His Holiness Patriarch Zakka Iwas writes in an introduction to Professor Hans Hollerweger's recent publication on Turabdin:

Those working at the present time for the conservation of Turabdin and our treasured monasteries are dearly loved by us; we regard them as living martyrs and pray without ceasing that the Lord may preserve them.

Why is this ancient Christian civilization in Mesopotamia under such threat? Why have so many thousands of indigenous Christians fled this homeland which has been theirs since the time of Christ? It would be easy to blame the external forces such as hostile governments, bigoted religions, or ethnic conflicts, all of which exist in this region today. But these have existed in the past too, and sometimes in greater strength and wickedness. Timor the Lame exterminated Christians and their beloved monasteries at the turn of the 15th century. Kurdish tribes laid waste again to the rebuilt monasteries a hundred years later. Ottoman sultans ordered the extermination of Christians in eastern Turkey in the 19th century.

So why in this century has the region of Turabdin been almost completely abandoned? Have not the Christians of the west poured their resources into Turabdin? Have they not built schools, medical clinics, drilled wells, and given thousands of dollars, marks, and franks to fund development projects?

Western Materialism

Yes! And why has this not stemmed the flow of émigrés from Turabdin to the rest of the world? Because at the very heart of the problem, even its very cause, which has fueled the exodus, is the very thing which has not been present in earlier centuries. It is more intoxicating than any drug you could smuggle into the county. It is subtler than any destructive government policy and more dangerous than any ethnic hatred. It is western materialism! Every gift of money only reminded people of the wealth of the west. Every well drilled and project offered was a searing reminder of where safety and material comfort existed. Every teacher paid and staff person supported in the region only repeated the drumbeat of the rhythm of riches flowing from the west.

In the early 1990's I saw a fish farm built, and expensive farm combine delivered, weaving looms put in place, and wells drilled in Turabdin. All were abandoned. The psychology is simple. Why be on the receiving end of these gifts when you could go to the source of these gifts.

Human Rights

But even materialism alone is not enough to create the conditions for the Christian cleansing of eastern Turkey. There must be a political condition present that allows governments to open their doors to the émigrés from Turabdin. Economic refugees are given little hearing in the west. They are looked upon as opportunists who will only further slice the economic pie of Europe and North America. What has been added to the economic factor is the political philosophy of Human Rights. This is a set of highly subjective principles. What are Human Rights to one group are human wrongs to another. Basically human rights is a code phrase for the imposition of democracy and capitalism upon closed societies or governments that have limited expressions of democracy.

The banner of Human Rights has been waved over Turkey and as a result it has stirred up the desire of the residents to be blown like dust to Europe. The windswept ancient institutions are the only reminders left of a once thriving culture. Except for the few patriots of Turabdin who reside in the Moslem dominated land most of Turabdin now resides in Europe.

As the west has proclaimed Human Rights, it has backfired on them in a sense. As it imposed Human Rights on these lands of Mesopotamia, it has created a moral obligation on the west to provide sanctuary for the victims of oppression. Those who shout about injustice from the mountaintops must provide refuge in the valleys below. The valleys of Switzerland and Germany are filled with the result of this social binary psychology. It is a principle as old as the Hebrew Bible where cities of refuge were built for those who fled those bent on revenge. This carried over to the Church so that we see in the French novel Les Miserables, Jean Val Jean hiding in a church. Those who preach mercy must provide a place of mercy.

Therefore, both political and economic forces have merged in this century in a unique way to create conditions that never before existed in the more than 1600 years of Turabdin's history.

Case Studies

In the beginning of this decade, a John Deere combine was delivered to the village of Middon. The machine was purchased by the Friends of Turabdin in Austria. Its intended use was to help in the harvest of the lentil and wheat fields. But it only reaped problems. It immediately became an economic target. Neighboring Muslims demanded the use of the machine. Physical threats were made when they were denied its use. Gunfire, fears of landmines, and general frustration finally forced the village to sell the harvester. Some of the money was used to help family members move away. Although this village has remained quite strong, this is an example of what happens when economic resources are given to a community.

In the village of Hassanah, looms were sent from Sweden to assist the families who had lost their market in Iraq. The Gulf War had cut them off from their market. Today the village is abandoned. The looms were sold and the money used directly and indirectly to finance the move of many of the families to Germany. The fact that the Kurdish military groups occupied the village only aided the desire of the people to move to Europe where the source of generosity had been woven into their consciousness and pride.

In 1991 in the aftermath of the Gulf War I wrote a grant for the building of a dairy farm in Gunduk Shukro. The proposal was designed so that cattle and equipment to the village was not just given to the village but a cooperative was organized. Each family got so many shares as well as the Bishop. Additional shares would be earned by 'sweat equity'. For example, a family could not hold title to a cow until they raised a heifer calf from that cow and returned it to the project. Then the heifer would be given to another applicant who would do the same. This type of reinvestment of assets would do two things. It would take away the incentive to sell the animal and pocket the money and it would insure that people work on their project. A management team would decide how to reinvest in the project, distribute dividends, and manage funds.

An agricultural expert from the United States was sent to help evaluate the project and get it started. Funds were raised by ten million United Methodist in the United States. A large amount of money was then budgeted through the CROP program (Committee on Relief for Overseas Projects). Some equipment was purchased and fields were planted with alfalfa for the beginning of the project. But the project died at this point as the security situation on the region deteriorated. The village across the highway from Gunduk was forced by Turkish soldiers to leave in the name of security.

At the National Council of Churches headquarters in New York where the offices of CROP are located, there were fears that the same would soon happen to Gunduk Shukro. Investment in the village was withdrawn. Although the village has remained, the young people have left for Europe and America. The sustainability of the village decreases with the rising general age of the villagers.

The Lessons of Immigration

The lessons we learn from those who have emigrated from Turabdin are typical of most emigration patterns in the 20th century. The first to leave are the best and brightest. Host countries see these people as contributors to their societies. Doctors, craftsmen, engineers are among the first group. The next group is the middle class who has their determination and persistence to offer. For the most part this group this group has been highly successful in the Diaspora. The last group are the poorest and weakest. These are often left behind in the homeland unless for humanitarian reasons they are allowed to emigrate to the west. They are considered as burdens on the social structure of the host country.

The tendency of immigrant communities is to remain closed to their host environment. This has the effect of making the people quite independent and strong. They take care of their own and foster this spirit in their children. The Churches become ethnic clubs for the support of family, business, and social connections. This insulating behavior on one hand protects the community from losing its identity and being absorbed into the majority culture. On the other hand it limits the highest good for the community. What I mean by this is that political and educational is blunted because the majority community does not know much about the minority community because they stay within their own cultural structures. And the minority community has not reached out and told their story to the majority culture. Publications in the Diaspora are to members of the Diaspora and not to the larger majority community.

Political lobbying for the rights and needs of those in the homeland is often absent because the story has not been told by those who can be most effective. The problem with this insular behavior of the immigrant community is that it gives a confusing message to the next generation. The parents say they want the benefits of western culture but they do not want their children to be influenced by that very culture.

A deacon in Switzerland recently told me that he does not want his children to be influenced by the culture of Europe. If this happens he said he would take his family back to Turabdin.

Recently in Germany I visited a family from Turabdin who own a Chinese/Middle Eastern/Pizza restaurant. It represents to me the kind of confusion I see in the Diaspora community. The children of the next generation will either reject this confusion or become members of an even more insular ethnic cult who is alienated and divorced from the majority culture.

There is a third option though and that is to be members in the majority culture but not of the majority culture. This means that the community must participate in ecumenical councils and not just have their hand out for gifts and money. This means that church leaders and priests must resist the desire to become an ethnic club and hold seminars and forums in their larger community where they can tell their story. This means that lay folk must form political and community associations to help in the improvement of their larger communities. Schools, libraries, art councils, and public institutions should have people from Turabdin on their councils and boards.

When this happens, a greater good arises in the Diaspora community that both protects the members of the Diaspora and allows them to be open to the larger world.

In small ways I see this type of integration happening. Enlightened Bishops are pointing the way. Clergy in Europe are teaching seminars in Universities. We must encourage political leaders among the laity, foster development of speakers and commit to institutional expressions through art exhibits, books, films, and cultural exhibitions.

It is not too difficult to define who we are but the hard work is in defining who we shall become.

I, for one, shall soon return to Mor Gabriel in Turabdin where I shall become a monk. I do not have a wife anymore and my children have both graduated from University and have fine occupations. I shall remain in Mor Gabriel as a symbol against western materialism. I have sold or given away all I have acquired in 50 years. I shall help craft a new human right that demands that people have a right to remain in their homeland where their spiritual and cultural treasures are located. Only in the land of Turabdin can we be stewards of one of the greatest Christian civilizations that have ever existed. We must call for people to return to the land. A salvation movement of a reverse migration depends upon a holy remnant who shall return.

Fr. Dale A. Johnson (Bar Yohanon)
Syrian Orthodox Church

     1. This Age of Conflict, F. P. Chambers, C. P. Harris and C. G. Bayley (Harcourt Brace & Co).
     2. The Siege of South Africa, (Institute for Historical Review), (Veritas), both Ivor Benson.
     3. An Autobiography, Sir William Butler (Constable).
     4. The Dispossessed Majority, Wilmot Robertson (Howard Allen)
     5. Antisemitism, Bernard Lazare (Britons); The Zionist Connection, Alfred M. Lilienthal
     (Veritas); The Controversy of Zion, Douglas Reed (Veritas); and others.
     6. A Preface to Paradise Lost, C. S. Lewis (Oxford University Press).
     7. The Decline of the West, Oswald Spengler, (Allen & Unwin).
     8. Equality, the Third World and Economic Delusion, P.T. Bauer (Weidenfeld & Nicolson).
     9. African Genesis, Robert Ardrey (Collins).
     10. ‘Dr. Sun Yat-sen and the Principals of Nationalism’ in Truth Out of Africa. Ivor Benson
     (Veritas).

Other References

     J.A. Hobson, The Psychology of Jingoism, and the War in South Africa (James Nisbet).
     John Milton, Paradise Lost (New American Library).
     Carrol Quigley, Tragedy and Hope (Macmillan Company).
     Antony C. Sutton, Wall Street and the Bolshevik Revolution, and Wall Street and the
     Arnold Toynbee, A Study of History.

(ZNDA:  Chicago)  Last month, the Kurdish Parliament in Arbil, Iraq named Nechrivan Barzani as the new head of the Council of Ministers of the Iraqi Kurdistan.  Mr. Barzani had previously served as KRG's Deputy Prime Minister.  His new term in office began on November 27.  The KRG is the dominant power in the provinces of Arbil and Dohuk where a substantial number of Assyrians live.  Mr. Barzani's first assignment will be to form the Fourth Cabinet which will consist of 15 ministries.  Mr. Yacoub Yosip of the Assyrian Democratic Movement of Zowaa is the Minster of Housing and Development in the Third Cabinet.  Assyrian observers expect greater involvement of the ADM in the KRG's Fourth Cabinet.

(ZNRF:  London)   According to a Radio-Free Europe report, the Assyrian National Party (ANP)'s Nimrud Baytu, told London's "Al-Zaman" newspaper on 15 November that the ANP is committed to "an unbreakable link" between the Assyrians and other Iraqi nationalists in an effort to build a pluralistic Iraq.  Mr. Baytu noted also that: "Arab, Kurdish, Assyrian, and Armenian sons" must "struggle with all nationalist forces".  He then said that "successive governments [in Iraq] overlooked the racial and cultural multiplicity of the Iraqi people, and failed to respect and endure this multiplicity in the constitution."

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty report is published in Prague, Czech Republic.
 

Sargon Dadesho, Ph.D.
President, Assyrian National Congress
P.O. Box 3539
Modesto, CA 95352

Dear Dr. Dadesho:

I have received your faxed letter dated November 19, 1999.  I immediately gave a copy to the Chairman of the Census Committee sponsored by the Chaldean Federation of America, Mr. Joseph Kassab.  Another copy was given to Right Reverend Sarhad Jammo, Vicar General of the Assyrian/Chaldean Catholic Diocese in the United States.

For the record, I would like to clarify to the Assyrian and Chaldean people that our telephone conversation on October 6, 1999 was only to inform me about the suggestion(s) of the Assyrian National Congress (ANC) regarding Census 2000.  Your suggestion was that the ANC wants to withdraw the Assyrian name from the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac name, since the Congress prefers the Assyrian name to be represented alone, as was the case for the 1990 Census.  In addition, you asked me if I would be upset or angry if the Congress will proceed in that direction.  If you remember, my response to you was very clear, I specifically said, "Dr. Sargon, we [the Chaldeans] prefer to be represented together [Assyrians/Chaldeans/Syriac] and have worked hard to achieve that goal.  We will not do anything to withdraw, but if you want the Assyrian name to stand alone, this is up to you, the Congress, and the Assyrian people.  We will not be upset, but we prefer to be represented together."  This is all that transpired in our telephone conversation.

I would like this clarification to be made public to all those that have understood otherwise and I feel that this is your responsibility, since there was a miscommunication on your part as was indicated on Assyria-Vision, according to the e-mail send from owner-assyrianlink@allover.com dated 11/27/99 (copy enclosed).

With best wishes, I am sincerely yours,

Most Reverend Ibrahim N. Ibrahim
Bishop of the Assyrian/Chaldean Catholics of the United States

(ZNDN:  Detroit)  Queen Noor, 48, wife of the late King Hussein of Jordan, was in Metro Detroit last week to address more than 2,000 people at a humanitarian banquet in Detroit's Renaissance Center, sponsored by Arab-American and Chaldean Council.  Detroit is home to more than 7,000 Jordanians. Noor was the guest speaker at the 1999 Arab American and Chaldean Council Civic and Humanitarian Awards Banquet, and spoke about humanitarian issues around the world. Proceeds from the sale of $100 tickets will support the King Hussein Foundation, chaired by Noor, and established by royal decree this year as a national and international nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that promotes education, health, peace and children's programs. Noor married King Hussein in 1978 and has earned a bachelor's degree in architecture and urban planning from Princeton University in 1974, and has participated in international urban planning and design projects in Australia, Iran, the United States and Jordan.

(ZNDA:  Germany)  Ms. Adrin Takhsh of Berlin, Germany, last week spoke at the Deutsch Orient Instut's Sixth Annual Congress held in Blankenese-Hamburg.  This was the first time that an Assyrian scholar was representing the contemporary issues of the Assyrian communities.  Ms. Takhsh spoke about "Assyrian Women Between Traditional and Modern life" during a December 3rd working group meeting. Ms. Helga Anschütz of the Oriental Institute chaired the panel.  In her discussion of the role of the Assyrian woman in the different Assyrian communities Ms. Takhsh gave an overview of the Assyrian society in the western countries. At the end of her speech she noted the Assyrian women's increasing involvement in Northern Iraq's politics and culture.  Mr. Takhsh is a Ph.D. candidate, completing her studies at the Free University of Berlin.

(ZNRU:  Damascus) - Syria, hoping to cash in on  millennium festivities, has launched a campaign to remind tourists it was once home to Jesus and some of his apostles.  Better known for ancient cities such as Palmyra and the  Crusader Crac du Chevalier castle, Syria now is seeking to highlight its rich Christian heritage.  Syrian figures show the number of non-Arab visitors to Syria  in October rose by 62 percent compared to the same month last year. A total 2.3 million tourists have traveled to Syria so far this year, compared to 2.09 million in 1998.

Visitors in the new year will be able to see exhibits of ancient icons in Damascus and Aleppo, as well as attend celebrations at the country's Christian sites.  Syria is promoting tours that would retrace the path the Biblical three kings, who carried gold,  frankincense and myrrh through Syria to Bethlehem.  Byzantine Christian churches in Syria include the so-called Dead Cities of the north.  Syria also expects a surge of tourism to Malloulah, a village cut into the cliff where inhabitants still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus. The village boasts a convent which houses a  painting of the Virgin Mary by Saint Luke the Evangelist.

Damascus too has many Biblical claims to fame. In the courtyard of the Ommayad Mosque is a mausoleum for John the  Baptist, who is said to have performed his first baptism in  Syria. Nearby is the Street Called Straight taken by Saint Paul,  who "saw the light" on the road to Damascus.

In Aleppo, visitors to the city's magnificent citadel will also see the place where Abraham is believed to have milked his red cow.

Syria is also homo to hundreds of thousands of Assyrians, mainly members of the Syrian Orthodox and Syrian Catholic Churches.

"I read Paul Yonan's rebuttal regarding the Muslim massacres.  It was very moving.  You are my kind of atoraayaa!"

Robert Oshana
Chicago

"I would like to submit the following idea for your consideration.

The first part of my idea is to include an obituary section in your magazine. In my opinion, this section would help our scattered Assyrian community stay in touch with lost friends and relatives. The second function for this section is to serve as a celebration of the life and accomplishments of the deceased individual. As we all know, every individual has lifetime worth of accomplishments and achievements, and I think we should all reflect back on those achievements and learn from the lives of these individuals.

The second part of my idea is for Zinda magazine to include a section for birth announcements throughout our Assyrian community worldwide. This section would again be a celebration of new life, and would carry with it the promise and hopes of past and present generations into the future.

Keeping in mind the time constraints that your staff faces in meeting its weekly deadline, I believe that the two above sections can be presented on a monthly versus weekly basis. This way the workload would not be as overwhelming. Finally, Zinda magazine has proven itself as a being an effective medium for disseminating information throughout the Assyrian community worldwide, and the addition of these two sections would only serve to enhance Zinda's image as a leader in information exchange.

Please continue the fine effort your are undertaking and accept my kindest regards."

Mazin Enwiya
Chicago

Beginning with the first issue in January 2000 Zinda Magazine will include a new section entitled "MILESTONES" where obituaries, birth, wedding, and other social announcements will be noted for our readers.  Zinda Magazine thanks its readers for helping to improve its image and the quality of its content.

Tis' the Christmas Party Season

The ASSYRIAN ACADEMIC SOCIETY invites YOU! to our annual Christmas dinner and dance party.

Let us rejoice in the magical moments of Christmas as we surround ourselves with the warm feeling of love, the snug feeling of togetherness, and the joy and excitement of celebration.

Date: Saturday, December 11, 1999
Place: Edens Banquet Hall
Address: 6313 N. Pulaski Rd., Chicago
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Ticket Price: $25.00 for Adults
$15.00 for children under 12 years of age

Entertainment by: Emmanuel Bet-Younan

Tickets can be purchased directly by calling the AAS at: (773) 461-6633.
You may request your tickets by E-mail: staff@aas.net

Assyrian Academic Society
P.O. Box 3541
Skokie, IL 60076
http://www.aas.net

He who has not supported a wife or child
His nose has not borne a leash (the allusion is to the nose leash of prisoners).

For his pleasure:  marriage.
On his thinking it over: divorce.

A joyful heart: the bride.
A sorrowful heart:  the groom.

Friendship lasts a day.
Kinship endures forever.

He who possesses much silver may be happy,
He who possesses much barley may be happy,
But he who has nothing at all can sleep.

History Begins at Sumer, Kramer

Perched on a makeup chair in a brightly lit salon, surrounded by a bevy of beauty operators and massage therapists, the pixie-sized Nadwa Yono tosses her raven hair back and forth and beams confidently. "The hardest step in my business wasn't getting a loan, even though I was turned down seven times before Franklin Bank approved us," Yono said. "The hardest step was getting beyond my family to become a hairdresser."

Yono, the owner of the sleek 5,000-square-foot, Saloene Nadwa and Day Spa, with 50 employees under her wing and $3 million gross revenues on the operating report, recalls the battle she waged with her father and brothers over deciding her destiny. "We came to America from Telkif, Iraq, for political freedom, but we were a strict ethnic family," Yono said. "Women seldom worked outside the home, except in the family business."

At 8, Nadwa Yono begged her older brothers to let her work at their party store in Romulus and continued to work nights and weekends during high school. But rigid goals her family set forced her to lie about the classes she took at vocational school. An older sister signed her permission slips. Her parents did an about-face once she graduated and received accolades for her hairstyles. They offered to buy her a small salon in the Chaldean community. She turned them down, opting instead to work the next 14 years for the top cosmetologists in the business.

Last month, her father was among the 400 well-wishers at Yono's five-year anniversary party with high-fashion models, strolling caterers and live entertainment. "He is so proud of me," she said. Her customers echo the sentiment. "She does a perfect cut; no one else can compare," said Kimberly Tiberia, a West Bloomfield secretary who has followed Yono since 1987 to a string of salons. "She has this unstoppable energy. You want to be around her."

Yono exudes that magnetism as she described the business plan she prepared to get a loan and a lease on property in the Novi Town Center. She wanted a full-service place where business and professional women could pamper themselves in a multitude of ways. The salon offers everything from a $25 French manicure to a $70 enzymatic sea mud wrap, all the way up to a seven-hour spa treatment for $375. She scoured trade magazines, conversed with vendors and visited top salons to choose color schemes, services and decor. To recruit top assistants, she began offering a 401(k) pension plan and paid health care. Each employee is required to attend three classes a year, whether in Thailand, Chicago or Detroit. Employees are reimbursed upon completion of the classes. "Nadwa expects the best out of us and we want to do that, for her and for ourselves," said Jamie Myslewiec, a stylist who joined the salon just after it opened. "She takes a chance with people fresh out of beauty school and brings them along."

In a few months, Yono hopes to break out one wall of the salon and grow by 1,000 square feet. She will offer a meeting room and catering service for corporate and bridal parties and begin marketing a line of software for the salon and spa industry. "My Chaldean customers tell me I am an inspiration for them," Yono said. "They can do their dreams if they are willing to prove themselves. I keep trying to prove myself. It drives me forward every day."

Maureen McDonald

Maureen McDonald is a Detroit free-lance writer who identifies women with a passion for their profession.

BC (1850)

With the death of Puzur Ashur II, Assyria fell under a succession of foreign rulers, lasting for almost 500 years.  The last invaders were the Hurrians of Mitanni.  Finally, with the accession to power of King Ashur-Uballit I in 1362 B.C. a new Assyrian supremacy in the Middle East emerged until the Fall of Nineveh in 612 B.C.

The Ancient Near East, Hallo and Simpson

Mar Toma Audo, Chaldean Catholic Bishop and author of an Assyrian Dictionary, is murdered in the church compound in Urmia, Iran.

The Assyrian Experience, Naby & Hopper
 
 

December 7, 1975:   Surmi Khanom, Mar Shimmun Benyamin's sister, dies in Turlock, California.  She was 93.  Surmi Khanom made several trips to Europe and America, along with other Assyrian activists between 1919 and mid-1930's, to persuade the British and French governments to respect the political and human rights of the Assyrians in the Middle East.  Mar Shimmun Benyamin, the 117th Patriarch of the Church of the East, was assassinated in 1918 by the Kurdish chief, Simko, during a peace negotiation with the Kurds.

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