Despite Persecution, Christians in Iraq Encouraged to Stay

Iraq: new Chaldean leader appeals to Christians not to leave
ICC Note: Louis Raphael I Sako, the Chaldean Patriarch of Baghdad, told his congregation to stop emigrating, lest Christianity in the Middle East risks becoming “a distant memory”, Independent Catholic News reports. According to a 1987 census, there were 1.4 million Christians in Iraq. Today, fewer than 400,000 remain due to rising persecution in the country. “These past years have been full of events and dangers and still the shadow of fear, anxiety and death is hanging over our people, said Patriarch Sako.  “Look deeper into the reality we face today and understand the importance of your presence and witness.”
By John Pontifex
3/7/2013 Iraq (Independent Catholic News) – The new leader of the largest Church in Iraq has told his dwindling faithful to stop emigrating, warning them that Christianity in the Middle East risks becoming “a distant memory”.
Speaking yesterday, Wednesday, 6 March, at his installation as Chaldean Patriarch of Baghdad, Louis Raphael I Sako said Christians in Iraq should overcome their fears and work together to build a new future.
Raphael I, whose election as head of the Eastern-rite Catholic Church was confirmed by Benedict XVI on 1 February, called for a dialogue “of peaceful coexistence” with Muslim leaders at a time of increasing concern about extremism and violence.
In his address, a copy of which he sent to Aid to the Church in Need, the Patriarch, 64, stressed the need to work for unity with Orthodox Christians in regions marked by ecumenical tensions in recent years.
In comments aimed specifically at Christians present at the service in Baghdad’s St Joseph’s Cathedral, the patriarch said: “Why are you so afraid today? Do not withdraw or emigrate in time of great pressure. This is your country and your land. If emigration continues God forbid, there will be no more Christians in the Middle East. The Church will be no more than a distant memory.”
The patriarch’s comments, given on the eve of the tenth anniversary of the Iraq War and the overthrow of President Saddam Hussein, come after a decade of massive emigration of Christians from the country. In 1987, Christians in Iraq totalled 1.4 million according to the last census, but now there could be fewer than 250,000, with the greatest decline in numbers taking place after 2003. Since that year, fundamentalism and a breakdown in law and order have shaken the Church to its foundations.
…
[Full Story]