Resources
Hassaké: Syrian Christians and Christmas in the shadow of a Turkish threat
Publication Date: 16/12/2022
Source: Asia News
The Syrian Catholic Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan made a pastoral visit to north-east Syria in recent days. A reality of "sadness, anguish, but also of challenges and hope". War, economic crisis and fears of a Turkish attack have emptied the region. From 100,000 the faithful now number 20,000, with an average income of 30 euros per month. Sanctions and international neglect.
USCIRF warns of threat to Christians in northwestern Syria
Author: Anugrah Kumar
Publication Date: 27/11/2022
Source: The Christian Post
There’s a threat to the property, safety and existence of religious minority groups, including Christians, in northwestern Syria under the de facto governance of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, a former al-Qaeda affiliate and U.S.-designated terrorist group, says the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom in a new report.
Churches in Middle East hapless as Christians migrate en masse
Author: Ben Joseph
Publication Date: 8/2/2022
Source: UCA news
Pervasive persecution, at times amounting to genocide, has seen millions of Christians in the Middle East killed, kidnapped, uprooted, imprisoned and discriminated against.
It has taken a toll on the survival of the oldest Christian communities in the world, located in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, where the Abrahamic faith was born.
Baghdad: Christians celebrate the ordination of three new priests
Publication Date: 19/12/2022
Source: Asia News
The priesthood "takes within itself" the entire essence of a person, of a Christian, and permeates "his thinking, his feelings and his activity," reflected Patriarch of Baghdad of the Chaldeans, Card. Louis Raphael Sako, during his homily at the ordination mass of three new priests of the Iraqi Church.
From Normandy to Iraq : a new set of bells for the Christian Church of Mosul
Publication Date: 14/12/2022
Source: UNESCO
It was a cornerstone of Mosul’s music and social life, as well as symbol of Mosul diversity and multi-religious landscape for almost two centuries, and a beacon of Christian communities in the Middle East. Al-Saa’a Church (Conventual Church of Our Lady of the Hour) dominated the Mosul Skyline, side by side with other architectural landmarks and minarets. Its destruction has been more than an architectural tragedy, it has affected the people of Mosul, Muslims and Christians alike, to their core.
Christian-Shiite dialogue Conference scheduled for March 2023, two years after the Pope's visit
Publication Date: 10/12/2022
Source: Agenzia Fides
In March 2023, two years after the apostolic visit to Iraqi land, Iraq will host a Christian-Shiite dialogue Conference. The initiative will involve high Christian and Shiite representatives and it will take place between Baghdad and the Shiite holy city of Najaf and will be an opportunity of a meeting and exchange of views in the wake of the historic meeting that took place on March 6, 2021 in Najaf between the Bishop of Rome and Ayatollah al-Sistani. On the afternoon of Friday, December 9, a delegation of authoritative Shiite scholars from Najaf (in the photo) were received in Baghdad by Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, Patriarch of the Chaldean Church.
Why ‘Persecuted’ Is Not the Best Way to Describe Christians in the Gulf
Author: Hrayr Jebejian
Publication Date: 7/12/2022
Source: Christianity Today
In November, officials in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) made a surprise announcement. Discovered among the white-hot sand dunes of Siniyah Island were the ruins of a 1,400-year-old Christian monastery, likely predating the rise of Islam.
Iraqi government must support Christians, Chaldean Catholic patriarch says
Publication Date: 2/12/2022
Source: Catholic News Agency
ACI MENA, the Arabic-language new service based in Erbil, Iraq, conducted an exclusive interview Nov. 21 with Chaldean Catholic Patriarch Cardinal Louis Sako at the patriarchal residence in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
