Pope Francis sends vestments, financial aid to Iraqi Christians

Last updated on: March 31, 2016 at 7:05 pm by CNA Daily News

Pope Francis sends vestments, financial aid to Iraqi Christians 2016-03-31T19:05:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Vatican City, Mar 31, 2016 / 01:05 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- As a sign of affection and closeness, Pope Francis has decided to send vestments used in the liturgy and a financial donation to Christian refugees in Erbil through the Catholic pastoral charity Aid to the Church in Need.

“Mercy invites us to bend over these brothers of ours in order to dry their tears, to heal their moral and physical wounds, and to console their afflicted and perhaps lost hearts,” the Pope said in a letter addressed to Bishop Francesco Cavina of Carpi.

To do this, the Pope said, is not just “an act of proper charity, but a relief to your own body, because all Christians, by virtue of their shared baptism, are 'one' in Christ.”

Bishop Cavina will be part of a delegation traveling to Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, April 1-4 with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

Other members of the delegation will include Bishop Antonio Suetta of Ventimiglia-San Remo, Fr. Massimo Fabbri in representation of the Archdiocese of Bologna, and Alessandro Monteduro, director of ACN in Italy, who will serve as the group’s guide.

In a March 23 article published on ACN’s website, Bishop Cavina said that as soon as Pope Francis heard about the delegation’s visit, he called expressing his desire “to send a gift to our brothers in the faith in Iraq.”

This gift includes vestments and a personal financial donation, which the Pope will entrust to Bishop Cavina, who will then give it to the local Church when the delegation arrives.

In his letter to the bishop, Francis said the trip is “an initiative which expresses friendship, ecclesial communion and closeness to many brothers and sisters, whose situation of affliction and tribulation pains me deeply and invites us to defend the inalienable right of every person to freely profess their faith.”

The Pope invited delegation members not to forget “the drama of the persecution,” and added that the “courageous and patient witness” of Christians in Iraq “represents for the entire Church a call to rediscover the fruitful source of the Paschal Mystery from which energy, strength and light for a new humanism are drawn.”

As part of their visit, the group will meet with Archbishop Youhanna Boutros Moshe of the Syriac Archeparchy of Mosul, who left the city when it was overrun by the Islamic State in June, 2014.

They will also meet with the Chaldean Archbishop of Erbil, Bashar Warda, who will take them to refugee centers in a mainly Christian suburb of Erbil called Ankawa.

Additionally, the group will stop by the village of Fr. Werenfried, named after the founder of ACN, where 175 Christian families are currently living. The trip will also include visits to ACN schools, which allow nearly 7,000 Iraqi refugee children to continue their education.

Since 2014 ACN has donated more than 15.1 million euros ($17.2 million) to support Christian refugees and displaced persons in Iraq.

The organization stepped up their efforts to offer support during Lent, when the Italian branch promoted six projects aimed at offering aid to the 250,000 Christians still in Iraq. The dioceses of Carpi and Ventimiglia-San Remo have also joined the effort, offering their own donations.

Vatican

Previous Post

March 31, 2016

FDA's abortion pill expansion targets babies up to 10 weeks into pregnancy

Next Post

March 31, 2016 We asked and you answered: How Mother Angelica touched your lives

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was the first miracle Jesus performed according to John's Gospel?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Turning water into wine Raising Lazarus Feeding the 5000 Walking on water