SYRIE: Des milliers de réfugiés irakiens demandent à être réinstallés en Occident

By Baghdadhope

Source: IRIN

DAMAS, 29 octobre 2009 (IRIN) - Leila Johanna Isho, réfugiée irakienne, est déterminée à tout faire pour que cette année soit sa dernière année en Syrie. «La plus grande partie de ma famille est éparpillée en Europe, et j’ai un cousin au Canada, donc la destination nous est égale, mais nous devons partir, car ici, la vie devient trop difficile», a dit Mme Isho, assise avec ses trois enfants dans leur petit appartement d’une seule chambre, à Masakin Berzeh, un quartier populaire de Damas, la capitale syrienne. A l’heure où les économies arrivent à épuisement, où les revenus son dépassés par le rythme de l’inflation, où les conditions d’obtention des visas se font plus rudes, et où un retour à Bagdad est considéré comme trop risqué par la plupart des réfugiés, les familles irakiennes sont de plus en plus nombreuses à demander à quitter la Syrie ou d’autres pays du Moyen-Orient pour être réinstallées en Europe ou en Amérique du Nord. A Genève, au début du mois, Andrej Mahecic, porte-parole du Haut commissariat des Nations Unies pour les réfugiés (UNHCR), a dit que depuis 2007, l’agence avait recommandé la réinstallation dans des pays tiers de 82 500 réfugiés irakiens du Moyen-Orient : 62 000 aux Etats-Unis, et le reste au Canada, en Australie, en Nouvelle Zélande, en Suède et dans plusieurs autres pays européens. Le gouvernement syrien indique qu’il a enregistré 1,1 million d’entrées d’Irakiens en Syrie depuis 2007, tandis qu’à la fin du mois de septembre, l’UNHCR à Damas en avait officiellement enregistré 215 429, dont 27 198 en 2009. Suite aux attentats du 25 octobre à Bagdad, qui ont fait au moins 155 morts – le bilan le plus lourd depuis deux ans – l’UNHCR se prépare à faire face à un nouveau mouvement de réfugiés, si la sécurité en Irak devait continuer à se détériorer. Les Irakiens ont été peu nombreux à participer au Programme de rapatriement volontaire des Nations Unies, lancé il y a un an. Moins de 300 familles réfugiées en Syrie sont rentrées en Irak dans le cadre de ce programme, alors que le nombre d’Irakiens demandant à être réinstallés dans un pays tiers a fortement augmenté.
Leila Johanna Isho a fui Bagdad pour Damas en novembre 2004, après avoir payé une rançon à des kidnappeurs pour faire libérer son mari Les chiffres de l’UNHCR à Damas montrent que du 1er janvier à début octobre, 28 500 dossiers de réfugiés irakiens vivant en Syrie ont été proposés pour une réinstallation. Depuis février 2007, l’agence onusienne a référé au total 34 015 dossiers de réinstallation, dont seulement 15 084, soit moins de la moitié, ont abouti à un départ pour une nouvelle vie. «La réinstallation n’est proposée qu’à un faible pourcentage des réfugiés – moins de 10 pour cent du nombre total [de demandes déposées] sont soumises, et sur ces 10 pour cent, un nombre encore plus faible sont acceptées», a dit Farah Dakhlallah, porte-parole de l’UNHCR à Damas. «Les critères concernent la vulnérabilité des réfugiés. Notre travail est d’évaluer qui a le plus besoin d’une réinstallation, puis de négocier avec les ambassades correspondantes. Cependant, les décisions finales relèvent des Etats d’accueil eux-mêmes», a-t-elle dit. Retour inenvisageable Leila Isho et son mari Bassam, des Irakiens chrétiens du district de Salhieh à Bagdad, ont fui la capitale irakienne en novembre 2004, après avoir payé une rançon à des kidnappeurs pour faire relâcher Bassam, qui avait travaillé comme domestique dans le palais de Saddam Hussein, l’ancien président. Bassam, qui ne trouvait pas de travail à Damas, est parti au Qatar l’année dernière, où il a trouvé un emploi dans un hôtel. Il envoie à sa famille la plus grande partie des 700 dollars qu’il gagne chaque mois. En raison de la hausse des prix immobiliers, Mme Isho et ses enfants ont déjà dû déménager deux fois, et s’attendent à devoir déménager à nouveau prochainement. La réduction des subventions sur les carburants en mai dernier a fait tripler le cours du pétrole en une nuit, accélérant une inflation déjà très élevée et conduisant ainsi à une hausse du coût de la vie, désormais au-delà des moyens de bon nombre des habitants les plus pauvres de Damas. Cependant, Mme Isho a exclu de retourner à Bagdad : «Nous n’avons pas l’intention de rentrer en Irak. Une autre famille vit dans notre maison, et nous avons entendu dire que tout a changé là-bas». L’UNHCR ne considère pas non plus que l’Irak soit suffisamment sûr pour permettre le retour des réfugiés.
A la fin du mois de septembre, l’UNHCR à Damas déclarait avoir officiellement enregistré 27 198 Irakiens en 2009. «Un grand nombre [de réfugiés], qui sont en contact avec leur famille et leurs amis vivant en Irak, ont été informés de la situation, et ont décidé que le niveau de sécurité n’était pas suffisant. L’UNHCR considère que la situation n’est pas assez stable pour permettre un retour d’un grand nombre de réfugiés irakiens dans des conditions dignes», a dit Mme Dakhlallah. Si les Etats-Unis ont accueilli la plus grande partie des réfugiés irakiens suite à une nouvelle politique il y a trois ans (plus de 30 000 Irakiens se sont installés au Etats-Unis dans le cadre d’un programme de réinstallation lancé en 2007), les autres pays n’ont apporté qu’une assistance modeste: le Canada a accueilli 1 890 réfugiés irakiens, l’Australie 1 757, et la Suède 1 180, d’après M. Mahecic. En mars, des réfugiés irakiens, appartenant pour la plupart à des minorités persécutées, ont été les premiers à se rendre en Allemagne, dans le cadre d’un plan de réinstallation de 2 000 Irakiens réfugiés en Syrie et 500 en Jordanie, d’après L’UNHCR.

SYRIA: Thousands of Iraqi refugees seek resettlement in West

Source: IRIN

DAMASCUS, 28 October 2009 - Iraqi refugee Leila Johanna Isho is determined to make this her last year in Syria. “Most of our family is scattered across Europe and I have a cousin in Canada so we don’t mind where we move, but we have to move because life is becoming too difficult here,” said Isho, sitting with her three children in their cramped single-room apartment in Masakin Berzeh, a working-class neighbourhood of Damascus. With savings run dry, incomes unable to match inflation, more stringent visa requirements, and a return to Baghdad ruled too risky by most, the numbers of Iraqi families seeking resettlement from Syria and across the Middle East to Europe and North America is rising fast.

In Geneva earlier this month, Andrej Mahecic, a spokesman for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), said that since 2007 the agency had recommended the resettlement of 82,500 Iraqi refugees from the Middle East to third countries: 62,000 to the USA, with the remainder to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden and several other European states. The Syrian government says it has registered 1.1 million Iraqis crossing into Syria since 2007, while as of the end of September UNHCR in Damascus had officially registered 215,429, with 27,198 registrations for 2009. With the 25 October bombings in Baghdad which killed at least 155 people - the worst attacks for two years - UNHCR is braced for a renewed movement of refugees should security in Iraq continue to deteriorate. A year after its launch, strikingly few Iraqis have taken up the UN’s Voluntary Repatriation Programme. Less than 300 families from Syria have returned to Iraq under the programme, though the number claiming resettlement has grown rapidly.
Figures from the UNHCR in Damascus show that from 1 January to early October, 28,500 Iraqi refugees living in Syria were put forward for resettlement. Since February 2007 the agency has referred a total of 34,015 resettlement cases, but of those just less than half, 15,084, have departed for a new life. “Resettlement is only offered to a small percentage of refugees - less than 10 percent of the overall number [of those who apply for resettlement] are submitted, and from this 10 percent, a much smaller number actually get to go,” said Farah Dakhlallah, a UNHCR spokesperson in Damascus. “Criteria are based on vulnerability. Our job is to assess who is most in need of resettlement and then deal with the relevant embassies. However, the final decisions lie with the states themselves,” she said.

A Christian family from the Salhieh District of Baghdad, Leila Isho and her husband Bassam fled the Iraqi capital in November 2004 after paying kidnappers to release Bassam, who had worked as a servant in former president Saddam Hussein’s palace. Unable to find work in Damascus, Bassam moved to Qatar last year where he found a job at a hotel. He sends most of the US$700 he earns a month back to his family. Rising rent prices in Damascus have forced Isho and her children to move home twice, with a third move expected soon. Cuts to fuel subsidies last May caused the price of petrol to triple overnight, spurring already steep inflation which has raised living costs beyond the means of many of Damascus’s poorer inhabitants. Yet Isho rules out return to Iraq: “We have no intention of going back to Iraq. Some other family is living in our house and we are told the whole scene has changed.” Nor is Iraq considered safe to return to by UNHCR.
"A lot [of refugees] are in touch with their family and friends in Iraq, have seen the situation and decided it wasn’t safe enough. The UNHCR does not consider the situation to be stable enough for a dignified large-scale return of Iraqi refugees,” said Dakhlallah. Though the USA has taken in the bulk of Iraqi refugees following a policy shift three years ago (more than 30,000 Iraqis have moved to America under a resettlement programme that began in 2007), other countries have assisted only modestly: Canada has taken in 1,890 Iraqi refugees, Australia 1,757, and Sweden, 1,180, Mahecic said. In March, the first Iraqi refugees, mainly from persecuted minorities, made their way to Germany under a scheme to resettle 2,000 from Syria and 500 from Jordan, according to UNHCR.

Earlier this month UNHCR called on countries to “expedite where possible” their assistance to refugees. “The UNHCR continues to encourage countries to take vulnerable Iraqis and we think potential host countries could enlarge their quotas. It would be great if more countries came on board; for example, there are no Arab countries on the list of resettlement states. There is a need and resettlement is a major issue for us,” said Dakhlallah.

Frattini: ora interverranno gli ambasciatori Ue

Fonte: Avvenire

di Andrea Lavazza

«Un’altra tappa importante, un impegno ancor più concreto dell’Europa nel combattere le persecuzioni religiose». È visibilmente soddisfatto il ministro degli Esteri Franco Frattini, di ritorno dal Consiglio Affari generali e relazioni esterne della Ue tenutosi a Lussemburgo.

La tenace iniziativa italiana a favore delle minoranze cristiane nel mondo ha ottenuto un significativo consenso che si tradurrà in due direttrici d’azione.

Di che cosa si tratta, ministro Frattini?

In primo luogo, c’è l’impegno perché, in novembre, i ministri degli Esteri dell’Unione approvino un testo sulla libertà religiosa e sulla protezione dei cristiani, nello specifico. Vi saranno quindi conclusioni formali e politiche che riaffermeranno la libertà di tutte le religioni come valore fondante dell’Europa e che indicheranno la necessità di reagire alle persecuzioni contro i cristiani. In secondo luogo, il gruppo di lavoro per i diritti umani, costituito su nostra proposta in settembre, guidato dalla Commissione e dalla presidenza di turno, elaborerà un testo di risoluzione da portare al voto all’Assemblea generale dell’Onu, entro il settembre dell’anno prossimo.

Ma come si manifesterà la reazione alle persecuzioni?

Secondo quanto suggerito dall’Italia e approvato a Lussemburgo, le rappresentanze dell’Unione europea nei Paesi interessati da episodi di violenza faranno passi formali presso i governi, affinché si intervenga con strumenti di repressione e di prevenzione. Finora l’abbiamo fatto quasi soltanto noi. E con qualche risultato. Ad esempio, una mia missione in Iraq ha portato a maggiori controlli di polizia in aree abitate dai cristiani sotto attacco e al mantenimento delle quote riservate alla minoranza negli organismi amministrativi delle province in cui risiede. Con il Pakistan e con l’India avevamo sollecitato la protezione dei fedeli dagli attacchi tesi a farli fuggire dalle proprie case e dai propri villaggi. Se l’intervento di un singolo Stato ottiene qualche effetto, ben di più potrà fare la voce dei 27 membri dell’Unione.

Si può allora dire che le pressioni diplomatiche servono e che spesso il silenzio della comunità internazionale di fronte agli episodi di persecuzione è un atto di colpevole inerzia?

Certo, sollecitare vigilanza e poi chiedere conto ai Paesi, monitorando costantemente la situazione, può portare a benefici tangibili. Basta farsi sentire, e qualcosa si ottiene.Perché allora tanta apparente indifferenza, se non resistenza, da parte delle nazioni europee? Non parlerei di resistenza, ma di un muro di gomma di fronte alle sollecitazioni. Bisogna considerare il clima laicista che prevale in alcune società e di cui anche i politici risentono. Genericamente, si dice che tutte le religioni vanno tutelate, ma poi s’impone il "politicamente corretto". Si pensi, ad esempio, al fatto che in Belgio molti supermercati non vendono a Natale gli elementi del presepe per la volontà di evitare simboli religiosi specifici... Alla fine, una nostra richiesta formale alla presidenza di turno svedese perché il tema andasse all’ordine del giorno ha convinto tutti, davanti all’evidenza dei recenti fatti, a partire dai crocifissi in Sudan.

Date queste premesse, non vi è il rischio che anche i diplomatici Ue non siano particolarmente attivi nelle proteste?

I diplomatici devono essere al servizio delle disposizioni loro assegnate. Sono assolutamente convinto che si faranno parte attiva nel denunciare e nel sollecitare interventi a tutela delle minoranza cristiane perseguitate, dalla Turchia all’Iraq, dal Sudan al Pakistan e all’India.

Condivide quindi l’allarme lanciato all’Onu da monsignor Celestino Migliore, secondo cui i cristiani sono oggi i più discriminati al mondo?

Tutte le religioni devono essere libere di essere professate. Questa è la premessa anche dell’impegno europeo. Ma è un fatto incontrovertibile che negli ultimi anni i cristiani siano coloro che maggiormente sono stati oggetto di discriminazioni e di persecuzioni in molte parti del mondo.

US Department of State. 2009 Report on International Religious Freedom

By Baghdadhope

Source: US Department of State

IRAQ

SYRIA

JORDAN

TURKEY

IRAN

Following an excerpt about Iraq by AINA

Reported estimates from Christian leaders of the Christian population in 2003 ranged from 800,000 to 1.4 million.

Current population estimates by Christian leaders range from 500,000 to 600,000. Approximately two-thirds of Christians are Chaldeans (an eastern rite of the Catholic Church), nearly one-fifth are Assyrians (Church of the East), and the remainder are Syriacs (Eastern Orthodox), Armenians (Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox), Anglicans, and other Protestants.

Most Assyrian Christians are in the north, and most Syriac Christians are split between Baghdad, Kirkuk, and Ninewa Province.

Christian leaders estimate that as much as 50 percent of the country's Christian population lives in Baghdad, and 30 to 40 percent lives in the north, with the largest Christian communities located in and around Mosul, Erbil, Dohuk, and Kirkuk.

The Archbishop of the Armenian Orthodox Diocese reported that 15,000 to 16,000 Armenian Christians remained in the country, primarily in the cities of Baghdad, Basrah, Kirkuk, and Mosul.

Evangelical Christians reportedly number between 5,000 and 6,000. They can be found in the northern part of the country, as well as in Baghdad, with a very small number residing in Basrah.
There were allegations that the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) engaged in discriminatory behavior against religious minorities.

Christians and Yezidis living north of Mosul claimed that the KRG confiscated their property without compensation and that it began building settlements on their land. Assyrian Christians alleged that the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP)-dominated judiciary in Ninewa routinely discriminated against non-Muslims and failed to enforce judgments in their favor. There were reports that Yezidis faced restrictions when entering the KRG and had to obtain KRG approval to find jobs in areas within Ninewa Province administered by the KRG or under the security protection of the Peshmerga.
There were also allegations that the KRG exhibited favoritism toward the Christian religious establishment, and it was alleged that on February 17, 2008, KRG authorities arrested and held incommunicado for four days an Assyrian blogger, Johnny Khoshaba Al-Rikany, based on articles he had posted attacking corruption in the church.
On April 26, 2009, in the city of Kirkuk, three Chaldean Christians were shot and killed in their homes and two others were injured. On April 29, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) in Kirkuk received reports that eight suspected members of al-Qa'ida in Iraq had been arrested in connection with the attack. However, the suspects were later released due to lack of evidence, and no additional arrests were made.
On April 2, 2009, according to press reports, three Assyrian Christians were stabbed and killed in their homes in the Doura neighborhood of Baghdad. Although the motive is unknown, a local Christian leader indicated that the motivation for the killings was "theft."
On April 1, 2009, a Christian man was found dead in Kirkuk, with his throat slit.
On July 2, 2008, a group calling itself the Battalion of Just Punishment, Jihad Base in Mesopotamia, sent threatening letters to Assyrian churches in Mosul, demanding they not cooperate with Coalition Forces.
In a symbolically significant event, the Chaldean archbishop of Mosul, Paulus Faraj Rahho, was kidnapped on February 29, 2008, for failing to pay protection money or "jizya" to Islamic insurgents. The archbishop died while in captivity. Government security forces subsequently arrested one of the kidnappers, and he was sentenced to death.
The security situation in the Doura neighborhood of Baghdad improved sufficiently to allow 325 Christian families who had been displaced by sectarian violence to return. Two churches were operating in the neighborhood--one Assyrian Orthodox and one Chaldean--along with a Chaldean seminary. Church leaders reported full attendance at services in these churches throughout the reporting period. Christmas was declared a national holiday, and on December 20, 2008, the Ministry of Interior sponsored a public Christmas event in Baghdad.
Chaldean patriarch Cardinal Delly led Christmas Mass at the Virgin Mary convent church in Baghdad's Karada neighborhood with Ammar Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, a prominent member of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI), in attendance.

Baghdad blasts kill dozens.

Iraq. I cristiani perseguitati. "Dimenticati da tutti"

Fonte: La Stampa 26 ottobre 2009

in Tracce.it

Ripetuti attacchi contro una minoranza decimata. Il vescovo caldeo: "C'è un piano per farci sparire."

Di Aseel Kamal, Mosul

Il numero dei cristiani in Iraq è precipitato da un milione e trecentomila unità, il dato precedente alla guerra lanciata dagli americani nel 2003, agli attuali quattrocentomila circa. A stimare la cifra che da sola racconta il tragico destino dei cristiani iracheni è un esponente importante del Partito Cristiano, che sta partecipando attivamente alla vita politica del paese. E' per questo suo ruolo che non vuole rivelare il suo nome: in compenso promette di essere franco. "E' in corso un esodo" - spiega - "molti cristiani sono scappati dalle città del centro e del sud del paese, per trovare rifugio nei villaggi protetti dalle montagne del nord. Anche lì però non sono ancora al sicuro." La tradizione vuole che sia stato l'apostolo Tommaso a portare il cristianesimo nell'attuale Iraq. Oggi i gruppi più numerosi di fedeli sono a Baghdad e nelle città del nord, Kirkuk, Irbil e Mosul, l'antica Ninive, ma la comunità si sta assottigliando presa delle violenze di sciiti, sunniti e curdi.

Per leggere tutto l'articolo in PDF clicca qui

Iraq: Warduni (Baghdad) " Un massacro incredibile"

Fonte: SIR

Un massacro incredibile le cui cause potrebbero essere ricercate, anche, nelle prossime elezioni di gennaio. E’ in sintesi quanto ha spiegato al Sir il vicario patriarcale di Baghdad, mons. Shlemon Warduni, commentando l’attentato che ieri ha sconvolto la Zona verde, teoricamente quella più protetta data la presenza di Ministeri e ambasciate straniere, della capitale irachena. 165 le persone uccise e oltre 540 quelle ferite. “E’ sempre più difficile capire i motivi di tanta violenza – afferma il presule – le cause potrebbero essere ricercate nell’avvelenamento del clima politico in vista delle elezioni di gennaio”.

Secondo il generale Usa George Joulwan, ex comandante supremo delle forze militari Nato, l’attentato, che sarebbe opera di Al Qaeda, deve far capire al Governo di Nuri al Maliki che serve maggiore impegno da parte irachena nel garantire la sicurezza del Paese. “Certamente il Governo dovrà fare ulteriori sforzi per permettere alla legge di trionfare – dichiara Warduni – ma questi atti continueranno se non ci sarà una pace generale, conseguita con la cooperazione di tutti. Le dichiarazioni di parte non sono utili alla pace, la politica deve servire all’interesse di tutto l’Iraq e non solo di una parte di esso. In occasione dei tre giorni di lutto nazionale proclamati dal Governo, ci uniamo in preghiera per ricordare le vittime di questi attacchi”.

Iraq: Warduni (Baghdad) "An incredible massacre"

Source: SIR

An incredible massacre, the cause of which might be the forthcoming January election. This is briefly what has been explained to SIR by the patriarchal vicar of Baghdad, mgr. Shlemon Warduni, as he commented the terrorist attack that yesterday shocked the Green Area, theoretically the one most protected in the Iraqi capital, as many Ministries and foreign embassies are based there. 165 people were killed and over 540 injured. “It is increasingly difficult to understand the reasons for such violence – the prelate states –. The cause might be the poisoning of the political climate in the run-up to the January election”.

According to US General George Joulwan, the former Commander-In-Chief of the NATO military forces, the terrorist attack, which seems to have been committed by Al Qaeda, must make Nuri al Maliki’s Government understand that the Iraqi side must work harder for its country’s security. “The Government will certainly have to work harder to enable the law to triumph – Warduni states –, but these actions will not stop unless there is a widespread peace achieved through everyone’s cooperation. Factious statements make nothing for peace; politics must serve the interest of all of Iraq, not just part of it. On the occasion of the three days’ national mourning proclaimed by the Government, we join in prayer to commemorate the victims of such terrorist attacks”.

Sending Europe's Asylum Seekers Home

Source: Time

By Vivienne Walt / Paris Friday, Oct. 23, 2009

When police demolished the illegal refugee squatter camp known as "the Jungle" in northern France in September, the French intended to make a statement — that European governments were finally getting serious about stemming the constant tide of asylum seekers who have fled war-torn Iraq and Afghanistan for the continent. A month later, French and British officials have begun to forcibly deport some of the tens of thousands of Iraqi and Afghan refugees whose epic journeys have ended in detention camps in Europe — making good on a threat they have voiced for months.
On Oct. 21, the European Commission in Brussels also took steps to address the problem from a procedural standpoint by issuing new rules for dealing with asylum seekers. Officials set a six-month time limit for governments to hold refugee application hearings and advised all 27 European Union countries to introduce the same asylum procedures, rather than wildly varying standards. Jacques Barrot, the commission's vice president, said the changes aimed to offer "a more level playing field" to the huge numbers of people from Africa, Asia and elsewhere flooding into Europe. But as the crackdown on illegal immigrants has intensified, questions remain as to whether it will do anything to deter refugees from making the arduous trip to the continent in the first place. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said on Oct. 21 that Europe now receives 75% of the world's asylum seekers. And increasingly, these migrants are from Iraq and Afghanistan. About 13,200 Iraqis applied for asylum worldwide between January and August — the largest number for a single country for the fourth year running. Afghans followed a close second.

Read the whole article by Time by clicking here

Prima chiesa caldea in Georgia

By Baghdadhope

Fonte e foto Kaldaya.net

Come annunciato a settembre da Baghdadhope è stata inaugurata la scorsa settimana la prima chiesa cattolica di rito orientale della Repubblica di Georgia: la chiesa caldea dedicata a Mar Shimoun Bar Sabbae.

La chiesa, eretta in stile babilonese tanto da ricordare immeditamente la famosa Porta di Ishtar, è affidata a Padre Benyamin Beth Yadegar che proprio in occasione della consacrazione dell'edificio è stato elevato a rango di corepiscopo dal Patriarca della chiesa caldea, Mar Emmanuel III Delly, arrivato a Tblisi accompagnato dal suo ausiliare patriarcale Mons. Shlemun Warduni, dal vescovo di Urmia-Salmas (Iran) Mons. Thomas Meram e da altri sacerdoti.

La chiesa comprende gli edifici della canonica, spazi per la catechesi e per le suore ed un piccolo teatro. Presente alla cerimonia anche Mons. Giuseppe Pasotto, Amministratore Apostolico del Caucaso.

First Chaldean church in Georgia

By Baghdadhope

Source and photos: Kaldaya.net

As reported in september by Baghdadhope on last week the first catholic church of Oriental Rite in the Republic of Georgia has been consecrated: the Chaldean Church dedicated to Mar Shimoun Bar Sabbae.
The church built in Babylonian style resembles the famous Ishtar Gate and is in the care of Father Benyamin Beth Yadegar who in the same day of its consecration has been ordained as Chorepiscop by the Patriarch of the Chaldean Church Mar Emmanuel III Delly who arrived in Tblisi with the patriarchal auxiliary Msgr. Shlemun Warduni, the bishop of Urmia-Salmas (Iran) Msgr. Thomas Meram and other priests.
The building includes the rectory, rooms for the cathechism and the nuns and a small theatre. Attending the consecration ceremony was also Msgr. Giuseppe Pasotto, Apostolic Administrator in the Caucasus.

To be a Christian in Kirkuk (Iraq)

By Baghdadhope

Some recent articles about the situation of the Christian community of Kirkuk:

A fragile light
Iraq: In disputed Kirkuk, Christian presence is often appreciated but sometimes targeted

by Mindy Belz

source: Worldmag.com

Christians at risk in northern Iraq

source: UPI.com

Christians fleeing kirkuk

Source: Niqash

Iraq: Incontri politici ed ecumenici per il patriarca siro cattolico

By Baghdadhope

Fonti e foto: Ankawa.com e Diocesi Siro Cattolica di Mosul

La prima visita in Iraq del patriarca della chiesa siro cattolica iniziata giovedì 15 ottobre è proseguita con vari incontri con i massimi vertici politici e religiosi. Domenica 18 Mar Ignatius Joseph Younan III, con i vescovi che lo hanno accompagnato in questo viaggio e con Mons. Atanase Mati Shaba Matoka, vescovo di Baghdad, è stato ricevuto da Mons. Gewargis Sliwa, vescovo di Baghdad della chiesa Assira dell'Est che gli ha fatto dono in senso di fraternità di alcuni testi sulla storia della chiesa orientale. Sempre domenica i vescovi hanno incontrato il primo ministro iracheno, Nouri al Maliki, le cui parole di solidarietà sono state riecheggiate il giorno dopo durante l'incontro della delegazione con il presidente della repubblica irachena, Jalal Talabani, che ha espresso la propria vicinanza alla comunità cristiana del paese ricordando il contributo da essa dato alla sua crescita anche nella sua funzione di ponte tra oriente ed occidente, ed ha ribadito la necessità di preservarne i pieni diritti.

Iraq: political and ecumenical meetings for the Syriac Catholic Patriarch

By Baghdadhope

Sources and photos: Ankawa.com and Syriac Catholic Diocese of Mosul

The first visit of the Patriarch of the Syriac Catholic church to Iraq that began on Tuesday October 15 continued with different meetings with the top religious and political leaders. On Sunday 18 Mar Ignatius Joseph Younan III, along with the bishops who travelled with him to Iraq and Msgr. Atanase Mati Shaba Matoka, bishop of Baghdad, was received by Msgr. Gewargis Sliwa, Assyrian Church of the East bishop of Baghdad who presented him some books about the history of the Church of the East as a sign of fraternity. On the same Sunday the bishops met the Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al Maliki, whose words of solidarity were echoed the day after during the meeting with the President of the Republic of Iraq, Jalal Talabani, who expressed his closeness to the Christian community of the country recalling the contribute given by it to its growth also in its role of bridge between East and West, and who insisted on the necessity to preserve its full rights.

Man on a mission. Journeying across Anatolia with the Rev. George Percy Badger (1842)

Source: Today's Zaman (Turkey)

The Rev. George Percy Badger reached Constantinople from England on June 24, 1842. Badger, an emissary of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, was burning with the religious fervor and self-righteousness of a recently ordained Church of England priest.
His mission, “with the sanction and approbation of His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury,” was to make contact with the ancient Christian communities of northern Mesopotamia, particularly the Nestorians, who lived alongside the tribal, Muslim Kurds in the lofty mountains of Hakkari. Like all the best travelers, Badger kept an account of his journey, which was later published under the title "The Nestorians and their Rituals."
Badger was held up for three months in Constantinople awaiting his ferman (a document compelling the local Ottoman officials on his route to provide aid). Finally, on Sept. 30, accompanied by his wife Maria, he caught an Austrian-made steamer for Samsun. The Black Sea port city today is, if not exactly beautiful, at least a prosperous, progressive sort of place. Badger, though, describes it as “a miserable assemblage of wretched houses.” Still, he managed to obtain the services of a praiseworthy Turk he calls Kushker Oghloo to accompany him on the long journey south and east across Anatolia. Complete with hired horses and in typical Black Sea drizzle, Badger's party set out across the mountains. Mrs. Badger must have wondered what she'd let herself in for, as the han they had hoped to stay in the first night was full and they were forced to take shelter in a “wretched hovel” where “swarms of fleas prevented any one of our party from sleeping a wink.”
In the spectacularly beautiful town of Amasya, Badger's party lodged in a building next to an Armenian church and was entertained by the town's only resident foreigner, a Swiss merchant called Krug, and members of the 500-family strong Armenian community. Badger was impressed by the next town en route, Tokat, writing: “The houses are well-built, the streets clean and regular, and the bazaar spacious and well supplied with merchandise. A branch of the Iris flows through the town and waters the picturesque vineyards and gardens.” What really grabbed the reverend's attention though, were leeches, which were collected by locals “entering into pools and streams, having their legs covered with felt stockings to which the leeches adhered, and were thus easily secured.” Like Amasya, Tokat too had only one foreign resident, a young man from Trieste. His occupation? Exporting said leeches to Europe, where they were used medicinally.
Badger was less impressed with Sivas, a two-day ride from Tokat, noting disapprovingly, “The entry to Sivas we found dirty in the extreme, arising chiefly from the narrowness of the streets and the numerous streams which flow through the environs.” Badger's party was lodged with a prosperous Armenian family before leaving, the following morning, for the long ride across inhospitable terrain to Diyarbakır. For the first time since leaving İstanbul, Badger appears to be genuinely impressed by what he saw, particularly the city's famous Ulu Camii, with its copious reuse of late Roman pillars and capitals and its famed six-kilometer circumference black basalt medieval walls. These of course survive to this day, as do many of the fine old courtyard houses which Badger describes as “well-built.” Of the Hasan Paşa Han, then housing an Ottoman garrison but now home to an array of trendy breakfast salons, antique and souvenir shops, he says, “Constructed of alternate layers of rectangular blocks of white and black stone, it is deservedly admired for its size and the symmetry of its parts.” The Armenian church of Surp Giargos, currently in ruins and awaiting restoration, was then “the new Armenian Church.” According to his sources, there were then some 1,700 Armenian families in the city -- now just one elderly couple remains.
The Chaldean church
As part of his research, Badger also visited the Chaldean (converts from the Nestorian to the Catholic faith) church, which still stands and continues to serve the handful of Chaldean families left in the city. He also visited Diyarbakır's most historic church, the Syrian Orthodox Church of the Virgin Mary. The Syrian Orthodox clergymen who accompanied Badger around the church had the dubious privilege of listening to him pontificate on the Church of England. “I had abundant opportunity of explaining the doctrines and discipline of our Church, of which they were profoundly ignorant.” The pragmatic Mrs. Badger, meanwhile, had spotted something appetizing in the bazaar and “could not resist her home associations; and so a rhubarb pudding was made, and our host [a Syrian Catholic] was not a little surprised to see us eat it with sugar.”
Fortified with rhubarb pudding, the Badgers left Diyarbakır at 2 a.m. on Oct. 26, bound for Mardin. Badger wrote of the lands before him, “We had now fairly entered upon the Coordish district, as nearly all the villages from Diarbekir to Mosul are inhabited by this race.” According to his journal, the Kurds were being squeezed mercilessly by Ottoman tax-collectors and many, unable to pay, were “preparing to leave for the mountains.” Managing to be rude to the Ottoman government under whose protection he was journeying, and condescending to the Kurds, whose rights he claimed to be upholding, he commented, “I am persuaded, that under a righteous government, the Coords might be made an obedient and useful class of subjects.”
Today Mardin is the tourism hub of southeastern Turkey. Boutique hotels are sprouting like mushrooms, quaint gift shops selling local herbal soaps and the like have spread like a rash down the main street and the backstreets are full of gaggles of well-to-do İstanbulites cooing over its gracious stone-built mansion houses, mosques, medreses and churches recently restored with European Union funds. Things were somewhat different in 1842. “On entering the city walls we found ourselves amidst a heap of ruins, and it was some time before we could convince ourselves the place was not deserted … we passed the market place, where to our horror we saw no less than seven heads, covered with dust, lying on the ground.” The Ottoman garrison, Albanians, had apparently just launched massive reprisals against the Kurds for non-payment of their taxes. Mardin, spectacularly situated on a prominent limestone ridge overlooking the vast expanse of the Mesopotamian plain, boasts one of the most dramatic views of any town in Turkey. Of this Badger notes dryly: “Beside the prospect, there is nothing worthy of note in the town of Mardin. …The streets are narrow and filthy in the extreme, and the inhabitants look wretched and woebegone.” He does, however, visit what remains Mardin's prize draw, the Syrian Orthodox monastery of Deir-ul Zaferan, a few kilometers southeast of the town. Now complete with gift shop and cafe but only a metropolitan bishop and one monk, the monastery was then the patriarchal seat of the Syrian Orthodox Church.
Before heading south to Mosul (now in Iraq but then part of the Ottoman Empire), the usual gateway to the mountains of Hakkari, Badger visited Midyat. Then entirely populated by Syrian Orthodox Christians, it is today mainly ethnically Kurdish, though a few working churches remain to serve the dwindling Christian population of some 50 families. The journey to Mosul was arduous, and Badger writes, “A severe fever which had attacked four of our party, carried off one of our servants after a lingering illness, and brought Mrs. Badger and myself to the brink of the grave and suspended our operations and researches for the first four months after our arrival at Mosul.”
Leaving Mrs. Badger behind, the recovered reverend left Mosul on Feb. 20, 1843, crossing the Tigris on a ferry. He had with him three mules and an interpreter called Daood. Their first stop was the Kurdish mountaintop town of Amadiyah, just south of the modern Turkish-Iraqi frontier. From here they headed north toward Berwari (Pervari on modern maps). Badger wrote, “Mountains upon mountains rose before and around us, and I could scarcely realize the fact that I was traveling to an hospitable part of the world.” The snow was meters deep in places and ice covered the rocks and rimed the turbulent mountain torrents.
Badger had, at last, reached the region which was the crux of his mission, a land inhabited by a people adhering to an ancient branch of the Christian church, the Nestorians (known more properly as the Assyrians). Their belief that Christ was predominantly human in nature differed from Byzantine orthodoxy and was declared a heresy at the Council of Ephesus in 431. The followers of Nestorius (the bishop who had promulgated the creed and who was cruelly martyred) sought refuge on the eastern borders of the Byzantine world, then Iran, before finally relocating, in the 16th century, to one of the remotest habitable regions in the world -- the rugged mountains south of Lake Van and west of the Zagros Mountains.
Badger eventually made contact with the Nestorian patriarch, Mar Shimun, in a deep, wintry-wild mountain valley. They discussed the abstruse (the finer points of Church of England theology) and the practical (the likelihood of all out conflict between the warlike, tribal Kurds of Hakkari and the equally tribal and warlike Nestorians). Badger's successful meeting with Mar Shimun marked the end of his first journey into the mountains, and he was reunited with Maria in Mosul on March 7.
But the region Badger left was to enter a new period of turbulence which was to go far beyond the squabbles of mountain neighbors of different faiths. The Ottoman government eventually gained control of the mountains, prompted in part by pressure exerted by Britain at the behest of Badger, and both Kurds and Nestorians came under Ottoman tutelage. Then, in World War I, feeling they had little to lose, the Nestorians sided with Christian Russia. When the Russians withdrew following the Bolshevik Revolution, the Nestorians were eventually driven out of their mountain fastnesses and fled to Iran and Iraq. Now all that remains of this proud people in Hakkari are the remains of their simple churches, scattered through the remote valleys. And even these scant ruins are virtually impossible for today's travelers to visit as strife, this time between the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Turkish security forces, still hangs like a cloud over these spectacularly beautiful mountains.

George Percy Badger
Badger was born in 1815, into a military family in Malta. His sister married an American missionary and moved to Mosul, soon followed by her mother. In 1838 he wrote a guidebook to Malta; he then became a Methodist. Changing his religious stance, he moved to London, where he trained at the Church Missionary Society before being ordained as an Anglican priest in 1842. A scholar and linguist, he had an Arab-English lexicon published in 1881. His “The Nestorians and their Rituals” was published in 1852. He also served as a chaplain to the armed forces in India, Aden and Zanzibar. Badger died in 1888.

Electrical problem sparked fire at Tarzana church

Source: Contra Costa Times

By Susan Abram, Staff Writer

Fire officials said Tuesday that the blaze that damaged much of St. Mary's Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East in Tarzana was caused by an undetermined electrical problem.
The church caught fire at 6:35 p.m. Friday at 5955 Lindley Ave., sending flames 150-feet from its soaring stained glass windows into the darkening sky.
Although some parishioners were attending Bible and Aramaic study classes that evening, and worshipers had been arriving for services, no one was injured in the blaze, firefighters said.
The House of Worship Task Force, formed in 1996 with various other law enforcement agencies, was called to investigate.
The investigation is now closed, a fire department spokesman said.

Iraq: Najim (Procuratore caldeo Santa Sede) "Rischio sharia per i non musulmani"

Fonte: SIR

La recente introduzione, nella città santa di Najaf e nella sua provincia, di norme che vietano, anche a chi non è musulmano, di bere o vendere alcolici, poiché incompatibili con l’Islam, rischia di far cadere l’Iraq nell’applicazione della sharia, la legge islamica. “Si tratta di un rischio – commenta al SIR padre Philip Najim, procuratore caldeo presso la Santa Sede – che allontanerebbe l’Iraq dal cammino verso una democrazia solida, laica, rispettosa dei diritti di tutti, anche quelli delle minoranze. La religione, sia essa musulmana o cristiana, deve contribuire a riconciliare il Paese e la sua gente. I politici devono comprendere che la fede è un valore aggiunto dell’Iraq e della sua voglia di rinascere”. “Credo – aggiunge Najim - che l’Iraq non abbia bisogno dell’introduzione di tali norme ma piuttosto di decisioni concrete che portino alla costruzione di strade, scuole, ospedali, al rilancio dell’economia per creare posti di lavoro e quindi un benessere per tutti”. Tuttavia, riconosce il procuratore caldeo, “la Costituzione irachena è in qualche misura ambigua dal momento che garantisce il rispetto della libertà religiosa, ma nello stesso tempo afferma che non si possono promulgare leggi contrarie alla religione musulmana”.

Iraq: Najim (Chaldean Procurator to the Holy See) "Non-muslims fear sharia"

Source: SIR

Iraq is heading towards the imposition of Sharia, the Muslim law, after the recent introduction into the holy city of Najaf and into its provinces of laws prohibiting alcohol sales and consumption, applying even to non-Muslim people, as this practice is incompatible with Islam. Commenting on this decision in an interview with the SIR, Father Philip Najim, Chaldean procurator to the Holy See, said “there is the risk that Iraq may stray from the path leading to a solid and lay democracy which is respectful of the rights of everyone, included those of minorities. Religion, whether Christian or Muslim, should contribute to reconciling the country and its people. Politicians have to understand that faith is a value added for Iraq and its desire of recovery”. “I believe – added Najim – that Iraq does not need the introduction of such laws but rather concrete measures promoting the construction of roads, schools and hospitals in order to re-launch the economy and create new jobs for the good of everyone”. However, said the Chaldean procurator, “the Iraqi Constitution is ambiguous to some extent for it stipulates that religious freedom must be respected while, at the same time, prohibiting the promulgation of laws at odds with the Muslim religion”.

Campagna di solidarietà per i profughi iracheni

Fonte: Radiovaticana

La guerra in Iraq ha provocato uno dei più grandi esodi del Medio Oriente. Le agenzie delle Nazioni Unite parlano di quasi 2 milioni e mezzo di iracheni fuggiti nei Paesi vicini: Siria, Giordania, Libano, Egitto e Turchia. Altri 2 milioni di iracheni sono sfollati all’interno del Paese. Un movimento enorme e incessante, di cui poco si parla.

È in questo contesto che nasce la campagna per la raccolta fondi di "Un Ponte Per...", dal titolo “Emergenza profughi iracheni”, con l’obiettivo di portare assistenza sanitaria e psicologica alla comunità di rifugiati iracheni in Giordania.

Salvatore Sabatino ne ha parlato con Paola Gasparoli, dell’Ufficio comunicazione di “Un Ponte Per…”:

Attualmente, la situazione rimane drammatica ed anche con conseguenze politiche importanti per i Paesi che hanno subìto l’arrivo dei rifugiati iracheni, anche perché le loro economie sono già deboli. Pensiamo alla Giordania, ma anche alla Siria. Internamente, l’esodo di oltre 2 milioni di persone ha portato ad ulteriori sfasamenti politici all’interno del territorio. Per quanto riguarda i rifugiati esterni, il grosso problema è che non sono riconosciuti come rifugiati, ma sono considerati ospiti dalla Siria, dalla Giordania, dal Libano, dall’Egitto, e sono pochissimi, se non inesistenti, le strutture per dargli un appoggio e un aiuto. La stragrande maggioranza di loro non ha accesso alle strutture sanitarie, non ha accesso alla scuola.

Tra questi due milioni e mezzo di iracheni fuggiti nei Paesi vicini ovviamente ci sono anche centinaia di migliaia di cristiani, che vivevano soprattutto nel nord dell’Iraq. Qual è la loro condizione?

Personalmente ho incontrato molti dei profughi cristiani, soprattutto nel nord del Paese, nell’area del Kurdistan iracheno e in Siria, e la loro situazione è una situazione molto spaesata. Lì ho incontrato cristiani che arrivavano da zone come Baghdad, per esempio, e che abitavano in zone anche ricche culturalmente. La loro situazione è decisamente di tristezza, di frustrazione, per un Paese nel quale prima vivevano serenamente, dove sentivano un contatto religioso. Parlando, per esempio, con il vescovo di Kirkuk, Louis Sako, diceva: “Noi eravamo distribuiti sul territorio. Questa nostra condizione adesso può diventare un pericolo futuro per il dialogo e il rapporto tra di noi”. Quindi, è veramente una condizione psicologica, umanitaria e anche per loro sanitaria, che implica spesse volte un lavoro molto forte.

In questo contesto davvero drammatico nasce la campagna di "Un Ponte Per...", intitolata “Emergenza profughi iracheni”. Come è possibile aiutare queste persone?

E’ partito un progetto di assistenza sanitaria sia con unità mobili sia con degli ambulatori. L’assistenza sarà sia sanitaria, di pronto soccorso e distribuzione di medicinali, sia socio-psicologica per i bambini e per le donne. Come si può aiutare? Si può aiutare fino al 30 ottobre, mandando un messaggio sms al 48587. E tutta la campagna, il progetto, le testimonianze dei profughi e dei rifugiati possono essere lette sul sito del Ponte, www.unponteper.it.

Sinodo. Il vescovo del Cairo: rilanciare l'evangelizzazione per non ridurre le Chiese nordafricane a monumenti di archeologia cristiana

Fonte: Radiovaticana

Lavori a porte chiuse, oggi, al Sinodo dei Vescovi per l’Africa, in corso in Vaticano sui temi di riconciliazione, giustizia e pace. Questa mattina i Padri sinodali si sono riuniti nella nona sessione dei Circoli minori per la preparazione degli emendamenti alle Proposizioni finali, che ieri sono state presentate in forma provvisoria. I testi saranno nel pomeriggio esaminati dal relatore generale, dai segretari speciali e dai relatori dei circoli minori.

Intanto, dal vescovo caldeo del Cairo, in Egitto, mons. Yussef Ibrahim Sarraf, è giunto il forte appello a non permettere che le Chiese orientali e dell’Africa del Nord siano ridotte a “monumenti di archeologia cristiana”. Il presule chiede che sia proseguita con coraggio, anche oggi, l’opera di evangelizzazione iniziata da San Marco in Egitto.

“Dobbiamo fare un grande mea maxima culpa” ha ammonito mons. Sarraf. Paolo Ondarza lo ha intervistato:

L’evangelizzazione è iniziata dall’Egitto – la prima evangelizzazione – attraverso San Marco; e poi, giù fino alla Nubia, e lì si è fermata. Ecco perché dico il “mea maxima culpa” – nostra colpa – è che ci siamo fermati là: per motivi antropologici, storici e via dicendo.

… e oggi è troppo tardi?

Non è mai troppo tardi! Bisogna essere missionari, cioè andare a evangelizzare. E’ quello il mandato che abbiamo ricevuto dal Signore. Ci ha detto di andare a evangelizzare tutto il mondo: non una regione, ma tutto il mondo, fino alla fine dei tempi. E’ quello che dovrebbero fare le Chiese orientali cattoliche – ovviamente, secondo me.

Andare ad evangelizzare oggi, soprattutto in determinate aree, richiede oltre ad una grande preparazione, un grande coraggio …

Il coraggio non mancherebbe. Più che coraggio, io lo chiamerei “i doni dello Spirito”: lo Spirito Santo che accompagna, come gli Apostoli, che all'inizio non sapevano parlare altre lingue, non sapevano niente, eppure hanno predicato in tutto il mondo. Perciò, questo ci incoraggia: non dobbiamo parlare noi, come uomini, ma è Dio che parla attraverso l’uomo per annunciare Gesù Cristo.

Lei ha fatto un richiamo alla Chiesa universale, cioè non dovrebbe interessarsi all’Africa solo la Chiesa africana ma l’intera Chiesa. E’ un richiamo alla cattolicità della Chiesa?

Esatto. Mi sono domandato quanti abbiano letto “Ecclesia in Africa”. Prima di tutto, in Africa e poi, figuriamoci!, fuori dall’Africa …

Come vive la Chiesa cattolica in Egitto?

La Chiesa cattolica in Egitto è una minoranza, una minoranza della minoranza. La popolazione egiziana è di circa 85 milioni: circa 10-12 milioni sono cristiani copti ortodossi. Di questi cristiani, forse 200-250 mila sono cattolici: siamo veramente una minoranza della minoranza; divisi in sette riti – sempre cattolici; però abbiamo le scuole – 166 scuole cattoliche, alcune scuole hanno fino a 3 mila alunni, una cosa grande, e tutti sanno e rispettano molto le nostre scuole; abbiamo ospedali, dispensari, ambulatori … Questo è il lavoro della Chiesa cattolica. Ovviamente, la Chiesa cattolica è molto rispettata perché rispetta gli altri e cerca di dialogare con gli altri e vive in comunione: sette riti, ma viviamo in un’assemblea sola, prendiamo insieme decisioni che ci riguardano tutti. I cattolici, purtroppo, 30-40 anni fa hanno abbandonato l’Egitto e sono emigrati principalmente negli Stati Uniti, in Canada, in Australia: questo ha avuto grande peso, perché era anche l’intellighenzia, e ne risentiamo ancora. Molti anche oggi pensano di poter trovare una vita migliore fuori: io consiglierei di rimanere in Egitto, anche per dare un contributo al Paese. Anche noi siamo co-responsabili della vita dell’Egitto, non solo gli “altri”, i musulmani o gli ortodossi: anche noi siamo cittadini dell’Egitto a pieno titolo!

Avanza la sharia a Najaf e Bassora, anche per i non musulmani

Fonte: Asianews

di Layla Yousif Rahema

Da dieci giorni a Najaf non si possono più bere e commerciare alcolici. La decisione delle autorità locali è solo l’ultimo di una serie di episodi che fanno temere la possibilità di un lento scivolare dell’Iraq nell’imposizione della sharia anche ai non musulmani.
Najaf è considerata una città santa perché vi è sepolto il primo imam sciita e il quarto califfo dell’islam, Ali b. Abi Talib.
Il Consiglio provinciale ha deciso all’unanimità che il carattere particolare della città santa sciita rende inopportuno “bere, vendere e far transitare alcol di qualunque tipo, a prescindere dalla quantità”. Il motivo: si tratta di attività incompatibili con l’islam. Chi violerà il divieto, anche se fedele di un’altra religione, dovrà risponderne in tribunale. Il provvedimento si applica a Najaf e a tutta la provincia di cui è capitale, e comprende il divieto di fare pubblicità alle bevande alcoliche.
Si tratta di una decisione “contro la democrazia, le libertà civili e i diritti umani”, commenta mons. Louis Sako, arcivescovo caldeo di Kirkuk. Che aggiunge: “In questo modo, inoltre, si incoraggia il traffico illegale d’alcol, perché la gente continuerà a bere ma dovrà farlo di nascosto”.
Mons. Sako avverte della preoccupante deriva verso la legge islamica, che si sta verificando in alcune città irachene. Da agosto scorso, il Consiglio provinciale di Bassora, la seconda città del Paese, ha proibito la vendita di alcolici su richiesta dei partiti sciiti, dominanti nell’area meridionale. Anche allora, il vice governatore della provincia, Ahmad al Sulaiti - un esponente religioso eletto con il Consiglio Supremo islamico iracheno (ex Sciri) - aveva motivato il divieto di consumare alcolici con il fatto che la Costituzione irachena “proibisce qualunque cosa vìoli i principi dell’islam”.
Il problema, infatti, è interno alla stessa Costituzione. Fin dal varo della nuova Carta, le minoranze religiose e in particolare i cristiani, ne avevano denunciato l’ambiguità. “Essa – spiega l’arcivescovo di Kirkuk – garantisce il rispetto della libertà religiosa, ma allo stesso tempo all’art. 6 stabilisce che non si possono promulgare leggi contrarie alla religione musulmana. Era chiaro fin dall’inizio che questo punto avrebbe creato gravi problemi alle minoranze”.
Il mercato degli alcolici è storicamente in gran parte in mano alla comunità cristiana, per la quale rappresenta un’importante fonte di sostentamento. In questi anni il terrorismo e gli attentati dei fondamentalisti ai negozi di bevande alcoliche avevano costretto molti a chiudere. Ora con le nuovi leggi locali i commercianti si aspettano un duro colpo alle loro già magre finanze.
Per mons. Sako, l’Iraq ha bisogno di una leadership “più realistica, più aperta e intenzionata veramente a far maturare la popolazione”. La Costituzione, ad esempio, “non pensa in concreto a garantire l’uguaglianza fra donna e uomo, a regolare la poligamia o la libertà di convertirsi, cosa vietata dall’islam ma che rientra nelle libertà di coscienza”. Il rischio, conclude il presule, è che “l’Iraq torni indietro di secoli, quando la sharia era imposta a tutta la popolazione”.

Sharia slowly advancing in Najaf and Basra, for non-Muslims too

Source: Asianews

by Layla Yousif Rahema

For the past ten days, no one has been able to drink or buy alcoholic beverages in Najaf because of a bylaw adopted by local authorities. The decision comes as the latest in a series, suggesting that Sharia is being slowly implemented in Iraq, and that it also applies to non-Muslims.
Najaf is considered a holy city for Shia Muslims because the first Shia imam and fourth caliph, Ali ibn Abi Talib, is buried there. Because of the city’s special nature as a Shia holy city, the provincial council ruled unanimously that “drinking, selling or transporting alcohol of any kind in whatever quantity” was inappropriate since such activities are incompatible with Islam. Violators, even if they belong to another religion, face the possibility of being sued before a court. The ruling applies to the city of Najaf and its province and includes a ban on advertising.

It is a decision “against democracy, civil liberties and human rights,” said Mgr Louis Sako, Chaldean archbishop of Kirkuk. “It will just encourage trade in bootleg alcohol because people will continue to drink, but in secret.”
More importantly, the new rule is a sign that Islamic law is creeping into some Iraqi cities, Mgr Sako warns.
Last August for example, the Basra Provincial Council, which rules over Iraq’s second largest city, banned the sale of alcoholic beverages following a request by Shia parties, which dominate this southern region.
Ahmad al Sulaiti, deputy governor of the province and a religious leader elected with the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (previously known as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq or SCIRI), motivated the ban on alcoholic beverages on the ground that Iraq’s constitution “bans everything that violates the principles of Islam.”
The problem lies with constitution itself. When the new charter was adopted, religious minorities, especially Christians, had pointed out its ambiguities.
“It guarantees respect for religious freedoms, but at the same time in Article 6 establishes that no law can be adopted that is contrary to the Muslim religion,” Mgr Sako said. “It was clear from the start that this would create serious problems for minorities.”
For historical reasons, the sale of alcoholic beverages is in the hands of the Christian community and represents an important source of income for Christians. However, terrorism and attacks by Muslim fundamentalists against stores selling alcoholic products have forced many businesses to close. Now, many of those who still sell such products expect the new bylaw to hit their already half-empty pockets even harder.
According to Mgr Sako, Iraq needs leaders who are “more realistic, open and truly willing to help people mature.” The constitution, for example, “does not envisage in any concrete way how to guarantee equality between men and women, regulate polygamy or the right to convert, something which is banned by Islam but which pertains to the realm of freedom of conscience.”
For the prelate, there is a risk that “Iraq will fall back a few centuries, when Sharia was imposed on the entire population.”

Assyrian Church keeps the faith after fire

Source: Daily News

By Dana Bartholomew and Susan Abram, Staff Writers

TARZANA - They had survived a millennium of religious persecution and the exodus from the Middle East.
But on the first Sunday after a raging fire tore through the Tarzana sanctuary that many considered their second home, members of the San Fernando Valley's largest Assyrian church said they will do as they have always done: stand strong in their faith.
"We lost all of it - but we did not lose our hope," said Ramona Youhanna, 25, of Northridge, one of hundreds who celebrated Mass on Sunday in a makeshift sanctuary at St. Mary's Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East.
"We are going to start from zero, but we will make it better than it was. This is God's house, Jesus' house."
The church caught fire at 6:35p.m. Friday at 5955 Lindley Ave., sending flames 150-feet from its soaring stained glass windows into the darkening sky.
Although some parishioners were attending Bible and Aramaic study classes that evening, and worshippers had been arriving for services, no one was injured in the blaze, firefighters said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
On Sunday, hundreds of parishioners filed past what had been their church - its white brick facade now a gaping black hole; its pews, velvet drapes, vestments and choir robes now ash and charred remains.
Many wiped away tears as they entered the incense-filled banquet hall to recite ancient chants, pray and hear words of comfort by the Rev. George Bet-Rasho, the pastor of St. Mary's Parish.
"We have faith," said Helen Bet-Rasho, the pastor's wife. "As Assyrian people, we are used to things like this. They kill our people, we come out stronger. They burn our churches, we rebuild them better."
In recent years, St. Mary's has seen more members come from war-torn Iraq, as Christians from their ancestral homeland continue to escape heightened insurgency that has destroyed their churches.
"It is heartbreaking," Helen Bet-Rasho added. "But we really believe when one door closes, another great door opens. We're looking forward to seeing what's behind the new one. God is good."
Before the service, a dozen Los Angeles firefighters from Tarzana Station 93 chopped holes in the scarred church roof to inspect the remains.
One firefighter said that, despite the potential for arson, investigators had yet to find evidence of foul play.
But a spokesman with the Fire Department said the House of Worship Task Force continues to investigate, and may know the cause of the blaze, as well as cost of the damage, in the next few days.
The task force was formed in 1996 after several houses of worship in the Southeast part of the nation burned as a result of arson. Concerned about the trend, the Fire Department's arson investigation section launched a task force in Los Angeles with various law enforcement agencies.
Some Assyrian church members were incredulous that anyone in America would want to harm their church.
"We were raised in the church since childhood. I felt like my mother was on fire," said Benyamin Khamis, 63, of Encino, a native of Iraq.
"If there is somebody who did this, it's for no rhyme or reason."
Assyrians are the indigenous people of Mesopotamia, presently Iraq, where the last and largest concentration of Aramaic-speaking people in the world have lived for thousands of years. Those who follow the Church of the East trace their origins to 33 A.D. when it was founded by Saint Thomas the Apostle as well as Saint Mari and Saint Addai.
Since the Valley congregation moved to its Tarzana location from North Hollywood 12 years ago, the church has served hundreds of Assyrians and was the first to open a school and host the Valley's first Assyrian festival.
For the community, the church also helps to preserve the Assyrian language and culture that some worry could become extinct.
What's important is not the fire that destroyed their sanctuary, St. Mary's Parish members said. It's the unity of the church.
"Sadness and happiness, because we are all gathered together, we will all stand together," said Gladis Barko, 62, of Granada Hills, a choir member.
"It is very emotional, seeing our God's house burning. But to have faith - we are the church."

Church Fire's Cause Under Investigation

By Baghdadhope

Source: myFOXla.com

Text Story by: CNS
Reporter: Cristy Fajardo
Posted by: Tony Spearman, Scott Coppersmith

A fire damaged St. Mary Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East in Tarzana and, while hundreds of parishioners were at the scene, none was injured, a Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman said today. It was unclear how the roughly 6:35 p.m. blaze at 5955 N. Lindley Ave. started, but firefighters had it out in about 25 minutes, Devin Gales of the Los Angeles Fire Department said. Arriving firefighters reported smoke coming from stained-glass window at the front of the church, where a big eucalyptus tree also caught fire, he said. Most of the damage appeared to be to the front of the building, but firefighters also cut holes in the roof. All together, 95 firefighters were assigned to the blaze. The fire will be investigated by the House of Worship Task Force, which was set up years ago to examine a string of fires in predominately black churches. The task force includes members of the Los Angeles Fire Department, FBI, Los Angeles Police Department and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, according to Devin Gales of the Los Angeles Fire Department. "We are still the lead agency because the fire was inside L.A. city limits, but the task force will make the final determination regarding the cause of the blaze and whether arson was involved," Gales said.

Watch the video by myFOXla.com by clicking here

Read the prayer for St. Mary church in PDF by clicking here

First visit of the new Syriac Catholic Patriarch to Iraq

By Baghdadhope

Source: Zowaa.org

It started on last Thursday the first visit of the new Patriarch of the Syria Catholic church in Iraq. His Beatitude Mar Ignatius Joseph Younan III arrived in Baghdad accompanied by Msgr. Rabula Antoine Beylouni, Archbishop Emeritus of Alep of the Syriacs and Titular Archbishop of Mardin of the Syriacs and by Msgr. Jules Mikhail Al-Jamil, Titular Archbishop of Takrit of the Syriacs, Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of the Syriac Catholic Patriarchate (Lebanon) and Procurator of the Syriac Catholic Church to the Holy See. The Patriarch was welcomed in Baghdad by Msgr. Athanase Matti Shaba Matoka, archbishop of Baghdad and Msgr. George Alqas Musa Archbishop of Mosul of the Syriacs. The same afternoon of the arrival of the delegation a solemn ceremony was held in the church of Our Lady of Deliverance in Baghdad. It was followed the following day by a celebration in the church of Mar Benham and by a lunch attended by several Christian politicians, by Mar Addai II, Patriarch of the Ancient Church of the East and by Msgr. Jean Benjamin Sleiman, Latin bishop of Baghdad. The visit of His Beatitude Mar Ignatius III Joseph Younan in Iraq will continue in the coming days.

Prima visita del neo patriarca siro cattolico in Iraq

By Baghdadhope
Fonte: Zowaa.org

E' iniziata lo scorso giovedì la prima visita del nuovo Patriarca della chiesa siro cattolica in Iraq.

Sua Beatitudine Mar Ignatius III Joseph Younan è arrivato a Baghdad accompagnato da Mons. Rabula Antoine Beylouni, arcivescovo emerito di Aleppo dei siri ed arcivescovo titolare di Mardin dei siri e da Mons. Jules Mikhail Al-Jamil, arcivescovo titolare di Takrit dei siri, vescovo ausiliare emerito del Patriarcato siro cattolico (Libano) e procuratore della chiesa siro cattolica presso la Santa Sede. Ad accoglierlo c'erano Mons. Mar Athanase Matti Shaba Matoka, arcivescovo di Baghdad dei siri e Mons. Mar Basilius George Alqas Musa, Arcivescovo di Mosul dei siri. Lo stesso pomeriggio dell'arrivo della delegazione una cerimonia solenne è stata celebrata nella chiesa di Our Lady of Deliverance a Baghdad.

Ad essa è seguita il giorno dopo una celebrazione nella chiesa di Mar Benham ed un pranzo cui hanno partecipato diversi esponenti politici cristiani, Mar Addai II, patriarca della Antica Chiesa dell'Est e Mons. Jean Benjamin Sleiman, vescovo latino di Baghdad.

La visita di Sua Beatitudine Mar Ignatius III Joseph Younan in Iraq proseguirà nei prossimi giorni.

Protests as asylum-seekers are returned to Iraq

Source: The Indipendent

By Robert Verkaik, Home Affairs Editor

Friday, 16 October 2009
A Government-chartered flight carrying 44 Iraqi asylum-seekers touched down in Baghdad yesterday amid claims that deportations to the Middle East trouble spot were a flagrant breach of international law.
The Air Italy-operated aircraft is thought to have left Stansted airport in Essex early yesterday morning after the Iraqi detainees were transferred from two short-term holding centres in southern England.
It is now known that up to six Iraqis set for deporation won last minute reprieves after the courts declared the terms of their removal to be unlawful.
The asylum flight to Baghdad is the first since the start of the war six years ago. Caroline Slocock, chief executive of the charity, Refugee and Migrant Justice, said the resumption of removals to southern Iraq exposed the Government’s “cavalier attitude” towards the law.
She said that in June the Court of Appeal ruled that the Government was in breach of its obligations under Article 15(c) of the EU Qualification Directive because it failed to grant protection to people fleeing indiscriminate violence.
The Foreign Office advises the public against all travel to Baghdad and the surrounding areas. Its guidance states: “The situation remains highly dangerous with a continuing high threat of terrorism throughout the country. This includes violence and kidnapping.” Many of the Iraqi asylum seekers on baord yesterdays’ plane say they fear retribution and persecution in Baghdad.
Ms Slocock said: “The Government should have waited. The injunction we received last night said this secrecy was unlawful. Clearly the flight should not have proceeded.”
Her concerns were echoed by Sandy Buchan, chief executive of Refugee Action: “If Baghdad is now deemed to be safe then where on earth is deemed dangerous?”In the first six months of 2009, 1,891 civilians were reported to have died due to violence in Iraq. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has said that no Iraqis from the five central provinces – including Baghdad – should be forcibly returned.
All the Iraqis deported under the Home Office’s Operation Ringat have had had their asylum applications rejected by the Home Office.
Yesterday’s removals are in advance of an Iraq “country guidance” case before the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal is to be heard in January. Mr Buchan added: “We urge the Government to listen to its own advice and that of the UN Refugee Agency and halt forced removals now until we can guarantee the safety of returnees in an humane and dignified manner.”
Witnesses who watched the deportations said G4S security guards were employed to carry out the forced removals of the detainees who were bussed to the airport on a vehicle owned by W&H Tours which advertise themselves offering “coach tours, excursions and short breaks to UK and Europe”.
A spokesman for the company said was “unable to talk about” his company’s role in the transport of the Iraqis.
One Iraqi, who was taken to the airport but was not put on the flight, told the International Federation of Iraq Refugees: “They took people one by one from the buses to the plane. When my friends started shouting [that] they couldn’t go back, these big security guards handcuffed them and strong-armed them out of the bus [and] onto the plane.”
He added: “They were treated like prisoners: it was like watching the footage from Guantanamo. I don’t know why they even took me on the coaches: my ticket was cancelled yesterday. It’s wrong to treat people like this.”
The Home Office declined to comment on the flight.

Read also BBC's article: Iraq sends back UK asylum flight by clicking here

Interventi per la decima Congregazione generale la mattina del 10 ottobre

Fonte: ZENIT

Pubblichiamo di seguito gli interventi pronunciati sabato mattina nella decima Congregazione generale del Sinodo dei Vescovi sull'Africa.

S. E. R. Mons. Youssef Ibrahim SARRAF, Vescovo di Le Caire dei Caldei (EGITTO)Le Chiese Orientali e le Chiese dell'Africa del Nord e anche dell'Etiopia che hanno vissuto la prima fase dell'Evangelizzazione dell'Africa rendono ancora oggi testimonianza alla vitalità cristiana che attingono dalle loro radici apostoliche, come per esempio in Egitto e in Etiopia e, fino al XVII secolo, in Nubia. Dobbiamo fare una grande "mea maxima culpa" perché, per ragioni antropologiche e storiche, l'Evangelizzazione dell'Africa si è fermata alla Nubia, all'Etiopia e all'Africa del Nord. Queste Chiese dell'Africa del Nord e Orientali oggi non hanno forse un ruolo da svolgere nell'Evangelizzazione e nella missione della Chiesa e anche a servizio della riconciliazione, della giustizia e della pace in Africa, come gli stati politici? Sarebbe opportuno parlare della presenza e del ruolo delle Chiese Orientali e di quelle dell'Africa del Nord perché si sviluppino nella comunione ecclesiale e non siano ridotte solo a dei "Monumenta Archeologiae Christianae".Ogni Chiesa universale - Famiglia di Dio - dovrebbe interessarsi all'Africa e non solo le Chiese che si trovano in Africa. Si tratta infatti del Sinodo dei Vescovi della Chiesa Universale. Mi chiedo: quanti al di fuori del continente africano hanno letto l'"Ecclesia in Africa"?Si parla spesso di conflitti di civiltà, di culture o di religioni. Perché non parlare piuttosto di incontro di civiltà, di culture e di religioni per una migliore comprensione e collaborazione attraverso il dialogo?

Interventions From Synod's 10th Congregation

Source: ZENIT

Here are the English-language summaries provided by the Vatican press office of the interventions given Saturday at the Tenth General Congregation of the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops.

H. Exc. Mons. Youssef Ibrahim SARRAF, Bishop of Cairo of Chaldean Rite (EGYPT)The Oriental Churches and the Churches of North Africa and even of Ethiopia who have lived through the First Phase of Evangelization in Africa today, bear witness to the Christian vitality that they draw from their apostolic roots, especially in Egypt and Ethiopia and until the XVII Century in Nubia. We must say a long mea maxima culpa because for anthropological and historical reasons the evangelization of Africa ended in Nubia, Ethiopia and in North Africa. These North African and Oriental Churches, do they not have a role to play in the evangelization and missionary activity of the Church and also at the service of reconciliation, justice and peace in Africa as done by the political States?

It would be proper to mention the presence and the role of the Oriental Churches and those of North Africa for them to bloom in ecclesial communion and not be diminished to only “Monumenta Archeologiae Christianae”.

The entire Church-Family of God should be interested in Africa and not only the Churches that are in Africa... This is in effect a Synod of Bishops of the Universal Church... I ask how many, apart from Africa, have read “Ecclesia in Africa”? We often speak about conflicts of civilizations, cultures or religions. Why would we not mention, rather, the encounter between civilizations, cultures and religions to reach a better understanding and collaboration through dialogue?

Synode : Synthèse des interventions du 10 octobre (matin) Dixième Congrégation générale

Source: ZENIT

Nous publions ci-dessous les synthèses des discours des pères du synode sur l'Afrique, intervenus lors de la dixième Congrégation générale, samedi 10 octobre dans la matinée.

Mgr Youssef Ibrahim SARRAF, Évêque de Le Caire des Caldéens (ÉGYPTE)

Les Églises orientales et les Églises de l'Afrique du nord, et même de l'Éthiopie qui ont vécu la première phase de l'évangélisation de l'Afrique, portent encore aujourd'hui le témoignage de la vitalité chrétienne qu'elles puisent dans leurs racines apostoliques, notamment en Égypte et en Éthiopie et jusqu'au XVII siècle en Nubie. Il faut dire un grand mea maxima culpa parce que pour des raisons anthropologiques et historiques l'évangélisation de l'Afrique s'est arrêtée à la Nubie, à l'Éthiopie et à l'Afrique du nord. Ces églises de l'Afrique du nord et orientales n'ont elle pas aujourd'hui un rôle à jouer dans l'évangélisation et la missionarité de l'Église et aussi au service de la réconciliation, de la justice et de la paix en Afrique, comme le font les états politiques? Il serait opportun de parler de la présence et du rôle des Églises orientales et de celles de l'Afrique du nord pour qu'elles fleurissent dans la communion ecclésiale et ne pas être réduites seulement à des "Monumenta Archeologiae Christianae".- Toute l'Église universelle-Famille de Dieu devrait s'intéresser à l'Afrique et non seulement les Églises qui sont en Afrique. Il s'agit en effet du Synode des Évêques de l'Église universelle. Je me demande combien, en dehors de l'Afrique, ont lu "Ecclesia in Africa"?- On parle souvent de conflits de civilisations, de cultures ou de religions. Pourquoi ne parlerait-on pas plutôt de rencontre des civilisations, des cultures et des religions pour une meilleure entente et collaboration à travers le dialogue?

Intervenciones en el Sínodo de África (IX) Décima Congregación General, mañana del sábado 10 de octubre

Source: ZENIT

Ofrecemos a continuación los resúmenes de las intervenciones que se produjeron durante la décima Congregación General de la Asamblea del Sínodo sobre África, en la mañana del sábado 10 de octubre.

S. E. R. Mons. Youssef Ibrahim SARRAF, Obispo de El Cairo de los Caldeos (EGIPTO)

Las Iglesias Orientales y las Iglesias de África del Norte e incluso de Etiopía, que han vivido la primera fase de la evangelización de África llevan todavía hoy el testimonio de la vitalidad cristiana que poseen en sus raíces apostólicas, concretamente en Egipto y Etiopía y, hasta el s. XVII en Nubia. Hay que decir un gran "mea maxima culpa" porque, por razones antropológicas e históricas, la evangelización de África se ha parado en Nubia, Etiopía y África del Norte. Estas Iglesias nordafricanas y orientales ¿No tienen hoy una función en la evangelización y las misiones de la Iglesia, la reconciliación, la justicia y la paz en África como fundamento de los Estados políticos? Sería oportuno hablar de la presencia y la función de las Iglesias Orientales y las de África del Norte para que florezcan en la comunión eclesial y no sean reducidas simplemente a "Monumenta Archeologiae Cristianae".Toda la Iglesia Universal Familia de Dios debería interesarse por África, y no sólo las Iglesias que están en África. Se trata, en efecto, del Sínodo de los Obispos de la Iglesia Universal. Me pregunto cómo se ha leído fuera de África el Ecclesia in Africa.Se habla frecuentemente de conflictos de civilizaciones, de culturas o de religiones. ¿Por qué no hablar más bien, del encuentro de civilizaciones, de culturas, de religiones, para un mejor entendimiento y colaboración a través del diálogo?

Arcivescovo di Kirkuk: Da 1600 anni l'Iraq è un “Paese di martiri”

Fonte: Asianews

Da 1600 anni l’Iraq è “un Paese di martiri”, che trova nello “Spirito Santo e nell’Eucaristia” la forza di “testimoniare la fede” nonostante le persecuzioni. È quanto dichiara ad AsiaNews mons. Louis Sako, arcivescovo di Kirkuk, alla vigilia della settimana di celebrazioni per ricordare i 1600 anni dal massacro dei martiri irakeni. Una lunga serie passata e presente di violenze, che non hanno però interrotto “la storia sacra dei cristiani… e il loro cammino”.
Nel 409 d. C. centinaia di cristiani sono stati decapitati per la loro fede. “Fra loro – racconta mons. Sako – una vedova chiamata Scirin-Miskenta, con due figli, e il generale Tahmazgerd, che ha eseguito il decreto del re”, il quale aveva ordinato il massacro. “Vedendo la fede, la serenità e la fiducia della vedova – continua il prelato – Tahmzgerd si è convertito al cristianesimo” e per questo è stato “decapitato in seguito”. Verso il 470, per ricordare il massacro dei cristiani, il vescovo di Kirkuk Maruta “ha costruito un santuario” sulla collina in cui “sono stati sepolti i martiri”. La "chiesa Rossa", questo il nome dell’edificio, unisce cristiani e musulmani ed è oggi “il cimitero dei caldei”; le reliquie dei martiri, esposte sull’altare principale, sono da sempre meta di processioni dei fedeli.
Per celebrare l’anniversario del martirio, la diocesi ha organizzato una serie di eventi: domani, mercoledì, una giornata di digiuno per la pace; giovedì sono in programma gli inni dei martiri e una conferenza al Santuario, restaurato di recente; venerdì verrà celebrata la messa; sabato una recita, allestita dalla corale della cattedrale e della chiesa di San Giuseppe. All’insegna del motto “fedeli ai nostri padri nella fede”, i cristiani di Kirkuk vogliono “testimoniare la fede, l’amore, la fiducia e l’apertura”.
La storia delle violenze e delle persecuzioni contro i cristiani non è mai stata interrotta. Rapimenti, sequestri, omicidi mirati, famiglie in fuga sono la drammatica testimonianza di una “catena di martiri – sottolinea mons. Sako – che continua. Il nostro Paese è disseminato di santuari dei martiri che la gente visita senza sosta, è una spiritualità del martirio”. I cristiani trovano la forza di “rimanere fedeli” nello “Spirito Santo, ma anche nella liturgia, soprattutto l’Eucaristia”. “In ogni messa – aggiunge l’arcivescovo di Kirkuk – siamo chiamati a realizzare il sacrificio di Cristo nella nostra vita, secondo le sue parole: prendere, spezzare, dare… fate questo in memoria di me: sono la storia sacra dei cristiani… e il loro cammino”.

Archbishop of Kirkuk: for 1600 years, Iraq has been a "country of martyrs"

Source: Asianews

For 1600 years, Iraq has been "a country of martyrs", which finds in the “Holy Spirit and the Eucharist" the strength to bear witness to the faith “despite persecution”. So says Mgr. Louis Sako, archbishop of Kirkuk, on the eve of a week of celebrations to mark 1600 years since the massacre of Iraqi martyrs. A long series of past and present violence, but one which has not stopped "the sacred history of the Christians ... and their journey."
In 409 AD hundreds of Christians were beheaded for their faith. "Among them - said Msgr. Sako - a widow named Scirin-Miskenta, with two children, and general Tahmazgerd, who carried out the decree of the king, who ordered the massacre. Seeing their faith, serenity and the trust of the widow - continued the prelate - Tahmzgerd converted to Christianity" and as a result was "beheaded later." Around 470, to commemorate the massacre of Christians, the bishop of Kirkuk Maruta "built a sanctuary” on the hill where "the martyrs were buried”. The "Red Church", as it is called, junits Christians and Muslims and is now "the graveyard of the Chaldeans"; the relics of martyrs, custodied on the main altar, have always been a destination for the processions of the faithful.
To celebrate the anniversary of the martyrdom, the diocese has organized a series of events: on Wednesday, a day of fasting for peace; Thursday, hymns of the martyrs and a conference at the recently restored Sanctuary; on Friday Mass will be celebrated; on Saturday a play, staged by the choir of the cathedral and the church of St. Joseph. Under the slogan "true to our fathers in faith," Christians in Kirkuk want to "bear witness to the faith, love, trust and openness."
The history of violence and persecution against Christians has continued uninterrupted. Abductions, kidnappings, assassinations, fleeing families are the dramatic testimony of a "chain of martyrs - underlines Msgr. Sako - that continues. Our country is dotted with shrines to martyrs that people constantly visit, it is a spirituality of martyrdom". Christians find the strength to "remain faithful" in the "Holy Spirit, but also in the liturgy, especially the Eucharist." "In every Mass - added the archbishop of Kirkuk – we are called upon to make the sacrifice of Christ in our life, in his words; take, break, give ... Do this in memory of me: this is the sacred history of Christians and ... their journey”.