Christmas Refugees: The Most Difficult Time of the Year
Roy Jenkins presents the stories of Christian refugees as they face another Christmas away from home and family.
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If Christmas can sometimes be a trial for any of us, imagine what it’s like to be thousands of miles from home, living the precarious existence of a refugee or asylum seeker.
Roy Jenkins presents the testimonies of a number of people in living in exile here in Wales. They’re part of the mass migration of millions fleeing war, persecution and poverty. It’s a crisis which catches up families of all faiths and none; but as churches prepare to celebrate the birth of the Christ who became a refugee as an infant, we hear how this season is seen by some of the Christians seeking to build a new life in Wales.
Among the refugees are Dr Sonia Khoury, originally from Damascus, and now living in Llandudno. In Cardiff, hairdressers George and Leonarda Onikian tell the story of how they fled war-torn Aleppo to seek safety in Newport, and later in Cardiff. Like many other refugees, they have had to build a new life in Wales, and try to put the past behind them. Not an easy task, especially when friends and family are still back home in Syria.
Churches have responded to the crisis in different ways. In Blaenau Ffestiniog we hear from volunteers such as Sara Roberts, a lay reader in the Church in Wales. Along with people of various faiths and none she has helped collect material to take to the ‘Jungle’ in Calais. And in Newport we hear from Sarah Croft, who is in charge of the Sanctuary – a project under the aegis of Bethel Community Church, reaching out to asylum seekers and refugees in the city.
Broadcast
- Sun 20 Dec 2015 09:03´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio Wales
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All Things Considered
Religious affairs programme, tackling thorny issues in a thought-provoking manner