christian community has remained and continues to bear witness to its faith.’
A community to save
“Many have left in these years of war,” Monsignor Martinelli tells on the sidelines of the work of the synodal assembly in the Vatican, but with the focus always on a Middle East board increasingly overwhelmed by the outpouring of blood and violence. «Many have lost their jobs – he continues -, especially the emigrants who have decided to leave, but it must also be emphasized that there is a current of Christian citizens that is not present in other Gulf countries. There is a small but significant local reality that shows how the Church must be present and, as soon as possible, go out again.
“Returning to Aden (South Yemen) would be a good message,” explains the Vicar of Arabia, because it is a territory “that we look at with great interest. In North Yemen we have two communities of Sisters of Mother Teresa and a priest. In addition, Caritas Poland is active in the Aden region. In recent weeks, the sending of “another priest” was being considered, he says, but the escalation in the Middle East and the possible repercussions invite caution, at least for the moment, since Yemen “could be one of the targets of attacks as we have seen in recent days.
“We have spoken with the nuns – continued the prelate – and they have told us about explosions, but thank God nothing has happened to them.” Of course, the panorama is certainly still one of fragility, but there are positive signs”, such as the decision of the Holy See to “extend” the territory under the responsibility of the apostolic nuncio in the Emirates (UAE) also to Yemen. That is why “we hope, at least in the south, to start again, to visit soon: we have four churches, all seriously damaged by the civil war, which I intend to see in person to understand how to give a new direction to our mission.” The news remains “fragmentary”, warns Monsignor Martinelli, but “from what we know in the south the panorama is calmer, we can think about starting again since the Holy See has also interrupted this prolonged vacation phase.” The north, on the other hand, remains “an unknown and more attention is needed.”
fragile balance
Yemen is going through a phase of fragile balance due to the multiple tensions and power relations to which it is subjected, starting with the political-religious contrasts between Riyadh (Sunni) and Tehran (Shiite), to which is added the involvement in recent months in the Gaza war between Israel and Hamas. The launch of rockets yesterday by the Houthi militias towards Tel Aviv and central Israel coinciding with the commemorations of October 7, intercepted by the army (IDF), also fits into this perspective. “What we can do, having a marginal presence in terms of numbers,” says the vicar, “is support and enhance the charitable works carried out by the nuns of Mother Teresa, in addition to the humanitarian projects of Cáritas.”
Along with the works, there is also the task of prayer, which involves all the churches of the vicariate, where “every day we celebrate a mass for peace, with the intention of asking for an end to this escalation of violence and for the many victims of the conflict. After all, that of peace, or at least that of truce and the end of the use of weapons “is a theme always present in the liturgy. We invoke peace, reconciliation between the parties,” although the current panorama does not seem to lead to optimism and a climate of war and revenge persists.
House of Abraham and Gulf neutrality
Expanding the reflection to the Gulf, from the United Arab Emirates observatory, the dominant attitude regarding the escalation in the Middle East is one of “substantial neutrality,” observes Monsignor Martinelli, although attention remains high. From Dubai to Abu Dhabi, every day there is news about the war in the newspapers,” he continues, “but there is no political position. What prevails, on the contrary, is the attempt to emphasize the humanitarian aspect, the sending of aid that the Emirates send regularly, the option of taking in the sick and injured for treatment; From this point of view there is great attention and interest for those affected by the war. Meanwhile, at the level of leaders, we continue to wait to see how the panorama evolves, while trying to do good where the needs are enormous and multiple.
In the background, in a framework of strong opposition, the Emirates preserve what has been done positively in recent years, both from a political point of view and from a perspective of interreligious dialogue: from the Abrahamic Accords to the signing of the document on the fraternity by Pope Francis and the imam of al-Azhar, who find a concrete dimension in the “Abrahamic House”, which remains a positive model in a region at war. A meeting place of the three great monotheistic confessions, uniting Muslims, Christians and Jews in which “prayers are regularly made for peace and reconciliation, because this remains the fundamental position”, as the Vicar of Arabia underlines. “It seems very nice to me,” he explains, “that we manage to keep this reality alive, even if it is lived in a more restrained tone compared to its potential. However, it remains a very important sign, because it is a physical place of meeting and confrontation that is flanked by a forum in which fundamental questions regarding the document itself are addressed. A space with a strong educational imprint that goes beyond political issues, “puts the value of human fraternity at the center” and tends to work “on positive issues, keeping the areas separate.” The priest, the rabbi and the imam are “extremely balanced figures”, concludes Monsignor Martinelli, “very good at cultivating positive relationships and praying for peace: the “House” has a positive purpose, it would change its nature if it became an agonist ethical or political.
THE ‘GATE TO THE EAST’ IS THE ASIANEWS NEWSLETTER DEDICATED TO THE MIDDLE EAST
WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE IT EVERY TUESDAY IN YOUR EMAIL? SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER AT THIS LINK
Add Comment