His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako: a church in Ur open to Christians and Muslims in the sign of Abraham His Holiness Pope Francis

This news is shared from the website of the Chaldean Patriarchate in Baghdad.

he inauguration of a place of worship and pilgrimage four years after the papal visit sends a message. Both Christians and Muslims worry about the pontiff’s health. A country’s cultural lasting heritage is a treasure that supports the economy. For the patriarch, the secular nature of the state remains a key issue; in the meantime, he appeals for an end to wars and extremist ideologies

Baghdad (AsiaNews) – The imminent inauguration of a Church in Ur of the Chaldeans, four years after the visit of Pope Francis, is a “message” and a sign of “openness”, this according to His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako, Chaldean Patriarch in Iraq and the World, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches.

The site, he hopes, will become a place of pilgrimage for Iraqis and believers from all over the world, Christians and Muslims, for Abraham “is their common father,” the prelate told AsiaNews.

The opening was set for 6 March, the anniversary of the pope’s apostolic journey, but will instead “be held after Easter, after Ramadan and Lent.” This is also necessary because, the prime minister (Mohammed Shia al-Sudani) and other Muslim figures are expected to participate [in the ceremony], which is why we preferred to postpone it after the month of fasting and Islamic prayer.”

The church will be a landmark and a place of pilgrimage “like the Church of the Baptism on the Jordan River or the Abrahamic House in the United Arab Emirates,” the prelate explained. “Today, we need these signs and places to unite all humanity for they represent a meeting point for all religions.”

This church is “important for Iraq and Iraqis.” It is “a Christian ‘sign’ in a place with a huge Muslim majority, which will help others understand Christians and respect their faith, looking at the points of union and accepting the elements of diversity, to live in peace and stability.”

Four years after Pope Francis’s visit, his first apostolic journey abroad while COVID-19 pandemic was still raging, Iraq’s Catholic community is ready to inaugurate the Ibrahim Al-Khalil Church in Ur of the Chaldeans, named after Abraham (father of Jews, Christians and Muslims).

The church is part of a larger complex that rises in the desert plain, with a pyramidal shape; not only a place of worship, but also a religious, social and cultural facility closely linked to Francis and his message on the three great monotheistic religions who are affiliated with the prophet.

This will further encourage dialogue after the pope signed the Document on [Human] Fraternity in Abu Dhabi in 2019 with Grand Imam Ahmed el-Tayeb of al-Azhar, the highest authority in Sunni Islam, and met, in Iraq, with Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the foremost Shia cleric.

The place of worship is also intended to encourage Iraqi Christians, whose numbers have dwindled in the past 20 years, from around 1.5 million to just a few hundred thousand.

The building stands in an area of 10,000 square metres and includes a large room of 600 square metres and a 23-metre-high bell tower.

The church does not only intend to serve the Christian community, but is expected to attract tourists from all over the world, especially Christian pilgrims.

“Four years after the Pope’s visit, everyone still remembers him,” Card Sako said. “He too,  several times in the past, has said that Iraq is in his heart.”

The pontiff’s health conditions are a source of anxiety not only among Christians, but also for Iraqi authorities and many Muslims…

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