Keep the Heart of Faith Beating in Iraq

Photo: Manweel Banna Manweel Photo: IRAQ www.acnuk.org/iraq Passing on the flame Keep the of Faith heart of Fr Ayman Hermiz from St Joseph’s Church, Sulaimaniyah begged us Faith beating A child lights a candle of hope in Iraq. to help pass on the Faith to the city’s Christian children. The children come from 310 families in Iraq - many of which fled to Sulaimaniyah in the Kurdish region after Daesh seized Ayman who, in addition to running three the Nineveh Plains. Some of the families hours of catechesis for 190 young people are hoping to return home, while others every Friday morning, also organises have settled here permanently. summer classes for children preparing for “We have a responsibility for our their First Holy Communion. daughters and sons, to teach them the A team of catechists, Sisters and young Christian religion and to pass on our volunteers help Fr Ayman run the classes heritage and spiritual wealth,” says – but he needs support for essentials like Fr Ayman. text-books, fuel to heat the classroom, In most towns Christians live together in and the cost of ferrying children to classes. one quarter, but Sulaimaniyah’s Christians Having fled Daesh, the families are poor are scattered throughout the city, making and unable to contribute much to the cost. Father Ayman Hermiz and one of the parish it harder to gather the children together Will you help us provide the £12,700 that Sisters collecting children for catechism classes. for catechesis. But that doesn’t deter Fr Fr Ayman needs to pass on the Faith?

ACN’s ongoing help for Iraq “We forgive those who murdered us, who tortured us, who raped us, who sought to destroy everything about us. We Refugees forgive them. In the name of Christ, we forgive them.” As Christians fled their homes following Archbishop Bashar Warda was speaking to Aid to the Church in Need the 2014 seizure of Iraq’s Nineveh about the horrors which Christians – and indeed other minority groups – plains, ACN gave around £20 million in suffered during Daesh (ISIS)’s occupation of Iraq’s Nineveh Plains. Daesh emergency aid to provide food, shelter committed genocidal atrocities including mass killings, abductions, and other essentials. sexual slavery of women and the destruction of religious sites. Reconstruction However, with Aid to the Church in Need’s help, the region’s Christians To enable refugees to return to the continue to rebuild their lives. Tens of thousands lived as internal towns and villages they had been forced refugees after being driven from their homes – around 90,000 were from, ACN helped to rebuild 37 percent cared for by ACN project partners in Erbil – but 41,000 have now been of all homes – a total of 2,086 – at a cost Chaldean priest Steven Azabod in front of the Dominican Sisters’ ruined convent in Batnaya. ACN will help able to return to their homes. Others have settled elsewhere in Iraq, or rebuild the St Oraha’s Convent. left the country altogether, although a small number remain as internal of more than £5 million. refugees waiting until their homes can be restored. As Fr Daniel from Bartella said when but please don’t leave us halfway. Reviving communities Thanks to you, ACN has been able to care for refugees and help them we met him in late 2018: “Unless you May God give you His regard, grace To ensure Iraq’s embattled Christians return home. Now the key challenge is keeping Christianity alive in Iraq, help us we cannot stay. The people and blessing.” have a future, ACN is supporting including supporting the work of Sisters whose ministry has encouraged who came back are planning to stay… ACN is committed to continuing to help projects to strengthen Christian many to return. communities (some of which are Thank you for your support, with our brothers and sisters following their According to Archbishop Warda, Daesh’s occupation left Iraq’s the help in the reconstruction of our horrific experiences – with your help we described in this report). Christians “perilously close to extinction” but – as you will read inside – Father George Jahola stands in the ruined courtyard of St Benham’s houses, and when we were in exile… will not leave them halfway. ACN is empowering them to stay. Church, Qaraqosh, on Iraq’s Nineveh Plains, prior to its renovation.

Reports by John Newton Aid to the All photographs by Aid to the Church in Need, except where stated. Aid to the 12-14 Benhill Avenue, Sutton, Surrey SM1 4DA © Aid to the Church in Need (March 2020) Helping the suffering Church today Church in Need Aid to the Church in Need is a Pontifical Foundation of the Catholic Church Church in Need and a registered charity in England and Wales (1097984) and Scotland (SC040748) Printed by Cliffe Enterprises, Eastbourne BN22 8UY www.acnuk.org www.acnuk.org A symbol of hope

Every day, parishioners gather to pray in the charred shell of the Church of Al-Tahira (the Immaculate Conception), although they are saddened to Archbishop Petros Mouche of Mosul. worship in a church which was once the pride of the town of Qaraqosh, but now bears the as a Christian symbol to encourage the scars of Daesh’s occupation. people, especially the locals of Qaraqosh, When Daesh held the city, the church’s to stay here.” courtyard was used as a firing range – you ACN’s help with the first phase of can still see the bullet holes. Inside the rebuilding has enabled more than half of church, the walls are daubed with graffiti. the families forced out by Daesh to return. When residents finally returned to Nevertheless, many are still recovering Qaraqosh they found that Daesh had from the trauma of displacement, made a bonfire in the church from the murdered relatives, and the knowledge furniture, manuscripts, and prayer books. that local Christian and Yazidi women The extremists also blew up the church’s were forced into sexual slavery. iconic clock tower. As a sign of hope for Qaraqosh’s Syriac-Catholic Archbishop Petros Christians, ACN has pledged to help Mouche of Mosul told ACN: “For us, this restore the interior of the church. church is a symbol. This church was Archbishop Mouche said: “I would built in 1932, and it was the villagers of like to thank all the people who help, Graffiti left in the church by Daesh. Qaraqosh who constructed it. For this as ACN couldn’t help us without the reason, we want this symbol to remain support of their benefactors.” Praying together in the charred interior of Al-Tahira Church, Qaraqosh. Future heralds of the Gospels Caring for Christ’s children returned from the refugee camps, they The Ephremite Sisters have their “You will be the apostles. You also found the inside in a terrible state: convent next door to the nursery, will be the heralds. You will help walls were daubed with graffiti, while and are restoring it with ACN help. convert the world.” ceilings and other fixtures had been Sister Mariam said, “We thank the These words were addressed to Iraqi torn down. Lord and thank you for your support seminarians by New York’s Cardinal Yet, despite all this, the Sisters opened and generosity which enabled Archbishop Timothy Dolan. He was the nursery’s doors again shortly after us to return… and to serve our speaking to young men studying at St Daesh were driven out. They managed Christian people.” Peter’s Seminary, Erbil shortly before the to make the first two floors operational, fall of Daesh. but the upper two levels Today there are currently 15 are still unusable. The Two of the Ephremite Sisters cleaning up seminarians studying there for ministry their convent following Daesh’s retreat. building needs plastering, in the Chaldean Church in Iraq. On painting, new windows average, it costs about £300 per month and doors, not to mention to support one seminarian – including The Ephremite Sisters’ nursery new electrical wiring and meals, the cost of tuition and healthcare in Qaraqosh was left devastated plumbing – including – and ACN is providing ongoing help for by Daesh’s occupation of the city major repairs to the these future heralds of the Gospel. – which before the extremists sewage network. In summer 2018, ACN also helped seized it was the last Christian The Sisters currently look with badly needed maintenance for the majority town in Iraq. after 47 children, from six seminary. When the Church in Erbil was A hole was made in the side of months to five years, but stretched beyond capacity, caring for Seminarians and ACN visitors at St Peter’s Chaldean Seminary in Erbil after Mass. the nursery by a grenade – which their Mother Superior, Sister tens of thousands of internal refugees, fortunately did not cause any significant Mariam, is hoping that 80 providing food, shelter and other urgent repairs to the air-conditioning these young men, who have given structural damage – and the roof has children can be cared for aid, the seminary’s upkeep was not a and drainage systems. their lives to Christ to become apostles several shrapnel holes from a mortar after ACN has helped them An Ephremite Sister with children in Qaraqosh before Daesh’s invasion. priority. This left the building needing Only thanks to you can we help and heralds of the Gospel in Iraq. shell that exploded. When the Sisters repair the building.

0345 646 0110 @acn_uk @acnuk Please offer hope by making a kind donation to support these and other similar projects around the world www.acnuk.org/iraq Photo: Manweel Banna Manweel Photo: IRAQ www.acnuk.org/iraq Passing on the flame Keep the of Faith heart of Fr Ayman Hermiz from St Joseph’s Church, Sulaimaniyah begged us Faith beating A child lights a candle of hope in Iraq. to help pass on the Faith to the city’s Christian children. The children come from 310 families in Iraq - many of which fled to Sulaimaniyah in the Kurdish region after Daesh seized Ayman who, in addition to running three the Nineveh Plains. Some of the families hours of catechesis for 190 young people are hoping to return home, while others every Friday morning, also organises have settled here permanently. summer classes for children preparing for “We have a responsibility for our their First Holy Communion. daughters and sons, to teach them the A team of catechists, Sisters and young Christian religion and to pass on our volunteers help Fr Ayman run the classes heritage and spiritual wealth,” says – but he needs support for essentials like Fr Ayman. text-books, fuel to heat the classroom, In most towns Christians live together in and the cost of ferrying children to classes. one quarter, but Sulaimaniyah’s Christians Having fled Daesh, the families are poor are scattered throughout the city, making and unable to contribute much to the cost. Father Ayman Hermiz and one of the parish it harder to gather the children together Will you help us provide the £12,700 that Sisters collecting children for catechism classes. for catechesis. But that doesn’t deter Fr Fr Ayman needs to pass on the Faith?