How Fast Things Can Change

by Mike James

DAMASCUS, SYRIA - DECEMBER 9: People celebrate the fall of the Assad regime on December 9, 2024 in Damascus, Syria. Rebel forces in Syria seized the capital from longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad. Syria has been mired in a multi-party civil war since 2011, sparked by the Arab Spring uprisings. (Photo by Ali Haj Suleiman/Getty Images)

The sudden demise of the Assad regime in Syria is a reminder of how quickly and suddenly change can occur in the world. Since 1970, the al-Assad family has ruled Syria under Hafez al-Assad and then his son Bashir. In 2011, popular discontent with the al-Assad regime began leading to civil war. With the support of Russia, Iran, and Hizballah, the al-Assad regime held onto power in a fractured country over the past 13 years. Due to the recent issues being experienced by Russia (war with Ukraine), Iran (conflict with Israel), and Hizballah (conflict with Israel), the Syrian rebel groups struck at an opportune time and quickly wrested control of Syria from the Assad regime.

Hafez al-Assad was a Ba'athist and ruled with an iron fist. Baathism is an Arab nationalist ideology that looks for the creation of a unified Arab state. Sadam Hussein of Iraq was also a Ba'athist. The Ba'athists believed in a unique form of Arab socialism.

The Assads were able to rule Syria despite being part of the Alawite religious minority. In Syria, about 74 percent of the population is Sunni Islam, 13 percent Shia Islam, 10 percent Christians, and about 3 percent Druze. The Alawites could be considered a sect of Shia Islam. The Alawites are different from other Shia sects. They do have some overlap with Twelver Shiites, but they are also different. In fact, they are so different that some Muslims do not consider them to be Muslims.

They believe that God manifested himself in some way in Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, but they reject claims that they consider Ali an incarnation of God. They believe in the unity of God, but some say they believe God has revealed himself several times in a trinitarian form. However, their trinitarian ideas are different from mainline Christian ideas on the Trinity. They also believe in the five pillars of Islam, but they interpret them differently than orthodox Muslims. They even have some elements of mainline Christian practice within their religion, like celebrating Christmas, Epiphany, Pentecost, and the Feast days of John Chrysostom and Mary Magdalene.

How were the Assads able to hold power for so many years being a minority? One reason is due to the authoritarian nature of the regime. One famous incident is the Hama massacre of 1982. In the early 1980s, the Muslim Brotherhood (Sunnis) was leading an uprising against the government of Syria, which was centered in the city of Hama. Estimates are that at least 10,000 Syrians were killed over a three-week period in February 1982 when Hafez al-Assad cracked down on the city. Most of the dead were civilians who were not involved in the fighting.

But Bashir al-Assad seems to have followed in his father's footsteps. Since the civil war began in 2011, estimates are that 100,000 Syrians have disappeared. Many were put into prisons where evidence is now emerging that they were tortured and killed.

The rebel group that led the other rebel groups in ousting Assad is called Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). It has morphed into its present state over the past 13 years. It is the successor group to the previous al-Qaeda affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra. The group's stated aim is to establish Islamic rule in Syria. It has tried to soften the roots of its origin over the years. However, the U.S. State Department still lists it as a terrorist organization. Time will tell what emerges out of the new Syrian state.

The recent activity in Syria should be a reminder to us all about the process of change. For most of my life, there has only been one family ruling Syria. There have been attempts over the years to change that, but things remained the same. Then, suddenly, within a few weeks, the Assad regime was gone for good.

This reminds me of the scripture in 2 Peter 3:3-5, which says this: "Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water."

The rulers, kingdoms, despots, and dictators of this world do not last. They will all have their reckoning. But most importantly, one day, God will take over control from all the human forms of government. Since we only live for a short time in the grand scheme of things, we lose sight of the fact God is working in His own timeframe.

Later in the same chapter of 2 Peter 3:14, Peter explains that if we are looking for this future coming of God, we should be doing the following while we wait: "Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless."

Rather than worrying and fretting about how and when the Second Coming will occur, we should be working and striving to be found without spot and blameless at His arrival. You do that by following and obeying the commands of God. Do that, and everything else will take care of itself.

Sources: "Alawite," Encyclopedia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Alawite.

"Remembering the Hama Massacre," by Robert M. Danin, Council on Foreign Relations, https://www.cfr.org/blog/remembering-hama-massacre, February 2, 2012

"Who are the Key Players in the Syrian War," by Leo Sands, The Washington Post, December 8, 2024.

"Who are the Alawites and What Do They Believe?" Got Questions, https://www.gotquestions.org/Alawites.html

"Breaking the Silence Over Hama Atrocities," by Basma Atassi, 2 February 2012, Aljazeera, https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2012/2/2/breaking-the-silence-over-hama-atrocities

"Torture Files Reveal a Syria Rife With Horror," by Louisa Loveluck and Salwan Georges, The Washington Post, December 15, 2024.