By
Introduction
This is the true story of a Syrian Christian young man who fled Syria in 2019. Upon his arrival in Lebanon, he called the landlord who manages one of the camps in Zahle. On the phone, the landlord says, "Please come over to see it. We have a lot of vacant tents available for rent." When this young man arrived, the Muslim landlord immediately discovered that he is a Christian. "We are full. We have no space for you." The landlord replied in a hostile tone.
Many Christians who fled Syria have some savings with them. Some of them borrowed money from relatives so that they can stay in rented apartments. If you talk to the Syrian Christians families in Zahle, they will tell you that the main reason they are not living in the tents is because they are not welcome there.
Loss of Dignity
There is also a sense of loss of dignity in the tent. No doubt, those dwelling in tents are provided for by the UN and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Many Muslim refugees who come from the rural parts of Syria have no problems staying in the tent. But that is not the case for most Syrian Christians. Most Syrian Christians are city dwellers and found the living condition in the encampment to be sub-standard.
I have lived in one of these tents, hosted by some Muslim friends. The UN did a good job in providing building materials. But when it rains, it becomes very muddy. It is also very cold in winter time, because of poor insulation as the walls are made out of tarps.
Getting In Debt
The longer the Syrian war drags on, Christian families found that they are running out of money and some of them become heavily indebted. As Syrian refugees are not allowed to legally work, their financial burden continues to grow.
The rent for a tent costs about US $150. The rent of a descent apartment costs $300 - $400. You can see how the Christian refugees are quickly indebted. Some of them, if their homes are not destroyed in the war, chose to return to Syria to rebuild.
But for those who are not so fortunate, because their hometowns, like Homs and Aleppo, are still completely destroyed and hence uninhabitable. They rely on their local churches to help them. Many of them came to Zahle because it is a Christian area of Lebanon, and they are able to join with their Christian denominations there. Unfortunately, because of the Lebanese economic crisis, even the Lebanese are struggling to make ends meet. So you can imagine the plight of those who are non-residents and who are not legally allowed to work.
Partnership
Through our partnership with a local Syriac Orthodox Church in Zahle, we are given space to serve as our food distribution center. They have generously offered us a refrigerator as well so we can store meat. Many Syrian Christians, because of soaring food prices, have not had meat for a long time. This is a welcomed gift as we were able to distribute a pound of meat to each family in our distribution in April. Unfortunately, the situation has deteriorated so quickly that now one month's salary can only get you 7 kg of chicken meat. So we would not able to distribute meat anymore because it is too expensive.