2021 visit by Pope Francis to Iraq

Pope John Paul II wanted to visit Ur, the birthplace of Abraham according to the biblical tradition, within a journey through the Middle East including Israel, Jordan and Palestine, but the visit was cancelled due to differences between the Government of Saddam Hussein and representatives of the Holy See, which caused the Iraqi government to prohibit the visit.[2]

The visit was confirmed after an invitation from the Government of Iraq and the Chaldean Catholic Church, the largest Catholic church in Iraq.[3]

The preparations for the visit were nearing completion early in 2020. He met the President of Iraq, Barham Salih, on the 25th of January, 2020, in the Vatican City.[4] On the 7th of December 2020, the Press Director of the Holy See, Matteo Bruni, released a statement confirming that Pope Francis would make a papal visit after accepting the invitation from the Republic of Iraq and the Chaldean Catholic Church to visit Iraq between the 5th of March and the 8th of March, 2021. It was his first visit since November 2019, as traveling was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic throughout 2020.[2] Pope Francis mentioned he would arrive as a penitent pilgrim and pray for forgiveness after a long period of interreligious conflicts during the Iraqi Civil War.[5] Despite the fact that the Ambassador of the Vatican City, Archbishop Misko Leskovar contracted COVID-19, and remained in self-isolation, the Pope still wanted to visit Iraq.[5] During the visit, several security measures were taken to address the COVID-19 pandemic as well as threats of terrorist attacks.[5][6] A 10,000 security personnel has been announced to safeguard the Pope, while he and the journalists accompanying him were provided with the BionTech Pfizer vaccine.[7][8][9] The visit to Ali Al-Sistani in Najaf was prepared with every small detail, such as what beverages will be served, or for how long Pope Francis will walk to Sistani’s home.[10][11]

Upon his arrival at the Baghdad International Airport, the Pope was given a welcome gift, which was a replica from a work of Mohammed Ghani Hikmat, depicting the Passion of Jesus before his crucifixion, by the Iraqi President Barham Salih.[12] When he arrived at Baghdad International Airport, his arrival was announced on billboards, and the Flags of Iraq and the Vatican were flying side by side.[9] He then addressed the Iraqi people through a televised speech, acknowledging the importance of Iraq as a cradle of civilizations.[5][13] The same day, he met with the Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al Kadhimi, and members of the Christian clergy.[1]

On the 6th of March, 2021, he visited Najaf, where he met Grand Ayatollah Ali Al Sistani.[14] The meeting took place in the home of Sistani near the Imam Ali Shrine.[15] They released a joint statement against religious extremism. On the same day he visited Ur, which according to the Bible is the birthplace of Abraham, whom Jews, Muslims and Christians consider their religious father.[14] In the evening he returned to Baghdad where he held a mass in the Church of St. Joseph.[16] It was the first time that Pope Francis delivered a liturgy according to the eastern rite.[16]

On the 7th of March, 2021, he visited the demolished Syriac Catholic Church of Immaculate Conception in Qaraqosh.[17][14] He visited Mosul’s Church Square, where he held a mass and prayed for fraternity between the different religions in Iraq.[18] In Mosul's Church Square,[19] Mosul’s Church Square is surrounded by churches of four different Christian faiths, which includes Syriac Orthodox, Syriac Catholic, Chaldean Catholic, and Armenian Orthodox.[18] The location of the gathering was decorated by two symbolic christian crosses, one was crafted with the wood from the ruined churches in Qaraqosh, and the other one was made by Omar Qais, an Iraqi artist from Mosul.[19] The Pope returned to Iraq a 500-year old Aramean prayer book from the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Qaraqosh, which was brought to Italy for safety purposes after ISIS captured the city. The book was restored under the auspices of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage in Italy.[20] The same day, he also visited Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, where he was greeted by the politicians Nechirvan Barzani, Masoud Barzani, Masrour Barzani and Qubad Talabani. He acknowledged the safeguarding role the KRG played for the Christians during the Iraqi Civil War against ISIS.[21] In Erbil, he gave a mass in front of 10,000 participants in the Franso Hariri stadium.[22]

On the 8th of March, he returned to Baghdad, where he met with the President of Iraq Barham Salih one last time for a farewell ceremony.[23]

In Iraq, the 6th of March has been declared as a "Day of Tolerance and Coexistence" by the Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi, commemorating the encounter between Ali Al-Sistani and Pope Francis.[24] Upon the depart of Pope Francis, Cardinal Louis Raphaël I Sako announced that the Pope donated $350,000 to the Iraqi people, of which $250,000 were to be distributed by the Chaldean Catholic Church of Baghdad, $50,000 by the Chaldean Catholic Church of Mosul, and the remainder by the Syriac Catholic Church, which also includes Qaraqosh.[25] The Cardinal has delivered several propositions concerning the enhancement of education, intercultural tolerance, and the protection of the holy sites, as described in the Iraqi Penal Code in April 2021.[26]

• Christianity in Iraq