Jesuit Priest to Share Story of Expulsion from Syria

An Italian Jesuit priest who was expelled from Syria last month for speaking out against the government will share his experiences with the public Monday night at Rock Spring Church in Arlington.

Father Paolo Dall’Oglio was deported from Syria in June “for his outspoken criticism of the government's crackdown on a popular uprising,” according to National Public Radio.

During his 30 years in Syria, Father Paolo helped to restore the 1,000-year-old Mar Musa Monastery and to establish it as a center for interfaith dialogue and Muslim-Christian understanding, according to a news release.

“The very fact that I am for change, for democracy, for human rights and dignity, this is very provocative,” Father Paolo told The New York Times.

Father Paolo will speak at 7 p.m. Monday at Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ, 5010 Little Falls Road.

He will highlight his decades-long experience of living in Syria, his perspective on current conditions in Syria, and the circumstances surrounding his expulsion, the news release states.

The event is co-hosted by the Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center of Falls Church. It is sponsored by the Syrian American Council and the Council on American-Islamic Relations.