USCCB urges Catholics to press Congress to vote against intervention in Syria

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is taking decisive action against military intervention in Syria. U.S. bishops sent out a new appeal yesterday, urging Catholics to get in touch with their Representatives in Congress asking them “to vote against a resolution authorizing the use of military force in Syria … in response to heinous chemical weapons attacks on innocent civilians” and to “support U.S. leadership, in collaboration with the international community, for an immediate ceasefire in Syria and serious, inclusive negotiations for peace”, Vatican Insider informs.

Bishops have decided to get faithful involved by sending out an Action Alert, emphasising that “both the Holy See and USCCB have condemned the chemical weapons attacks, but remain convinced that only dialogue can save lives and bring about peace in Syria.”

In a letter addressed to the American Secretary of State John Kerry, last Friday, the President of the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace, Bishop Richard E. Pates wrote that “the path of dialogue and negotiation between all components of Syrian society, with the support of the international community, is the only option to put an end to the conflict....” The content of this letter sent by the Secretary of State has now been reiterated in a statement issued by Bishop Pates and the USCCB’s president, Cardinal Timothy Dolan: “We are anguished by the terrible suffering of the Syrian people and again affirm the need for dialogue and negotiation to resolve this conflict that has wrought so much devastation,” the statement reads.

“As our nation's leaders contemplate military action, it is particularly appropriate and urgent that we in the United States embrace the Holy Father's call to pray and fast on September 7 for a peaceful end to the conflict in Syria and to violent conflicts everywhere,” the statement added.