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I am walking home for Christmas- as much as I can. I'll be covering over 30 miles in two days, through some beautiful areas of England, to get home for Christmas. 

I will walk from my place of work in Keswick, to the train station in Penrith (17 miles), through some very picturesque villages, with the mountains as my backdrop. I will then get the train from Penrith to Hereford, (a 5 hour journey) where I will stay a night in a B&B.

 The next morning, starting from Hereford Cathedral, I will walk through the lovely Wye Valley to Ross-on-Wye, (about 13 miles, depending on the route I take) to my parent's home, just in time for Christmas! 

All this sounds nice, but I know it could be freezing cold, lashing rain, biting wind or maybe even snow! However, I am doing this because I want to raise awareness- and money- to help Christians who are being persecuted around the world, particularly in Iraq. 

Over this summer, Christian communities were eradicated from their homelands where they have been for over 2000 years. They were given the choice to convert, pay a tax or be killed. Their homes were targeted by having the Arabic letter for "N" (for Nazarene) painted on them. These homes are now lived in by ISIS.

Now, this winter, they face a shortage of food, fuel, electricity and many will be homeless.

There are 120,000 displaced Iraqi Christians.


This topic has been in and out of the news a lot, however the Chaldean Patriarch, Louis Sako wrote recently that:
 "The curtains have been drawn on the painful events and 120,000 Christians are uprooted from their historical homeland ….and the world is silent, standing still, either because it approves or because it is incapable of acting."

I often thought that had I lived through the Holocaust there is no way I would have stood by silent. Then I realised I was standing by silent as my Christian brothers and sisters were being persecuted for their faith, while I find it hard to admit to friends I am Christian. In a very small way, I want to raise awareness and funds for Aid to the Church in Need, a charity which is doing all it can to give practical help and solidarity to those who are persecuted for their faith. In particular I want to support their initiative of getting Christmas parcels out to Iraqi and Syrian children this Christmas to ensure that they get presents and a sense of normality during a frightening time. The cost of a parcel is estimated at  

 25 pounds. 

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