By Catholic News Agency
When Iraqi residents fled their homes during the Islamic State invasion, they left behind their houses, neighbors, and day-to-day lives.
When Iraqi residents fled their homes during the Islamic State invasion, they left behind their houses, neighbors, and day-to-day lives.
For the children who fled, leaving their home behind also meant an
interruption in their education – in some cases for months or years.
While some refugee camps offer classes for children, challenges abound and students often fall behind.
Now, a group of Dominican sisters in one Iraqi town is working to
help educate displaced children as their families return to their homes
and work to rebuild their lives.
With the support of Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need in
Spain, the Dominican Sisters of Saint Catherine of Sienna were able to
restore their convent, which had been destroyed by the Islamic State in
Iraq. Today, they offer classes to hundreds of children who had been
displaced by the war.
“We try to help the children, giving them peace: in our convent we
offer them a safe place,” Sister Ilham told ACN in late December.
Despite the expulsion of ISIS, security in the area remains unstable.
In May 2017, ACN funded the restoration of Our Lady of the Rosary
Convent with a grant of $54,000. Located in Teleskuf, north of the plain
of Nineveh, the convent is just over 20 miles outside of Mosul.
The sisters worked 12-hour days to prepare the convent to welcome the children, Sister Ilham said.
They provide daycare for children between three and five years old.
In the mornings, they teach about 150 children between the ages of six
and 12. In the evenings, they teach students 12 years of age and older.
Sister Ilham, 57, was working for a church in Mosul when the rapid
advance of the Islamic State forced her and her community to flee.
However, after the fall of the terrorist group, she returned to the area
and today is helping those displaced from Teleskuf.
“None of us wanted to leave where we come from, but as the attacks continued, we had to flee to save our lives,” she said.
“In 2016 some 6,000 people had to leave Telskuf. When I returned to
this area, all the houses were abandoned and many of them destroyed,”
she continued. “In Teleskuf all that is left of many of buildings are
the ruins. The school and the children's home are destroyed, the doors
of the convent were forced open and the sisters' home was sacked.”
In addition to teaching at the convent, the sisters visit the members
of the Christian community in their homes, teach catechism to the
children, and prepare them for their First Communion.
Once the local school is rebuilt, the children will no longer need to
attend the convent classes. In the meantime, the sisters hope they can
help the children from falling too far behind in their studies.
“Before the Islamic State invasion, there were five sisters in the
convent, while now there are only two of us. Fortunately, we are will
soon receive reinforcements,” Sister Ilham said.
In addition to helping fund the convent reconstruction, Aid to the
Church in Need is currently helping rebuild 13,000 houses and more than
300 church properties destroyed by the Islamic State in Iraq.
This article was originally published by our sister agency, ACI Prensa. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.