His Beatitude, the Chaldean Patriarch, Louis Raphael Sako met with the Christian youth of Baghdad on Friday 8 April 2016 at the Hindyia Club to celebrate Easter Season. HB gave a talk (please see excerpts below) and received their questions with an open mind and heart.
The supervising committee included the Auxiliary H.E. Bishop Basilios Yaldo, Fr. Ameer Gammo, Fr. Meyassar Behnam, Fr. Majid Maqdassi O.P., Sr. Ghufran and other young members. They worked as one team in preparing for this important gathering with a focus on the spiritual and cultural education. On the entertainment side, the participants enjoyed dancing, games and competitions as well as the folkloric band of Chalghi Al-Baghdady.
The Apostolic Nunzio, Archbishop Alberto Ortega Martin and his secretary Monsignor George were among the guests in addition to the Auxiliary Bishop Shleimon Warduni, many of Iraqi priests, nuns and around 350 males and females from different parishes of Baghdad.
Below are Excerpts from His Beatitude’s Talk:
First, I would like to thank H.E. Bishop Basilios Yaldo and the members of the committee for organizing this event, out of their love and care about our youth. I would like also, to confirm that we love you and we work from the bottom of our hearts to serve you till the end. You are our daughters and sons and we are keen about helping you for a better future.
You are representing the future of the church and the society; you should pay more attention to empower yourselves on a right way, so as you will take the responsibility of playing your effective and appropriate role in the church and society.
It is a good opportunity to remind you of the achievements of those who preceded you: Such as, young Christian students, Christian workers and Legio Mariae in Baghdad, Mosul and other cities during seventies.
As we are talking about the future, we should build it together step by step, even if the situation is very tough by:
1. Keeping up our faith, hope, determination, persistence and ability to cooperate.
2. Preparing ourselves and the environment of where we work.
3. Building a mindful and strong personality grounded on truth and love.
4. Being mature through full understanding, analyzing and consulting.
Keep in mind, that strong personality is characterized by the intellect, ability to give, honesty, disinterest and independency. It also requires sustainable upbringing and nurturing. The more you learn the more you become humble. Therefore, we should learn to:
a. Know yourselves, your skills and your limits, avoid glorifying yourselves and being trapped in the greatness disease. We have a well-known saying states that (ala qad bsatak mid rejleik), which is about living happy and in peace by being satisfied with what you have. Also, you should seek to match your inside with the outside, no separation between the two, but harmony and healthy integration.
The supervising committee included the Auxiliary H.E. Bishop Basilios Yaldo, Fr. Ameer Gammo, Fr. Meyassar Behnam, Fr. Majid Maqdassi O.P., Sr. Ghufran and other young members. They worked as one team in preparing for this important gathering with a focus on the spiritual and cultural education. On the entertainment side, the participants enjoyed dancing, games and competitions as well as the folkloric band of Chalghi Al-Baghdady.
The Apostolic Nunzio, Archbishop Alberto Ortega Martin and his secretary Monsignor George were among the guests in addition to the Auxiliary Bishop Shleimon Warduni, many of Iraqi priests, nuns and around 350 males and females from different parishes of Baghdad.
Below are Excerpts from His Beatitude’s Talk:
First, I would like to thank H.E. Bishop Basilios Yaldo and the members of the committee for organizing this event, out of their love and care about our youth. I would like also, to confirm that we love you and we work from the bottom of our hearts to serve you till the end. You are our daughters and sons and we are keen about helping you for a better future.
You are representing the future of the church and the society; you should pay more attention to empower yourselves on a right way, so as you will take the responsibility of playing your effective and appropriate role in the church and society.
It is a good opportunity to remind you of the achievements of those who preceded you: Such as, young Christian students, Christian workers and Legio Mariae in Baghdad, Mosul and other cities during seventies.
As we are talking about the future, we should build it together step by step, even if the situation is very tough by:
1. Keeping up our faith, hope, determination, persistence and ability to cooperate.
2. Preparing ourselves and the environment of where we work.
3. Building a mindful and strong personality grounded on truth and love.
4. Being mature through full understanding, analyzing and consulting.
Keep in mind, that strong personality is characterized by the intellect, ability to give, honesty, disinterest and independency. It also requires sustainable upbringing and nurturing. The more you learn the more you become humble. Therefore, we should learn to:
a. Know yourselves, your skills and your limits, avoid glorifying yourselves and being trapped in the greatness disease. We have a well-known saying states that (ala qad bsatak mid rejleik), which is about living happy and in peace by being satisfied with what you have. Also, you should seek to match your inside with the outside, no separation between the two, but harmony and healthy integration.
b. Improve your skills that help you to communicate with others and learn from their practical experience, even from failure, as there is no inevitable end and close door.
c. Educate yourselves with an open-minded general education, not to be shallow / shaky and not to be trapped into gossip (culture of suspects and rumors), but rather to be honestly opened, sincere and integrate into society.
d. Set your major goal and work hard to achieve it. There are so many people who have no goals in their life, so they live in a situation of loss and hesitation.
e. Make your decisions with a clear vision, confidence and wisdom that come out through careful thinking, analyzing and consulting.
f. Deal with others and circumstances with sureness and wisdom to accommodate (by searching corners and variations without having differences). It is important to have a reasonable humor and fun.
On the Christian Level
You are called to live your faith on daily basis, in spite of this harsh reality, and seek to grow up and get matured humanly and spiritually through:
a. The word of God, in which you find the real meaning of hope to your life.
b. Prayers to get strength.
c. Participation in church activities and service.
Since you are in communionship with the church, this relationship will come out with fruits that benefit the whole society. I mean the Islamic society that we live in. To realize that you are called upon to witness bravely for the values of your faith, is your vocation and mission.
I also wish you to think seriously about consecrating your life to God through the priesthood and religious orders, or in consecrated life to help your brothers and sisters.
Your Church in Iraq is suffering and needs you.
On the Christian Level
You are called to live your faith on daily basis, in spite of this harsh reality, and seek to grow up and get matured humanly and spiritually through:
a. The word of God, in which you find the real meaning of hope to your life.
b. Prayers to get strength.
c. Participation in church activities and service.
Since you are in communionship with the church, this relationship will come out with fruits that benefit the whole society. I mean the Islamic society that we live in. To realize that you are called upon to witness bravely for the values of your faith, is your vocation and mission.
I also wish you to think seriously about consecrating your life to God through the priesthood and religious orders, or in consecrated life to help your brothers and sisters.
Your Church in Iraq is suffering and needs you.
