"La situazione sta peggiorando. Gridate con noi che i diritti umani sono calpestati da persone che parlano in nome di Dio ma che non sanno nulla di Lui che è Amore, mentre loro agiscono spinti dal rancore e dall'odio.
Gridate: Oh! Signore, abbi misericordia dell'Uomo."

Mons. Shleimun Warduni
Baghdad, 19 luglio 2014

29 settembre 2025

Iraq: 1700° Nicea, card. Sako alle chiese irachene, “unifichiamo la data della Pasqua”


 “Oggi la Chiesa si trova ad affrontare nuove sfide, come il secolarismo e il relativismo, oltre alla divisione nella celebrazione della Pasqua. La commemorazione del 1700° anniversario del Concilio di Nicea non dovrebbe essere solo un incontro formale per mettere in luce un documento storico; dovrebbe comportare il ritorno al Credo niceno come terreno comune per il dialogo ecumenico, con l’obiettivo di unificare la domenica di Pasqua in una data fissa, come testimonianza cristiana e impegno a camminare insieme verso l’unità e la piena comunione”.
Così il patriarca caldeo di Baghdad, card. Louis Raphael Sako, nel suo intervento alla conferenza organizzata dalla Chiesa Assira d’Oriente per commemorare il 1700° anniversario del Primo Concilio Ecumenico di Nicea (325 d.C.), in corso presso l’Università Cattolica di Erbil (27-29 settembre).
“Unità – ha ribadito Mar Sako – non significa fondere tutte le Chiese in una sola, ma piuttosto trovare un modello accettabile per la cooperazione ecumenica, poiché la nostra fede è una e condividiamo gli stessi sacramenti”.
Mar Sako ha espresso poi l’auspicio che da questa conferenza possa nascere la volontà, nelle chiese irachene, di “intraprendere passi audaci e concreti per raggiungere questo obiettivo. Il Concilio di Nicea – ha spiegato – dovrebbe illuminare il nostro cammino per superare la divisione, dobbiamo liberarci dall’essere legati a qualsiasi gruppo politico le cui politiche siano notoriamente discriminatorie nei confronti dei cristiani, così come a quelle del fanatismo religioso ed etnico. Lasciamo il nazionalismo ai laicisti. Noi, sacerdoti, dovremmo essere leali a Dio, concentrandoci sulla nostra missione e sul nostro servizio, considerandoli una priorità”. Il messaggio di Nicea oggi “è di unirsi e lavorare insieme per rafforzare la nostra presenza, il nostro futuro e i nostri pieni diritti in Iraq e nella regione, dove il cristianesimo ha avuto origine, si è radicato e si è diffuso”.
Da qui l’appello: “Iniziamo a unificare la data della Pasqua, almeno in Iraq. Come Chiesa caldea, inoltre, tendiamo la mano a coloro che sono disposti a lavorare insieme con sincerità per istituire un nuovo consiglio denominato “Consiglio dei Patriarchi e dei Vescovi iracheni” allo scopo di difendere la dignità e i diritti degli iracheni e dei cristiani, ripristinare la loro sicurezza e porre fine alle loro sofferenze”.

The speech of Cardinal Sako in the celebration of the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea by the Assyrian Church of the East

By Chaldean Patriarchate
September 27, 2025

His beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, participated in the conference held by the Assyrian Church of the East to commemorate the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (325 AD, in the Catholic university of Erbil from 27-29 September . The conference was presided by His Holiness Mar Awa III, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East. The opening session was attended by the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, Mr. Masrour Barzani, as well as many leaders of Christian churches in Iraq, and some delegations and scholars from outside Iraq.

Here is the speech of Patriarch Sako

The Significance of Nicene Council for The Universal and Iraqi Church
This year (2025), Christian churches commemorate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. This is an opportunity to reflect on its doctrinal and ecumenical Significance, as a cornerstone of Christian doctrine across the Catholic, Orthodox, and many Protestant traditions. The council was convened in Nicaea (Turkey) in 325 AD by Emperor Constantine I (d. 22 May 379) and was attended by over 300 bishops from throughout the Roman Empire. The Church of the East adopted the Nicene Creed at the Synod of Patriarch Isaac in 410 AD, about 85 years later, with some Syriac linguistic retouching.

Nicaea: Steps towards Church Unity
The significance of the Council of Nicaea lies in its creed and its determination of the date for Easter celebration. The Church’s doctrine was seriously threatened by the teachings of Arius, a priest from Alexandria, who proclaimed that the Son of God was a created being, subordinate to the Father. This point of view undermines the essence of the Christian faith.
The fathers of the council recognized the threat of Arius’ teachings to the Christian faith. They declared that Christ is “of the same substance as God” (homoousios), which is a carefully chosen theological term to affirm His equality with the Father. They preserved the mystery of the Incarnation and the doctrine of the Trinity: fundamental truths of Christianity. This creed was expanded in 381 at the Second Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople, to include a comprehensive profession of the divinity of the Holy Spirit. Thus, the final form of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, as it is called, affirmed the full divinity of the Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God in three persons.
The two councils defined the Christians faith in simple and evident theological terms. This formulation established the unity of the Church, that both Eastern and Western Churches still profess this creed officially in their liturgy at Mass every Sunday, during baptism, and in catechism.
Later, a difference emerged when the Western Church added this phrase: “the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son” (Filioque), while the Orthodox Churches retained only “from the Father”. The Chaldean Church, have included the same phrase “from the Father” in the second Anaphora of Theodore, Bishop of Mopsuestia (†428).
The council included a method to calculate the date of Easter (Passover) based on lunar calendar, on the first Sunday, at the full moon following the start of Spring season, making the earliest possible Easter date to be March 22nd and the latest April 25th.
Today, Christians are divided; the Western churches use the Gregorian calendar, adopted in 1582, while the Orthodox churches follow the Julian calendar.
Currently, the Church is facing new challenges, such as secularism and relativism, in addition, to being divided in celebrating Easter. Therefore, commemorating the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea should not be just a formal gathering to highlight a historical document; but should involve returning to the Nicene Creed as a common ground for ecumenical dialogue, aiming to unify Easter Sunday on a fixed date, as a Christian testimony, and a commitment to walk together towards unity and full communion. Unity does not mean merging all churches into one, but rather in finding an acceptable model for ecumenical cooperation, since our faith is one and we share the same sacraments.

The Message of Nicaea to the Churches of Iraq
This conference should not be merely a “show” gathering for Iraqi Churches, but rather a serious opportunity to unite their stances by taking bold / brave and practical steps to achieve that.
The Council of Nicaea should illuminate our paths back to the true spirit / logic of the Church spirit / logic of faith, love, hope, mission, and service,. To overcome this division we need to free ourselves from being committed to any political group whose policies are known to be discriminatory against Christians, as well as those of religious and ethnic fanaticism. Let us leave nationalism for secularists.. We, clergymen should be loyal to God, focusing on our mission and service, by keeping it as a priority.
The message of Nicaea today is to unite and work together, so that we will be able to reinforce our presence, our future, and our full rights in Iraq and the region, where Christianity originated, rooted, and spread.
All churches and ethnicities are respected, but this does not prevent us from working together. Let us start to unify Easter Sunday at least in Iraq.
As the largest church in the country, , the Chaldean Church, honestly, extends its hand to those who are willing to work together sincerely on establishing a new council: to be named as “the Council of Iraqi Patriarchs and Bishops” for the purpose of defending Iraqis and Christians their Dignity, rights, restoring their security and putting an end to their suffering.
The proposed council: respects the identity of each church; fosters team work; bears witness to our unity; and will ensure that our presence remains as a flame that never goes out be preserved by future generations.

Iraqi Archbishop: At Catholic University in Erbil, people “breathe Christ through equality, respect, dignity, and service.”

John Burger 
September 27, 2025

On December 8, 2015, in a city in northern Iraq, 11 students began taking classes in a new university, born amid terror, war, and fear – and one of the most dramatic persecutions of Christians to be seen in modern times.
The name of the new institution was The Catholic University in Erbil (CUE). Its initial enrollment of 11 doesn’t sound like much, but for Iraqi Christians, it was a new, promising beginning. Its founding was a statement of hope — indicating that the Faith’s disappearance from the Middle East was not inevitable. Over the past decade, CUE has grown to accommodate some 750 students who can choose among 16 disciplines in which to specialize. On September 30, as the school graduates its fifth class, the university community will come together to give thanks, reflect on its accomplishments, and look to the future.
Archbishop Bashar Matti Warda, head of the Chaldean Archdiocese of Erbil and founder of CUE, spoke with Aid to the Church in Need-USA about the educational venture and what it means for the Christian community of Iraq.
Your Grace, the Catholic University of Erbil started during the ISIS invasion. Take us back to what it was like in those days.
The idea was always there as I knew, from my own formation, that education builds a strong community of faith that can stand firm in any storm. I fully understood that a university could be both a bridge to others and a chance to share Christ’s love with everyone—just like our Fathers in faith did long ago. That is why we laid the foundation stone in 2012.
With the shock of ISIS in 2014, the project became an urgent pastoral duty and obligation of care when thousands of families were forced to leave Mosul and the Nineveh Plain. Apart from pastoral and humanitarian care, we needed to continue their lost education. Our educational response was “a project of life, not a project to leave Iraq.” We needed to give the IDPs a chance to continue their higher education in a safe and welcoming place of learning that protects dignity and secures a future in Iraq and not in the diaspora. If parents know their children will be educated, then they are more likely to remain in Iraq. This has since been proven by most of our graduates and the growth of the university from 11 in 2015 to now with over 760 students.
In 2015, the university opened. All subjects are taught in English as this equips the students to be more successful in the job market. Year after year its meaning has grown: every student’s story matters to us, and from these stories we draw our present and future.
Today the university is clearly a huge signpost for Christians as a platform that gives hope where there was once little hope. We tell our story without noise, a quiet space where every student can breathe and find in us the breath of Christ—witnessing through equality for all, respect, hard and honest work, and deep love for every person’s freedom. It is really the only higher educational platform in Iraq where there is this joyful co-existence, where everyone, no matter their faith, is truly valued and respected. It is a seed that will grow within the work world with the alumni who have shared very special years in a learning environment where everyone is equal and understanding and respectful of the faith of the other. This is a unique project in higher education in Iraq to keep Christianity in Iraq; without the university families will head to the diaspora.
How has the campus developed over 10 years, and what does it include today?
The great teaching facilities, despite the initial basic academic buildings and classrooms, grew as more students came. Today, the campus has colleges of Pharmacy, Nursing, Medical Laboratories, Engineering/Architecture, Accounting, Business and Economics, IT, Languages, Media/International Relations, and Eastern Studies.
There are specialized labs, a magnificent library with study halls, and an auditorium. This year we are also preparing a chapel and a prayer room for Muslim students, because the campus must be a safe crossing for anyone who sincerely seeks God. We also have green spaces, sports areas, and full student services. The growth was step by step, but we never lost the place’s identity: a place that teaches, listens, and forms in the Catholic faith.
Where do the students come from, and why do they choose CUE?
They come from Erbil, Duhok, Sulaymaniyah, the Nineveh Plain, Baghdad, Babylon, and from Christian, Muslim, Yazidi, and other families.
They choose CUE because it is safe and welcoming environment where 60% of the students are Christian. In any other university in Iraq, students would be 98% Muslim.
CUE campus life is unique for students compared to many other universities because of its strong emphasis on diversity, respect, and opportunities. Students from diverse religions and ethnic backgrounds study together, fostering an understanding and appreciation of other cultures.
They also choose us because we care for every individual. To give even more attention to each student’s journey, we established an office for accompaniment and guidance, where Fr. Ephrem Azar, a Dominican, is always present, close to both students and staff, listening to their aspirations and the challenges they face. His presence has greatly contributed to the warm and positive atmosphere at the university.
The same can be said by having the Dominican Sisters teaching and on campus.
The Archdiocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart, Germany, provided us three years ago with a counsellor for ISIS-traumatized students; He really achieved great things and supported the Yazidi students whose families and communities suffered most from ISIS.
What can CUE do for Iraq? What is it doing now for society?
If we disappear from Iraq, apart from who would be the voice of Jesus in this ancient land, you will lose a pluralistic society, one that keeps check on the other to have a good balance in a country. No matter how small, we are known as voices of love, peace education, healthcare and being a trusted people. Those are high values in any small community and should never be lost.
Apart from creating 1,200 new jobs for Christians, we also benefit the economy of the local communities. Students provide tangible economic benefits to local businesses through their consumer spending on everyday needs and services. As the university expands, so do the local businesses.
Through education, the graduates want to stay to become leaders to help rebuild this nation with their professional training, critical thinking, perseverance, coexistence and the ability to understand and appreciate the differences of the other.
A few of our graduates are now working for international humanitarian agencies in Iraq, giving them the benefit of the English language skills and local knowledge.
Historically, Christians have provided education and healthcare. We run a nursing program and hope in time to have a small medical school to feed into the Maryamana Hospital, which is owned by the archdiocese. It was praised by the Ministry of Health during the Covid pandemic in providing care to people of all faiths.
Step by step, we are learning how to be a Catholic university in a society wounded by wars and displacement. Our mission is to form leaders with responsibility and skills. We reduce loss of opportunities for our young with scholarships to produce graduate professionals for business, health and technology needs. We run community service projects, health campaigns, youth training, awareness meetings, and dialogue initiatives.
We run evening classes for adult education within the community.
We also held two major conferences on Personal Status Law (2024) and on Church Property Law, with wide Church and state support.
The campus has become a laboratory of citizenship. Most of all, it is a place that keeps the story of faith alive, where people breathe Christ through equality, respect, dignity, and service.
How was CUE part of the Christian community’s efforts to simply survive in Iraq?
We gave people what they needed to survive with dignity: quality education, safety, and hope. A scholarship for one displaced child often meant survival for a whole family, and a way to rebuild. The university secured our presence not with slogans, but with real knowledge and daily service. We added theology and Bible courses, prayer camps, and programs that stayed with young people even when they returned home. Our answer to displacement was a project of life: a university seat that kept families together and gave them tomorrow. Survival comes not from fear but from education that creates hope. It had to be free education as ISIS crippled the livelihoods of Christians; it is hard enough to house, cloth and feed your children let alone pay tuition fees.
Finally, Your Grace, how would you describe the help of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN)? What has it allowed you to achieve?
ACN has been, and still is, a true partner in mission. They supported the university from the time it was just an idea; they helped build a wing of the university, equip halls and medical labs, supported the initial running costs, gave scholarships to students displaced by war. They later equipped the library with computers. After the visit of Pope Francis, we asked for support of scholarships to keep the young in Iraq as their parents had lost so much with ISIS. They had no money to support their children’s education; if they could not be educated, they would head to the diaspora. We appealed to ACN, and they fully recognized the need and opportunity to keep Christianity in Iraq; we jointly launched the “Pope Francis Scholarships” to give life and hope to the poorest young people. ACN also supports accommodation for the poorest families living outside of Erbil, as they cannot afford to pay for housing in Ankawa.
Thanks to this, hundreds of young people have turned the “possibility of study” into real education. At this year’s graduation, ACN’s first scholarship students will graduate; all 104 of them out of a total of 114 graduating here today. What a gift they have been to displaced Christians and our university. ACN supported more in the following years as ACN now has four Pope Francis Scholarship programs running with the university. It will be a fantastic moment for these first graduates as every scholarship defines hope, is a call to life, a great formation, every classroom a silent prayer in nurturing success.
But their help went further: ACN’s financial and moral support allowed us to keep going, to manage our budgets wisely, and to grow in a prudent but proactive way. With more scholarships, more students came, and their very presence became the best witness and promotion of the university. Students of all religions and backgrounds knocked on our doors, and the campus became a small picture of a diverse Iraq. Tuition fees set by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and the fall of the Iraqi Dinar to the US Dollar made it challenging in competing with other private universities and free education at the public universities. As the student numbers increased, we are starting to turn the corner and eroding the cumulative yearly losses.
Now we can say with confidence that within two years, we could reach a good level of financial sustainability.
ACN’s support was not only money; it was an immense bridge to succeed in this mission to keep Christianity in Iraq. ACN has allowed us to find our way through financial difficulties and a way to keep the university as a vital and key platform to tell our story, show our identity, and protect every student’s dignity and hope for a future in Iraq by being well qualified for the job market, with the extra advantage of being English speakers and writers.

Patriarca Sako: A Mosul rimangono meno di settanta famiglie cristiane

26 settembre 2025

A Mosul, un tempo città multietnica, dove vivevano almeno 50mila battezzati, adesso vivono meno di settanta famiglie cristiane. E in tutto il Paese i cristiani, che un tempo superavano il milione, adesso sono meno di 500mila. Sono alcuni dati esposti dal Cardinale iracheno Louis Raphael Sako, Patriarca della Chiesa caldea, durante l'intervento da lui pronunciato il 24 settembre a Vienna per esporre a diplomatici e politici austriaci l’attuale condizione dei cristiani in terra irachena.
Negli ultimi due decenni - ha ricordato il Patriarca - le comunità cristiane in Iraq hanno sopportato immense sofferenze, trovandosi in una condizione di vulnerabilità nonostante rappresentino "la popolazione originaria del territorio". La condizione dei cristiani è stata indebolita "a causa di conflitti basati su differenze settarie, della presenza di organizzazioni estremiste come Al Qaeda e ISIS, di milizie e bande criminali, della discriminazione sul lavoro, dell'oppressiva "Legge sullo Status Personale" e dell'islamizzazione dei minori".
Inoltre, "una milizia fondata nel 2014 afferma di rappresentare i cristiani, il che non è vero”. Tutti fattori che continuano a spingere i cristiani iracheni verso l’esodo forzato dalla loro Patria.
Tra le misure a breve termine da mettere in atto per frenare l’esodo, il Patriarca ha richiamato l’urgenza di “Garantire una reale protezione” per le comunità cristiane della Piana di Ninive “attraverso la collaborazione con la Polizia Federale piuttosto che con le milizie” e la necessità di “Ripristinare le proprietà saccheggiate e fornire un risarcimento finanziario per le perdite subite”, in modo da “creare un ambiente favorevole con incentivi per incoraggiare il ritorno degli emigranti cristiani, in particolare quelli residenti nei Paesi limitrofi”.
Guardando a un futuro più lontano, il Cardinale Sako ha ribadito che occorre favorire lo sviluppo d uno Stato in cui la legge garantisca le prerogative di ogni cittadino, a prescindere dall’appartenenza religiosa, superando la mentalità settaria e la cultura tribale. Uno Stato fondato sui principi di eguaglianza e cittadinanza, garantiti da una “Costituzione laica”.

Chaldean Patriarch Sako reopens Baghdad’s Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, affirms enduring Christian presence in Iraq

September 22, 2025

Photo Chaldean Patriarchate
Chaldean Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphael I Sako presided over the reopening Mass of Baghdad’s Um al-Mauna (Our Lady of Perpetual Help) Church in the Saadoun district, marking the completion of its restoration and renovation under the patronage of the Patriarchate. The ceremony resonated with both spiritual devotion and national pride.
The event was attended by Auxiliary Bishop Baselios Yeldo, several priests from Baghdad, and a large gathering of the faithful. For many, the occasion was more than the reopening of a church — it was a statement affirming the Christian presence and role in the heart of Iraq’s capital.
In his sermon, Patriarch Sako emphasized that “the true Church resides in the human heart,” adding that Iraqi Christians “take pride in their Iraqi identity and see themselves as an integral part of the country’s historical, social, and cultural fabric.”
He noted that the reopening of the church, dedicated to the Virgin, coincided with the construction of 14 modern apartments adjacent to the church, with their proceeds dedicated to the poor. The initiative, he said, was “a beacon of hope for Christians who have long endured marginalization, exclusion, and injustice.”
Patriarch Sako also reminded the congregation that Christianity in Iraq is not an imported faith. “Our Church was born and deeply rooted here,” he said. “We were the majority before the arrival of Muslim conquerors in the seventh century, and from here our faith spread to India and China.”
His words reclaimed a heritage spanning thousands of years, underscoring that the Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian presence in Beth Nahrin (Mesopotamia) is not only religious but also civilizational and cultural — despite enormous challenges ranging from wars and displacement to significant demographic decline in recent decades.
“The presence of Christians in Iraq is a top priority for us,” Sako affirmed, “and we consistently emphasize our commitment to remain here and remain loyal, despite the many challenges.” He added that the Church continues to work “for peace, the preservation of diversity, and the promotion of dialogue with our Muslim brothers to reinforce shared spiritual and ethical values, and to uphold the principles of coexistence.”
For many attendees, the reopening represented more than a religious milestone. It carried layered symbolism in a country battered by conflict and sectarian divisions. While waves of Christian emigration continue, the event stood as a reaffirmation of persistence and rootedness, conveying that Iraq’s future can only be built by recognizing all its communities and securing their rights.
In this spirit, the Um al-Mauna Church has become more than a place of worship. It is now a symbol of endurance and resilience, a testament to the determination of Iraq’s Christian community to remain a living, vibrant part of the nation’s landscape, no matter the storms it faces.

The Triple Marginalization of Iraq’s Christians

Thibault van den Bossche
September 22, 2025

As Iraq approaches its parliamentary elections in November 2025, around thirty Christian candidates are competing for the five seats reserved for their community in the federal parliament. Yet this democratic showcase can no longer conceal the shrinking of Iraq’s Christian community to a mere shadow of its former self. Heirs to two millennia of presence in Mesopotamia, Christians today face triple marginalization: the dispossession of their lands and a true cultural genocide, the fragility of their institutional and political representation, as well as social and economic pressures that jeopardize their survival in the country.
Iraq has faded from the headlines, and many believe it is rebuilding itself thanks to its oil. “But that is false: religious minority communities, particularly Christians and Yazidis, are still in urgent need of help,” warns Pascale Warda, cofounder of the NGO Hammurabi (HHRO) and former Minister of Migration and Refugees (2004–2005). The Iraqi authorities have yet to understand that recognizing minority rights is a strategic asset: marginalizing them weakens national unity, while their integration would strengthen Iraq at every level.

Dispossession of Christian Lands and Cultural Genocide
Present in Mesopotamia for two millennia but driven out by the Islamic State in 2014, Iraq’s Christians now see their lands and properties confiscated or usurped without real protection from the federal state. In its latest annual report, published in September 2025, Hammurabi documents thousands of cases of land grabs in the Nineveh Plain, Baghdad, and Kurdistan. Legal proceedings, when they exist, remain slow, rarely enforced, and often obstructed by influential actors—political or administrative officials, powerful Kurdish families, and local notables, sometimes supported by militias—who exploit their positions to perpetuate these expropriations to the detriment of Christian communities.
This phenomenon is compounded by practices of property title forgery, particularly in the Nahla district, confirms the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ) in its May 2025 submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on Minorities. While the Special Rapporteur was scheduled to visit Iraq in June 2025, his trip was canceled due to Israeli strikes in Iran. Some churches destroyed by Islamic State jihadists have never been rebuilt, while others have been converted into mosques. This amounts to a “cultural genocide” that gradually erases the Christian presence, according to Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul, Monsignor Najeeb.

Institutional and Political Fragility
 The political representation of Christians officially relies on a quota system. Iraq’s 2020 electoral law reserves five out of 329 seats in the federal parliament for Christians. In practice, however, these seats are often captured by the major Shiite, Sunni, or Kurdish parties, which impose their own candidates on minority lists, turning this mechanism into a showcase with no real protective effect. The situation worsened in Kurdistan: in February 2024, the Federal Court annulled 11 quota seats out of the 111 in the regional parliament, including five reserved for Christians (Chaldeans-Assyrians-Syriacs) and one for Armenians. 
This suppression provoked outrage among minorities, who announced a boycott of the June 2024 elections, before the Court partially reversed its decision in May 2024, restoring only five quota seats. 
The crisis sparked in July 2023 by the withdrawal of the presidential decree recognizing the official status of Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako, Patriarch of the Chaldean Church, and guaranteeing the legal protection of church properties, vividly illustrates the institutional precariousness of Christian communities in Iraq. Forced to leave Baghdad for Erbil, the Patriarch denounced an atmosphere of pressure and violations against the Church. The affair caused an international shockwave, prompting interventions from Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the United States, and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, before Cardinal Sako was able to regain his status and return to Baghdad in June 2024.

Social and Economic Pressures
The Personal Status Law, adopted in 1959, had established a progressive civil framework for family matters. But in January 2025, parliament adopted amendments allowing Shiite Muslims to have their family affairs adjudicated outside the unified civil code, according to Ja‘fari jurisprudence—an oppressive form of Islamic law already enforced in Iran. The consequences of this reform are particularly troubling: the risk of early marriages, from as young as 9 years old for girls; increased inequalities for women; and the weakening of minorities, whose family rights are now subject to majority religious norms. For Christians, already facing forced conversions of children and discrimination in inheritance matters, this development further deepens their legal and social vulnerability.
Christians also face attacks on their livelihoods. The arbitrary closure of businesses linked to the sale of alcohol—an activity historically associated with their communities—has plunged many families into poverty. More broadly, the ECLJ notes that Christians are relegated to precarious jobs, rarely integrated into the public sector, and discriminated against in access to education and services. For example, Islamic teaching permeates the entire school curriculum, where Christians are labeled as “infidels” and “dhimmis,” shaping negative perceptions from an early age.
The Exodus of Iraq’s Christians Is Not Inevitable
This triple marginalization of Christians fuels their exodus: their population has dropped from 1.5 million in 2003 to about 140,000 today. In response, the ECLJ advocates for Christian communities before European and international institutions. We also call for support to local NGOs, which are essential for their survival and future: human rights organizations such as Hammurabi, but also return initiatives like The Return, founded in 2023 by Dilan Adamat. Having grown up in France, this Franco-Iraqi chose to return to Ankawa, a Christian suburb of Erbil, and has since worked to help displaced families reclaim their lands, their homes, and their dignity.

15 settembre 2025

Il Papa: i martiri, simboli di una speranza disarmata e lievito di un’umanità pacifica

Benedetta Capelli
14 settembre 2025

Ci sono storie, volti, percorsi di vita segnati dal sangue ma che non si concludono con la morte violenta e ingiusta. Testimoni di una resistenza inerme e mite che sopravvive e si moltiplica anche se agli occhi del mondo i martiri sono “sconfitti”, il Libro della Sapienza li definisce nella verità: perché “la loro speranza resta piena d’immortalità”. Papa Leone offre oggi, 14 settembre festa dell’Esaltazione della Santa Croce, una riflessione profonda e sentita nella Commemorazione dei nuovi martiri e testimoni della fede del XXI secolo insieme ai rappresentanti delle altre Chiese e comunioni cristiane, nella Basilica di San Paolo fuori le mura, alla presenza di circa 4mila fedeli.

LEGGI QUI IL TESTO DELL'OMELIA DI PAPA LEONE

La debole e mite forza del Vangelo
La speranza piena di immortalità si intreccia con la speranza giubilare, diventa profezia e, sottolinea il Papa, “speranza disarmata”.
Il loro martirio continua a diffondere il Vangelo in un mondo segnato dall’odio, dalla violenza e dalla guerra; è una speranza piena d’immortalità, perché, pur essendo stati uccisi nel corpo, nessuno potrà spegnere la loro voce o cancellare l’amore che hanno donato; è una speranza piena d’immortalità, perché la loro testimonianza rimane come profezia della vittoria del bene sul male. Sì, la loro è una speranza disarmata. Hanno testimoniato la fede senza mai usare le armi della forza e della violenza, ma abbracciando la debole e mite forza del Vangelo.

L’amore più forte della morte
La celebrazione è preceduta dalla processione verso l'altare della Basilica, guidata dal Papa insieme ai Capi e delegati delle Chiese e delle Comunità cristiane di Oriente e Occidente. Leone XIV segue la Croce, nel giorno della festa dell’Esaltazione della Croce e nel ricordo del suo ritrovamento a Gerusalemme a opera di Sant’Elena. Nel pensare a quanti negli ultimi 25 anni hanno perso la vita per la fedeltà a Cristo, il Papa cita san Oscar Arnulfo Romero, arcivescovo di San Salvador, ucciso nel 1980 mentre celebrava la Messa. Ne ricorda la fiducia in un Dio “che sente il dolore di chi è torturato e ucciso. Un Dio vivo, che agisce, lavora, conduce questa storia" e in cui si confida e si spera. Dopo la proclamazione del Vangelo delle Beatitudini, il Pontefice nell’omelia rivolge a tutti “un abbraccio di pace” e sottolinea che “questi audaci servitori del Vangelo e martiri della fede hanno dimostrato in modo evidente che ‘l’amore è più forte della morte’”, come aveva già indicato nel Giubileo del 2000 san Giovanni Paolo II.

Con lo sguardo alla Croce
I martiri, sottolinea il Papa, sono “fratelli e sorelle con lo sguardo rivolto al Crocifisso”, nella Croce Gesù “ci ha manifestato il vero volto di Dio, la sua infinita compassione per l’umanità; ha preso su di sé l’odio e la violenza del mondo, per condividere la sorte di tutti coloro che sono umiliati e oppressi”. Oggi quell’oppressione continua a vivere “in situazioni difficili e contesti ostili”, proprio lì uomini e donne continuano a portare la stessa Croce.
Sono donne e uomini, religiose e religiosi, laici e sacerdoti, che pagano con la vita la fedeltà al Vangelo, l’impegno per la giustizia, la lotta per la libertà religiosa laddove è ancora violata, la solidarietà con i più poveri.

Suor Dorothy: la Bibbia, arma d’amore
E allora Papa Leone cita alcuni tra gli uomini e le donne che sono i martiri di oggi. La prima è suor Dorothy Stang, religiosa americana della congregazione di Nostra Signora di Namur, uccisa nel 2005 ad Anapu, nel Pará brasiliano. Il Pontefice esalta la sua “forza evangelica” tra i senza terra in Amazzonia.
A chi si apprestava a ucciderla chiedendole un’arma, lei mostrò la Bibbia rispondendo: “Ecco la mia unica arma”.

Padre Ganni: “un vero cristiano”
Dall’Amazzonia all’Iraq, Leone XIV ricorda padre Ragheed Ganni, prete caldeo di Mosul “che – afferma - ha rinunciato a combattere per testimoniare come si comporta un vero cristiano”. Padre Ganni, minacciato da mesi, venne ucciso dopo la Messa il 3 giugno del 2007 da terroristi del sedicente Stato Islamico, insieme a lui persero la vita tre giovani diaconi. Nel 2019 si è conclusa la fase diocesana del processo di beatificazione, due anni prima, nella celebrazione in memoria dei nuovi martiri nella Basilica di San Bartolomeo a Roma, Papa Francesco aveva indossato la sua stola rossa.

Fratel Tofi: uomo di pace come tanti cristiani ancora oggi perseguitati
Nell’ecumenismo del sangue che, afferma il Papa, “unisce i cristiani di appartenenze diverse” perché “l’unità viene dalla Croce del Signore”, Leone XIV ha un pensiero anche per fratel Francis Tofi, anglicano e membro della Melanesian Brotherhood, che ha dato la vita per la pace nelle Isole Salomone”. Uomo mite, impegnato nel processo di disarmo e riconciliazione tra le fazioni che avevano scatenato la guerra civile nell’isola di Guadalcanal, venne ucciso con altri sei confratelli il 24 aprile 2003.
Gli esempi sarebbero tanti, perché purtroppo, nonostante la fine delle grandi dittature del Novecento, ancora oggi non è finita la persecuzione dei cristiani, anzi, in alcune parti del mondo è aumentata.

Un mondo migliore
Infine il Papa ricorda un bambino pakistano, Abish Masih, ucciso in un attentato contro la chiesa cattolica di Yohannabad, il 15 marzo 2015 a Lahore, che “aveva scritto sul proprio quaderno: ‘Making the world a better place’, ‘rendere il mondo un posto migliore’”. Abish aveva dieci anni quando è morto in seguito alle ferite riportate nell’attacco alla chiesa, nel quale vennero uccise altre 15 persone. Frequentava le scuole di pace della Comunità di Sant’Egidio, il suo quaderno è custodito nella Basilica di San Bartolomeo all’Isola a Roma, santuario dei nuovi martiri del XX e XXI secolo.
Il sogno di questo bambino ci sproni a testimoniare con coraggio la nostra fede, per essere insieme lievito di un’umanità pacifica e fraterna.

Fare memoria
Il Pontefice assicura poi che i martiri di oggi di tutte le tradizioni cristiane non saranno dimenticati pertanto ribadisce l’impegno della Chiesa Cattolica a custodire la loro memoria. In tal senso adempie a questo compito la Commissione per i Nuovi Martiri, presso il Dicastero per le Cause dei Santi, collaborando con il Dicastero per la Promozione dell’Unità dei Cristiani.
Possa il sangue di tanti testimoni avvicinare il giorno beato in cui berremo allo stesso calice di salvezza!

Lampade accese
Nel corso della celebrazione, sono stati citati in diverse lingue alcuni martiri di questo tempo come suor Leonella Sgorbati, missionaria della Consolata, uccisa in odium fidei a Mogadiscio in Somalia il 17 settembre 2006 davanti all’ospedale pediatrico dove lavorava. È stata beatificata il 26 maggio 2018, giorno in cui ricevette il sacramento della Confermazione a Piacenza, la sua terra d’origine. Scriveva alle sue consorelle di essere “autentiche testimoni di Cristo nella nostra vita di ogni giorno, qui dove siamo”. Quello che Lei con la sua vita di servizio ha sempre portato avanti.
Sono stati ricordati anche i cristiani evangelici assassinati dai terroristi nella Missione di Silgadji, il 29 aprile 2019, in Burkina Faso, primo attacco ai fedeli raccolti in un luogo di culto del Paese. Un pensiero anche ai ventuno copti ortodossi uccisi in Libia il 15 febbraio 2015, si trattava di 20 egiziani e un ghanese, vennero sgozzati sulla spiaggia di Sirte dove si trovavano per lavoro perché non rinnegarono la propria fede. Ad ucciderli gli uomini del sedicente Stato islamico. I loro corpi furono poi ritrovati nel 2017 in una fossa comune. Papa Francesco li ha inseriti anche nel Martirologio Romano “come segno della comunione spirituale” che unisce la Chiesa cattolica e quella copta ortodossa.
Nel fare memoria della loro storia sono state accese diverse lampade, poste ai piedi della croce, perché la luce della fede non muore mai come non muore l’amore di Cristo per chi lo segue.

Si festeggia il compleanno del Papa
Al termine della Commemorazione dei martiri e testimoni della Fede del XXI secolo nella Basilica di San Paolo, Papa Leone XIV - riferisce la Sala Stampa della Santa Sede - ha salutato i rappresentanti delle altre Chiese e Comunioni Cristiane nella sagrestia e, successivamente, si è trattenuto con i cardinali e le altre personalità presenti nella Sala della Pinacoteca, dove il Decano del Collegio Cardinalizio, il cardinale Giovanni Battista Re, gli ha rivolto alcune parole di augurio per il suo compleanno. Il Papa lo ha ringraziato, sottolineando la coincidenza con la Festa dell’Esaltazione della Croce: "Dall’inizio della mia vocazione, ho sempre risposto 'non la mia volontà, ma la tua, Signore’".
Esprimendo l’augurio che l’entusiasmo dei fedeli in quest’Anno Giubilare possa portare frutti per la missione di annunciare il Vangelo, il Papa si è detto felice di festeggiare questo giorno con una celebrazione dal carattere ecumenico e ha invitato a proseguire insieme, “testimoni di unità, carità e speranza”. Dopo un breve brindisi, il taglio della torta e il canto di buon compleanno intonato dai presenti, Leone XIV è uscito dalla Basilica e si fermato a salutare la folla all’esterno prima di fare rientro in Vaticano.

Iraq: Ecumenical festival points to future for persecuted Church

September 11, 2025

“What once was meant to be silenced has become a proclamation – Faith has survived, and hope is stronger than death.”
Christians who survived jihadist attacks in northern Iraq have come together to celebrate a major festival which will proclaim that Faith is still alive in the region.
From 9-13 September 2025, Christians from across the region’s different traditions – Assyrian Church of the East, Chaldean, Syriac Catholic and Syriac Orthodox – are joining together for an extended celebration of the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
Chaldean Archbishop Bashar Warda, who has been working with leaders from other Churches to plan the events, told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) – which helped support the celebrations – that this was a sign that the Faith was still alive. He said: “The timing of the festival is deeply symbolic. A decade ago, Daesh sought to erase Christianity from this land. Today, the very same communities will raise the Cross high in public squares, in churches, and in joyful processions. What once was meant to be silenced has become a proclamation – Faith has survived, and hope is stronger than death.”
Islamist extremist group Daesh (ISIS) controlled parts of the Nineveh Plains in northern Iraq from 2014 until 2017. More than 120,000 Christians sought refuge in Erbil in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region after fleeing their homes in August 2014. ACN supported Christian refugees who fled in 2014, and following the defeat of Daesh helped rebuild Christian towns and villages, to allow communities to return to their homes.
Events are set to begin later today (9 September) with a 1¼ mile (2km) candlelight procession in the Erbil suburb of Ankawa from the Chaldean Shrine of St Elijah to the Assyrian Cathedral of St John the Baptist, where a meal will follow prayers and a homily by the Assyrian Church of the East’s Patriarch Mar Awa III. A packed programme will include prayers, music, cultural events, sporting activities and competitions in the lead up to the vigil of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on 13 September.
The five-day festival is now set to be an annual event in the Churches’ calendar, following ecumenical celebrations in 2024. The 2025 festival builds upon last year’s activities “aiming not only to repeat its success, but also to expand its scope, deepen its content, and involve more youth and families from across the different Churches.”
Archbishop Warda paid tribute to the Joint Youth Committee, composed of 20 volunteers from all four Churches, who have played a lead role. He said: “Young people from all Churches planned the festival together – organising prayers, sports, marathons, concerts, children’s games, and cultural events. Their collaboration became a visible sign of a new future. Older generations watched with admiration as the youth discovered that what unites them – their faith in Christ – is far greater than what divides them. In their hands, the dream of Christian unity in Iraq is already becoming a lived reality.”
The festival is seen as vital to the future of Christianity in the country. According to Saddam Hussein’s last census there were 1.4 million believers, but numbers have fallen to well below a quarter of a million.
Archbishop Bashar Warda said: “The Festival of the Cross 2025 is more than a local celebration. It is a message to the global Church. From the land of Abraham, where Christians suffered exile and persecution, comes a word of hope – we are still here. We are one in Christ. The Cross has not been silenced, and in Iraq, a small and wounded Church has shown the world the power of unity, the courage of faith, and the joy of resurrection life.”

US, Rights Groups Expose Militia Abuses Against Christians in Nineveh

September 9, 2025

A torrent of reports from US agencies, research centers, and media outlets is shedding light on persistent and severe abuses perpetrated by the Babylon militia against the Christian community in Iraq’s Nineveh Plains.
The group, led by Rayan Chaldean, is accused of operating a mafia-like network that uses coercion, intimidation, and criminal activities to maintain control while silencing dissent.
The Chaldeans, one of Iraq’s indigenous Christian populations, have historically faced persecution but found refuge in the Kurdistan Region during times of crisis.
However, since 2014, when Rayan Chaldean established the Babylon militia under the guise of defending Christians, the group has allegedly turned against its own community.
Instead of protecting civilians, the militia integrated into the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and has been widely condemned for abuses and its severed ties with the Chaldean Church.
In 2019, the United States placed Rayan Chaldean on its Magnitsky sanctions list, citing “blatant human rights violations,” including documented torture, property seizures, and hostility toward religious groups.
Human Rights Watch also linked the militia to the destruction of civilian property in Mosul during 2016 and 2017 operations.
A report from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy describes the Babylon militia’s “iron grip” over the Nineveh Plains, accusing it of infiltrating local police, covering up crimes, and engaging in theft, extortion, and illegal trade.
The group’s influence reportedly extends to manipulating elections in Christian-majority areas, with votes secured through fraud and coercion rather than genuine community support.
Despite Rayan’s claim to represent Christians, the militia has clashed with the Chaldean Church.
His disputes with Cardinal Louis Sako, the Patriarch of the Chaldean Church, culminated in a controversial decree by Iraqi President Latif Rashid to remove Sako from his post, a move widely criticized at home and abroad.
Local Christian leaders and activists have repeatedly called for urgent measures, including the removal of militias from security and political structures in the Nineveh Plains, independent oversight of disputed property cases, guarantees for the church’s freedom, accountability for militia crimes, and genuine reconstruction efforts in areas devastated by ISIS.
Observers warn that the continued dominance of the Babylon militia undermines both Christian representation in Iraq and broader stability in the region.

10 settembre 2025

Il primo ministro iracheno riapre due storiche chiese cattoliche distrutte dall’ISIS a Mosul

3 settembre 2025

Il primo ministro Mohammed Shia al-Sudani
ed il vescovo siro cattolico di Mosul
Monsignor Benedictus Y. Hanno

Il 1° settembre, la città di Mosul, in Iraq, è stata teatro di una cerimonia ufficiale per commemorare la riapertura di due chiese storiche completamente restaurate: la Chiesa di Nostra Signora dell’Immacolata Concezione — nota come Al-Tahera e appartenente alla comunità cattolica siriana — e la Chiesa di Nostra Signora dell’Ora, situata nel Monastero Domenicano.
All’evento hanno partecipato il primo ministro Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, funzionari governativi e rappresentanti delle organizzazioni internazionali che hanno sostenuto la ricostruzione.

Un simbolo di convivenza e fratellanza
Durante il suo intervento nella Chiesa dell’Immacolata Concezione, al-Sudani ha affermato: «Questa chiesa sorge tra le macerie per rappresentare la casa dove il Signore riunisce i cuori delle persone senza divisioni né ostilità, in una convivenza antica quanto l’Iraq stesso». Il leader ha sottolineato che la riapertura rappresenta il ritorno allo spirito di Mosul e alla fratellanza tra i suoi abitanti.

L’appello dei cristiani iracheni

Mons. Benedictus Younan Hanno
, vescovo di Mosul e delle comunità cattoliche siriane della regione, ha chiesto al primo ministro di estendere lo stesso sforzo di restauro del patrimonio alla cura della popolazione cristiana. Ha ricordato che circa l’80% dei cristiani iracheni subisce violazioni dei diritti e continua ad essere costretto ad emigrare.
“I cristiani iracheni sono emigrati per forza, lasciando la loro patria tra lacrime e dolore, e continuano ad aspettare di tornare, desiderando rivedere l’Iraq come un paese bello, capace di accogliere i suoi figli cristiani insieme ai loro fratelli di altre comunità”, ha sottolineato.
Dopo i discorsi, è stata suonata la campana della chiesa ed è stato piantato un ulivo nel cortile come simbolo di pace. Successivamente, le autorità si sono recate al monastero domenicano per riaprire anche la chiesa di Nostra Signora della Hora.

Dalla distruzione dell’ISIS alla ricostruzione internazionale
Entrambi i templi, insieme alla Grande Moschea al-Nuri e al suo iconico minareto inclinato, sono stati gravemente danneggiati durante l’occupazione di Mosul da parte del gruppo terroristico Stato Islamico (ISIS) tra il 2014 e il 2017.
Dopo la liberazione della città, l’UNESCO ha avviato il restauro dei monumenti nell’ambito dell’iniziativa “Revivir el Espíritu de Mosul” (Rivivere lo spirito di Mosul), ricostruendoli secondo i loro progetti originali. Il progetto è stato finanziato dagli Emirati Arabi Uniti (EAU) e dall’Unione Europea (UE).