His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako’s Speech at the Opening of the 2024 Chaldean Synod

Below you can find the speech of His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako, Chaldean Patriarch in Iraq and the World, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches, at the opening of the 2024 Chaldean Synod, on Monday 15 July 2024, at the Patriarchal Edifice in Al Mansour - Baghdad, Iraq.

I am pleased to welcome every one of you and to thank you for being here to participate in this Synod, in spite of the challenges that our Church is currently facing and the overall complicated social, political and security circumstances, in a hope that this meeting will bring to live Psalm (133/ 1) “How pleasant it is, when brothers dwell together”, especially when our gathering is for the benefit of our Church and our people.

First of all, I thank God for giving me strength, wisdom, and determination that enabled me to go through the crisis of withdrawing Presidential decree (147) of 2013 as well as several malicious complaints. However, most of you may know that I, personally was not the target (as being told by some officials), but the purpose was rather to seize Church properties.

On this occasion, I feel speechless, cannot find the right word to thank you for your reliable stances aligning with the Episcopal Conference, and for your honorable interventions in this regard. I feel wordless as well in showing my gratefulness to all those who supported the Church by their prayers for revealing the truth and showing solidarity to strengthen the Church rather than dividing it. Even though, the Church is stronger now.

I extend my heartfelt thanks to the Prime Minister, Mr. Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani, for his courageous initiative in restoring our Church’s right by issuing an “Administrative Order” confirming the designation of the Patriarch as the custodian of its endowments.

Dear Blessed Brothers,

We sense in your presence at this annual assembly a number of apostolic indicators, such as giving the priority to the well-being of our Church and our people above all other considerations, far from arguments and criticisms that float on the surface and do not match reality.

The Lord expects us, together with faithful, to think in a responsible way toward contributing in our Church and our country. Since, we are called to bear our ecclesiastical, humanitarian and national responsibilities in order to face major challenges in the society as well as the accelerated changes in our country and around the world.

Subsequently, we should be keen not to waste our time in “disagreements” that harm the reputation and the status of our Church, resulting in misrepresenting of our testimony. Nevertheless, our limited time is for nothing but to serve, give and love generously and in harmony. It is an hour of honesty and truth.

On one hand, the core of our call is to be open to what is happening in the Church and to follow the “progress” taking place and not to be “satisfied” with the information we acquired during our academic study, since our world is changing. It is different from the world where we were born, raised and educated, and will be gradually different for generations to come. The progress of the Church and the society is linked to modernism, and there is no progress without it…

This message was originally published on the website of the Chaldean Patriarchate in Baghdad. Please click here to read the full text.