By Baghdadhope
Just the time for a short rest in Baghdad after his coming back from Rome where he partecipated to the meeting the Patriarchs of the Catholic Oriental Churches had with the Holy Father and the Patriarch of the Chalden Church, Cardinal Mar Emmanuel III Delly, will leave for his first visit to Georgia where on October 17 the first Catholic Chaldean church will be consecrated. “An important event” declared Cardinal Delly to Baghdadhope “if you think that it is the first catholic church of oriental rite * in Georgia, a country where the catholics are a tiny minority.”
Actually, as explained by Msgr. Giuseppe Pasotto, since 1996 Apostolic Administrator in the Caucasus acting as bishop of Georgia, Armenia and Azerbajan for the catholics of latin rite, in a country where most people belongs to the Orthodox Church and where the 11% of the faithful are of Islamic faith, catholics, of latin, armenian and assyrian-chaldean rites, are only the 1% and live not without difficulties considering, as Msgr. Pasotto explained in 2008 to the Osservatore Romano, the difficulties in the relationship with the Orthodox majority.
The consecration of a Chaldean Catholic church, the first catholic church of oriental rite, could so be a sign that something, maybe slowly, is changing, that those "difficult" relations are being solved.
The Chaldean church that will be consecrated in Tbilisi has been erected with the help of several institutions that had expressed their willingness, as done, for example, by Aid to the Church in Need, and especially of the Chaldean diocese of St. Thomas the Apostle, based in Detroit, Michigan (USA) ruled by Msgr.Ibrahim N. Ibrahim who in 1994 ordained the priest who, since 1996 is leading the Chaldean Christians in Georgia: Father Benyamin Beth Yadegar. Father Benyamin, or how everyone calls him, Father Benny, was born in 1963 in Zomalan, a small village near the town of Urmia in Iran where he completed his early studies. In 1982 he was sent by Father Thomas Meram - now Chaldean bishop of Urmia-Salmas - to continue his theological studies in Tehran. In 1986 he arrived in Italy to continue them and remained here until 1994 when he went to San Jose (California) where he was ordained a priest. In 1995 he went for the first time to Georgia and once back in Rome he asked to be assigned to serve the faithful of that country that now, at last, will have their own church dedicated to Mar Shimoun Bar Sabbae, the Symeon bar Sabba'e, Catholicos of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, who in 341 together with 100 among bishops, priests and deacons of the East Syrian Church was martyred by the Persian King Shapur II who considered the Christians as the "fifth column" of the Roman Empire. Following the tradition of the Eastern Church is thus paid tribute to a martyr of the faith because, as said by Msgr.Najim, Chaldean apostolic visitator in Europe under the jurisdiction of which is also Georgia, it were just the 40 years of persecution of the church started with Shapur II that gave to the Eastern Church the appellation of "church of the martyrs."
Msgr. Najim explained to Baghdadhope how the creation of a church in Georgia was strongly desired by the Patriarch Raphael Bedaweed who expressed this desire to Msgr.Pasotto who with Msgr. Najim, then patriarchal delegate for Europe, canonically erected it. "It was on March 5 2001, the parish at that time had the name of Mar Addai and Mar Mari, and the same day Father Benny was officially appointed as its parish priest" says Msgr. Najim who also recalls how "it was not an easy process. In Georgia the majority of the Assyrian-Chaldean come from Iran as Father Benny so the language was not an obstacle since they speak the same dialectal variant of aramaic. The community, however, had never had a priest and many years of isolation had produced a loss of the cultural and religious identity that seemed impossible to retrieve. Father Benny really worked with dedication and courage and now at last, with the consecration of this church and the presence of the Patriarch who will be accompanied by the patriarchal vicar, Msgr. Shleimun Warduni and by the bishopo of Urmia-Salmas, Msgr. Tomas Meram, that community will feel to be truly part of the church, the heir of its traditions and no longer isolated. "
The Chaldean church that will be consecrated in Tbilisi has been erected with the help of several institutions that had expressed their willingness, as done, for example, by Aid to the Church in Need, and especially of the Chaldean diocese of St. Thomas the Apostle, based in Detroit, Michigan (USA) ruled by Msgr.Ibrahim N. Ibrahim who in 1994 ordained the priest who, since 1996 is leading the Chaldean Christians in Georgia: Father Benyamin Beth Yadegar. Father Benyamin, or how everyone calls him, Father Benny, was born in 1963 in Zomalan, a small village near the town of Urmia in Iran where he completed his early studies. In 1982 he was sent by Father Thomas Meram - now Chaldean bishop of Urmia-Salmas - to continue his theological studies in Tehran. In 1986 he arrived in Italy to continue them and remained here until 1994 when he went to San Jose (California) where he was ordained a priest. In 1995 he went for the first time to Georgia and once back in Rome he asked to be assigned to serve the faithful of that country that now, at last, will have their own church dedicated to Mar Shimoun Bar Sabbae, the Symeon bar Sabba'e, Catholicos of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, who in 341 together with 100 among bishops, priests and deacons of the East Syrian Church was martyred by the Persian King Shapur II who considered the Christians as the "fifth column" of the Roman Empire. Following the tradition of the Eastern Church is thus paid tribute to a martyr of the faith because, as said by Msgr.Najim, Chaldean apostolic visitator in Europe under the jurisdiction of which is also Georgia, it were just the 40 years of persecution of the church started with Shapur II that gave to the Eastern Church the appellation of "church of the martyrs."
Msgr. Najim explained to Baghdadhope how the creation of a church in Georgia was strongly desired by the Patriarch Raphael Bedaweed who expressed this desire to Msgr.Pasotto who with Msgr. Najim, then patriarchal delegate for Europe, canonically erected it. "It was on March 5 2001, the parish at that time had the name of Mar Addai and Mar Mari, and the same day Father Benny was officially appointed as its parish priest" says Msgr. Najim who also recalls how "it was not an easy process. In Georgia the majority of the Assyrian-Chaldean come from Iran as Father Benny so the language was not an obstacle since they speak the same dialectal variant of aramaic. The community, however, had never had a priest and many years of isolation had produced a loss of the cultural and religious identity that seemed impossible to retrieve. Father Benny really worked with dedication and courage and now at last, with the consecration of this church and the presence of the Patriarch who will be accompanied by the patriarchal vicar, Msgr. Shleimun Warduni and by the bishopo of Urmia-Salmas, Msgr. Tomas Meram, that community will feel to be truly part of the church, the heir of its traditions and no longer isolated. "
Msgr Najim will not be in Georgia for the ceremony as in October he will celebrate the First Communion ceremony in Stuttgart where it will also be celebrated the agreement for the handover of a church to the Chaldean community in the region. Representing the Chaldean community in Europe will be some priests - Father Peter Patto (Munich) and Father Sabri Anar (France). But the new contacts of the Chaldean community in Georgia will not end with the ceremony on October 17 because a visit of a delegation from the diocese of Detroit is already being planned.
As regards the elderly but very active Patriarch of the Chaldean Church who recently visited the Chaldean dioceses of northern Iraq and went to Lebanon his next destinations will be Syria and Egypt.
As regards the elderly but very active Patriarch of the Chaldean Church who recently visited the Chaldean dioceses of northern Iraq and went to Lebanon his next destinations will be Syria and Egypt.
* Also the Armenian Catholic church is of Oriental Rite but it results that in Georgia there are only Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Evangelical churches.