Pope’s message of forgiveness in the rubble of churches
STANDING in the rubble of four historic churches, Pope Francis calls on Iraq’s Christians to forgive the injustices committed against them by Islamic extremists.
This was the striking scene yesterday in Mosul – the centre of the Islamic State’s murderous ‘caliphate’.
Iraq’s second-largest city was home to four different churches – Syriac Catholic, Armenian orthodox, Syriac orthodox and Chaldean – in its central square. They all now lie in ruins.
The Pope chose the setting to preach a message of peace and reconciliation on his visit to the war-ravaged country.
He said: ‘How cruel it is that this country, the cradle of civilisation, should have been afflicted by so barbarous a blow, with ancient places of worship destroyed and many thousands of people – Muslims, Christians, Yazidis – who were cruelly annihilated by terrorism and others forcibly displaced or killed.
‘ Today, however, we reaffirm our conviction that fraternity is more durable than fratricide, that hope is more powerful than hatred, that peace is more powerful than war.’
Francis added: ‘Forgiveness is necessary to remain in love, to remain Christian.’ And he called for ‘harmonious coexistence’ of those from different backgrounds and cultures. It was a
‘Cruelly annihilated by terrorism’
message he repeated as he travelled through northern Iraq, home to most of the country’s Christians.
In Erbil, in the autonomous region of Kurdistan, Pope Francis addressed 10,000 people at an open-air mass in a football stadium. They cheered loudly as he did a lap around the track in his open-sided Pope-mobile, the only time it has been used on this trip.
The event featured a statue of the virgin Mary from a nearby church that was restored after Islamic militants chopped off its head and hands.
Many residents could not believe the Pope was choosing to visit the traditionally Christian towns dotting the Nineveh Plains of northern Iraq that were emptied as Christians – as well as many Muslims – fled the Islamic State onslaught in 2014. only a few have returned to their homes since IS was defeated in Iraq four years ago.
For the vatican, the presence of Christians in Iraq is vital to keeping alive faith communities that have existed there since the time of Christ. The population has dwindled from 1.5million before the 2003 US-led invasion to just a few hundred thousand today.
Mosul, which was IS’s bureaucratic and financial centre, witnessed the worst of the terror group’s rule inflicted on Muslims, Christians and others. It took a ferocious nine-month battle to finally free the city in July 2017.