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IRAQ: Faithful return to pray in bombed cathedral
By John Pontifex
Archbishop Georges Casmoussa of Mosul in Iraq
Two young Catholic priests have returned to Baghdad to begin ministering in the cathedral where Christians fell victim to a massacre of Christians.
On Sunday (7th November) the priests celebrated Mass there, surrounded by smashed-up pews and broken statues.
Undaunted by the violence which claimed 58 lives – including two priests – exactly a week earlier, Fathers Faadi Banno and Aysar Kerko, both in their thirties, broke off their studies in Rome and came back to celebrate Sunday Mass in Our Lady of Salvation Syrian Catholic Cathedral.
The priests were joined by more than 60 faithful, who overcame their fears by attending the service surrounded by broken pews, windows and statues in ruins.
The service was held to honour loved ones killed in the attack.
They prayed for the recovery of the 75 who were injured in what is described as Iraq’s worst anti-Christian act of violence since former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was overthrown in spring 2003.
Speaking from Iraq in an interview with Aid to the Church in Need, Syrian Catholic Archbishop Georges Casmoussa paid tribute to the “courage and determination” of both the priests and the people.
He went on to appeal for massive extra security for Christians, a change in the law to tackle discrimination of Christians and greater inter-faith cooperation – steps which he said were vital in the struggle to persuade faithful not to flee abroad.
Archbishop Casmoussa, himself the victim of a brief kidnapping in January 2005, said: “Since the tragedy in Baghdad, so many people here in Iraq have condemned this act of terrorism. If they condemn this terrorism in their statements, they must be willing to take action to prevent it from happening in the future.”
His comments came a day after AsiaNews reported that two Christians had been shot dead, including Louay Daniel Yacoub, 49, killed outside his apartment. The identity of the second casualty is not yet known.
Archbishop Casmoussa said: “Many, many of our people have lost confidence. But I have confidence in our neighbours. It is not only Christianity which does not allow people to kill others. This principle applies to others including Muslims.”
The archbishop, based in Qaraqosh, an Iraqi Christian town outside Mosul, said: “The government needs to give protection to Christian schools and churches and change the laws so that they are more favourable to Christians.
“We need to feel that we Christians are the same rank as others – that we are on the same level as them.”
Archbishop Casmoussa went on to describe how Father Raphael Qotaini, 75, vicar general of the Syrian Catholic diocese in Baghdad, was beginning to recover after being shot in the stomach during the attacks in the cathedral.
Initial reports claiming that Father Qotaini had received head wounds suggested he had died alongside Father Wasim Sabieh and Father Thaier Saad Abdal.
“All of us are so happy about Father Qotani,” said the archbishop, who said the priest can speak slowly and is still in hospital. He added: “Father needs to rest and continue his treatment.”
Meanwhile, a memorial Mass for the victims of the 31st October atrocity is to be held on Friday (12th November) at 7pm in west London’s Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Brook Green.
The service will be led by Father Nizar Semaan, chaplain of the Syrian Catholic community in the UK, and in attendance will be Auxiliary Bishop Alan Hopes of Westminster.
Stressing that many UK-based Syrian Catholics had lost loved ones in the violence, Father Semaan said: “If Christians in Iraq leave en masse it will be giving victory on a plate to the terrorists who want them to leave.
“Obviously it’s up to the individual to decide whether or not to leave but we have to remember that we are part of the land of Iraq. We have to do what we can – spiritually and materially – to help people to stay.”
His comments come after London-based Syrian Orthodox Archbishop Athanasios Dawood gave a BBC interview yesterday (Sunday, 7th November) calling on all Christians to leave Iraq to avoid what he called “genocide”.
Support for Iraqi Christians is a priority project area for Aid to the Church in Need.
The charity provides food, shelter and medicine to displaced faithful in northern Iraq as well as to refugees in Syria, Jordan and Turkey. It also gives aid for the training of seminarians, Christian media projects, Childs Bibles and other catechetical schemes as well as support for religious Sisters.