Please pray for Christians in Syria, after threatening messages were left at two churches, heightening fear amongst believers. “Christian infidel, there is no deity but God, after St Elias Dweila, it’s St Elias Maared’s turn,” said the message on the wall surrounding the compound of St Elias Church in Maared Saidnaya, located 30km north east of the capital Damascus. The words – which are believed to have been written towards the end of last week – refer to the devastating suicide bomb attack on Saint Elias Church in Dweilla, Damascus, on 22 June that killed 22 believers. It comes a week after a similarly threatening words were left on the walls of St Cyrillos Church in Damascus by a man who was caught on camera. “There will be no polytheists left in Syria by God’s will. Our meeting is near, you pigs of the cross,” wrote the message. There was also a non-recognisable phrase that started with the Shahada (the Islamic declaration of faith): “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger.”
