All Saints Day

All Saints Day today but little joy as everyone here is overwhelmed by the senseless killing of priests and laity in our Church of Our Lady of Salvation in the christian quarter of Baghdad. Yes, they are martyrs of the faith. They were killed simply because they were christians.

How ironical that only a week ago the Bishops Synod in Rome convened to discuss the state of the Church in the Middle East. Yesterday's killing says it all. The Synod could not have a clearer response than that. BBC calls it a catastrophe. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11463544

This is the price to pay to be a follower of Christ here in the ME. This is the cross to carry. The powers in the world are set against believers, and it's relentless aggression is increasing. Calvary is ever before our eyes.