By Baghdadhope
As announced by Vatican Television Center the deacons who this morning have been ordained to priestly life for the Diocese of Rome in the basilica of St. Peter are 29 and not 28. Among them, for the Patriarchate of Babylon of the Chaldeans, the Iraqi Father Robert S. Jarjis.
To attend the ceremony for the Chaldean church were Mgr. Shleimun Warduni, bishop of Baghdad, Mgr. Sarhad Y. Jammo of the Eparchy of Western United States, Mgr. Ramzi Garmou, bishop of Tehran and Mgr.Philip Najim, the Chaldean Procurator to the Holy See.
"Here I am" and "I promise". These were the words uttered by the neo priests in response to the call of Pope during the touching ceremony of which it will remain the memory of the tears bathing the face of a young neo priest at the taking of habit, of the hands of all the new servants of the Church in those of the Holy Father at the moment of the unction with the Holy Chrism, and of the only white priestly vestment adorned on the back by the Chaldean Cross, that of Father Robert, to sign the perfect communion of the Chaldean Church with that of Rome but also the respect for its ancient tradition of which Father Robert is called, from now onwards, to be a witness. Respect showed also by Pope Benedict XVI who, while leaving St. Peter's Basilica to go to his apartments for the Sunday Angelus, shook his hands and exchanged some words with Mgr. Shleimun Warduni.
Absent in the ceremony, instead, was Father Hanna Saad Sirop, the Chaldean priest abducted in Baghdad on August 15, 2006 who in those moments was a guest of the TV programme "In His image" broadcasted by Italian Television dedicated to the Christian martyrs during which, recalling his terrible experience that lasted 28 days, he denounced the objective of clearing the country by Christians pursued by fundamentalist groups that have made that minority the victim of continuing violence, said he prays for everyone, Christians, Muslims and especially for the violent people, and concluded his speech by saying that despite having invoked it "I had not the grace of martyrdom" recalling who, on the other hand, because of the faith has been killed.