Revelation 6:9-11 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.
A Catholic priest who was setting up a monastery in Gassanieh, Syria was seized by Islamic extremist rebels last Sunday and executed.
The Vatican confirmed over the weekend that Islamists beheaded Father Francois Murad. According to the Catholic news service, the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Nusra front was behind the savage murder.
Videos from the region show a crowd of Islamists gathered around as Murad was beheaded with a kitchen knife. The crowd video taped the priest’s murder and shouted “Allahu Akbar”. After the murder, several in the crowd are shown moving in to get close up photos of the priest’s body.
“This should make it clear to Christians around the world what jihadists are about. Make no mistake. Catholics and Christians around the globe are under dire threat, particularly from the spread of militant Islam. Until the threat is recognized and taken seriously, martyrdom like this will continue,” Catholic Online said.
Gassanieh, a village with a majority Christian population, has been under attack by Islamist fighters the past few weeks, driving many of the population from the region.
