“Prayer can be a power throughout history when it transforms itself in an element of hope and thus of mutation. We have experienced this with the vigil of prayer for Syria convened by pope Francis in the beginning of September.” This is what the Archbishop of the Syrian Orthodox Church Dionisius Jean Kawak – who is coming from Damascus – said in his address at the panel dedicated to “The power of Prayer throughout History” at the International Meeting “The Courage to Hope” organized by the Community of Sant’Egidio”.

The Archbishop has reminded the kidnapping of the Syrian bishops, Mar Greorios Yohanna Ibrahim and Boulous Yaziji, sequestered since five months, and of whom there is no news.

He wondered: “how can an experience such as prayer, which takes place in silence, inside the heart, influence the great facts of human history, social or economical phenomenons, or diplomacy?”.

He responded by affirming that: “it is exactly the gesture of pope Francis, calling for the vigil for peace in Syria that shows how it is possible to change the course of history with prayer”.