Nadim Nassar and 'The Wait'
The Revd Nadim Nassar took part in a lively panel discussion in Islington after the screening of a film, 'The Wait', Susie Attwood's fascinating film about Syriac Christian refugees in Lebanon. The film focuses on four Syrian Christian families who have taken refuge in a Syriac Orthodox Monastery on the outskirts of Beirut while they wait, without jobs or education for their children, for visas to pursue a better life in the West.
Susie is a freelance documentary maker, having worked mainly for the BBC, and she has a particular interest in raising understanding in the UK of Christians in the Middle East. For 'The Wait', Susie filmed for a month in Lebanon in 2018 around the Syriac Orthodox Easter, when she spent time getting to know the situation of the Syrian Refugees there and filming their stories.
The panel discussion was led by Daniel Gabriel, a Syriac lawyer from Australia who used to represent the World Council of Aramaens at the UN.
In the panel discussion, Nadim spoke about how much the film reflected his experience of the situation of Syrian Refugees across the Middle East, and about the plight of Christians in the entire region. He spoke about how we can genuinely help the refugees; while humanitarian aid saves lives, it does not build a future, and the refugees and internally displaced need education, they need encouragement and above all they need to see that the world knows and cares about them.
