For the first time since the beginning of the Syrian civil war, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Eastern Churches has held a conference in Damascus.

The three-day conference, whose theme was “Church: House of Charity, Synodality, and Coordination,” concluded on March 17. “We really had the impression of living a Pentecost” and “rediscovering all the ecclesial, pastoral and social riches” that “distinguish us,” said Chaldean Bishop Antoine Audo of Aleppo.

Cardinal Mario Zenari, the apostolic nuncio, spoke of the devastation in Syria. “You could say that people, whatever religious denomination they belong to, have been living an uninterrupted Lent and fasting for 11 years. It is important, above all, to remain close and be in solidarity.”