Little boy manages a portion of his family's "Christmas basket," a gift from the Knights of Columbus to persecuted Christians in Iraq.
ishtartv.com - https://www.prnewswire.com
Dec.
21, 2017
The
Knights of Columbus is giving a 30-day supply of food to 12,000 displaced or
formerly displaced Christian families in northern Iraq to coincide with
Christmas.
"The
Knights of Columbus is pleased to help bring a Merry Christmas to those
displaced by ISIS or now returning home to recently liberated areas," said
Knights of Columbus CEO Carl Anderson. "These Christians have lost
everything for their faith, and we want them to know that they are not
forgotten and that their sacrifices inspire us in our own faith."
Valued
at $840,000, the Christmas baskets contain food staples such as wheat, rice,
beans and meat, along with cleaning supplies. With the assistance of the
Chaldean Catholic Archdiocese of Erbil, the Knights' gift is being distributed
to Syriac Catholic, Syriac Orthodox and Chaldean Catholic families, as well as
Yazidis.
"Even
though we are still in a time of great uncertainty, the knowledge that our
brothers in the Knights of Columbus are in solidarity with us, especially at
this time of year, brings great comfort," said Archbishop Bashar Warda of
Erbil. "God bless them all."
The
K of C has committed more than $17 million in aid to Christians and other
religious minorities in the region since 2014.
"We
will be able to celebrate a true Christmas in our ancient Christian town of
Karamles for the first time in years," said Father Thabet Habib, parish
priest of the town, which is located on the Nineveh Plain.
Karamles
was a predominantly Christian town before ISIS overran it, driving out
inhabitants, damaging or destroying homes, and desecrating churches. The
inhabitants have been able to return in recent months, thanks to the defeat of
ISIS and a commitment of $2 million by the Knights of Columbus to help restore
much of the town's infrastructure.
"We
will be giving thanks this year for the wonderful Christmas gift we have
received — the return of our town," said Father Thabet.
In
addition to advocating on the behalf of persecuted religious minorities in Iraq,
Syria and the surrounding region, the Knights also assisted Christian refugee
programs in Lebanon and Jordan and provided aid to those targeted by ISIS in Egypt.
The
Knights led a major campaign urging Congress and the State Department to
declare ISIS' terrorism an act of genocide in 2016. To support the cause, it
produced a nearly 300-page report on ISIS' atrocities against Christians and
gathered 140,000 signatures for a petition calling for a declaration of
genocide.
In
addition, the K of C has urged the U.S. government to ensure that communities
targeted for genocide not be overlooked. The Knights applauded Vice President Mike
Pence's recent announcement that the Trump administration will begin providing
aid directly to religious minorities impacted by ISIS' genocide.
More
information on the Knights' efforts is available at www.ChristiansAtRisk.org.
Little child manages a portion of the "Christmas basket" given to persecuted Christians in Iraq by the Knights of Columbus.
|