An Iraqi Christian soldier from Nineveh Plain Protection Unit stands guard outside St. Addai church which was damaged by Islamic State fighters during their occupation of Keramlis village, less than 18 miles, 29 kilometers, southeast of Mosul, Iraq, Sunday Nov. 13, 2016. (Credit: AP Photo/Hussein Malla.)
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John
L. Allen Jr., October 5, 2017
An
Iraqi Christian soldier from Nineveh Plain Protection Unit stands guard outside
St. Addai church which was damaged by Islamic State fighters during their
occupation of Keramlis village, less than 18 miles, 29 kilometers, southeast of
Mosul, Iraq, Sunday Nov. 13, 2016. (Credit: AP Photo/Hussein Malla.)
ROME
– Pope Francis on Thursday said in a session with Catholic leaders from Iraq
that after a “painful and violent oppression,” meaning the occupation of Iraqi
territory by ISIS, there’s still “much to do” to help Christians and other
peoples of Iraq return to normal life.
“May
your intentions remain strong to not give in to discouragement facing the
difficulties that remain, notwithstanding what’s been done in the work of
reconstruction in the Nineveh Plains,” he said.
The
pope’s reference was to roughly 100,000 Christians from the Nineveh Plains in
northern Iraq, straddling the border between Iraqi- and Kurdish-controlled
territory, who were driven from their homes in July and August 2014 when ISIS
forces poured into the region.
Since
ISIS has been driven back out, many of those Christians have attempted to
return, only to find their homes and churches damaged or destroyed. A major
“Nineveh Plains Reconstruction Project” has been launched by Aid to the Church
in Need, a pontifical foundation supporting persecuted Christians, and backed
by donors such as the Knights of Columbus in the United States and the
government of Hungary.
To
date, the project has allowed an estimated 17 percent of Nineveh Plains
Christians to return to their homes.
The
pope also delivered a strong plug for national unity in Iraq, just days after
an independence referendum in Kurdistan in northern Iraq delivered an
overwhelming vote in favor of separating from Baghdad.
After
acknowledging the harrowing challenges faced by the Church in Iraq – including
the forced migration of Christians, the reconstruction of villages damaged or
destroyed by ISIS forces, and the return of displaced persons – Francis called
on church leaders in the “beloved land” of Iraq to be agents of unity.
The
pope’s comments came in an audience on Thursday with the synod of the Chaldean
Catholic Church in Iraq, the largest of the several Eastern churches present in
the country.
Francis
told the Iraqis he’s praying that “the mercy of God will soothe the wounds of
war that afflict the heart of your communities, so that they may finally be
healed.”
The
pope called on the Iraqi churchmen to be agents of unity.
“I
exhort you to work tirelessly as constructors of unity, above all among you
pastors of the Chaldean church and with the pastors of other churches, favoring
dialogue and collaboration among all the actors in public life, to contribute
to facilitating the return of the expelled and to heal the divisions and
disagreements among brothers,” the pope said.
In
the context of the Sept. 25 referendum in Kurdish-controlled territories, in
which 93 percent of Kurds reportedly supported independence from Iraq, Francis
appeared to call for holding the country together.
“There’s
need for a process of national reconciliation,” he said, “and a united effort
of all components of society for reaching shared solutions for the good of the
entire country,” he said.
Francis
recalled the ancient roots of the church in Iraq.
“Since
antiquity, this land, evangelized according to the tradition of the apostle
Thomas, has appeared to the world as a land of civilization, of encounter and
dialogue,” the pope said. “Therefore, it’s of great importance that Christians,
pastors and faithful, strong in those roots, be united in promoting respectful
relations and interreligious dialogue among all the components of the country.”
From
the beginning of his papacy, Francis often has recalled the challenges facing
the Christians of the Middle East, insisting that there are more Christian
martyrs today than in the early years of the Church. He was among the first
world leaders to acknowledge ISIS assaults on Christians in Syria and Iraq as a
“genocide,” well ahead of the U.S. State Department.
Recently,
leaders of the Nineveh Plains Reconstruction Project vowed that despite the new
uncertainties created by the Kurdish independence vote, the effort to help
displaced Christians return to the region will continue.
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