AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Vatican, issuing a statement following the recent aggressions by the terrorist regime of the United States against southern Iran (Sirik), called on religious leaders around the world to break their silence and condemn the killing of civilians, women, and children with a clear voice and without double standards, emphasizing: "In the sight of God, the blood of the oppressed needs no identity card; a killed child is, before belonging to any nation or religion, a human being who had the right to life."
In the name of God who honored humanity and sanctified human life, how can one remain silent before the shedding of innocent blood? How can one utter God's name, stand in worship, and speak of faith and morality, yet fail to hear the cries of mothers weeping over the bodies of their children? The killing of defenseless people, especially women and children, in any land and by any army or power, is a crime against humanity and a rebellion against the sanctity of life. No political power, no security claim, and no territorial interest can justify the shedding of innocent blood.
Religions came to awaken the human conscience, not to sleep in the face of oppression. The divine prophets were the heralds of justice, mercy, and human dignity. How is it possible for a home to be destroyed over children, for a mother to pull her child from under the rubble, for a family to be annihilated in an instant, and for a wedding celebration to turn into mourning, while the owners of pulpits, altars, churches, synagogues, and other religious platforms of the world remain mere spectators? In the sight of God, the blood of the oppressed needs no identity card; a killed child is, before belonging to any nation or religion, a human being who had the right to life.
Today, the responsibility of religious leaders is heavy. We call upon scholars, clerics, and leaders of all religions to break their silence; a pulpit or altar that remains silent before the blood of the oppressed, how can it call people to justice and mercy? Faith finds meaning when it stands against oppression, defends the oppressed, and regards the sanctity of human life above the expediency of powers.
O leaders of the world's religions! Today, more than ever, your voice must be the voice of the human conscience. Stand together and, without any political consideration, condemn the killing of civilians, women, and children, the displacement of people, and the destruction of their homes. Courageously call upon the terrorist US government and military to stop their cowardly killings and targeted brutal attacks on residential areas and civilian citizens, to uphold the sanctity of human life, and to strive for the cessation of violence and the protection of the innocent. Do not let religion become a tool to justify war; make religion once again the language of mercy, justice, and a refuge for the oppressed.
Let us remember: on the day when no power remains, no position, no flag, and no border, what will remain in the sight of God is human deeds. Perhaps one of the most severe questions on that day will be: when the innocent were being killed and children were dying under the rubble, why did you, who could speak, remain silent? Faith in Christ is not merely a cross around the neck, a candle in a church, or a prayer on the lips; faith is standing beside the suffering human being, the same human being that Christ showed us in the face of the hungry, the stranger, the deprived, and the oppressed.
When a child is killed in war, it is not only a mother's heart that breaks; it is as if a part of the body of humanity is crucified. When a home is destroyed over a family, when a mother cries out her child's name among the rubble and hears no answer, a Christian cannot ask from which nation, race, or religion this child was. Christ taught us not to seek the "neighbor" within the boundaries of people and religion.
For this reason, the killing of civilians, women, and children, by any army or power and in any corner of the world, must be condemned with a clear voice and without double standards. One cannot hold the Gospel of love in hand and remain silent before human suffering. One cannot speak of love for one's neighbor on Sunday and, on another day, close one's eyes to the death of children due to political considerations. The life of every human being is created by God and possesses a dignity that earthly powers have no right to strip away.
May the churches of the world, beyond political borders and religious differences, declare with one voice: no child is an enemy; no mother deserves the loss of a child; and no victory built on the blood of the innocent is the victory of Christ and the Gospel.
And perhaps today, the question that stands before the conscience of every Christian is the eternal question of the Gospel: when a wounded and suffering person lies by the roadside, will we pass by, or will we stop like the Good Samaritan?
For Christ has called us not to watch human suffering, but to love; and in the face of the blood of the innocent, true love never remains silent.
Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran – Vatican
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