This is why Pope Francis’s determination to visit Iraq “as an act of love”, to give moral support to vulnerable Iraqi minorities, is so crucial.
The 84-year-old pontiff, who has been vaccinated, has arrived at a perilous time: amid a resurgence of Covid-19 and multiple rocket attacks on Iraqi bases and institutions. It is the Pope’s first trip abroad since the pandemic began. The fact he chose Iraq, and to focus on the Christians, is not inconsequential. They are in grave danger.
Iraqi Christians are considered the oldest continuous Christian community on Earth with roots going back 2,000 years. Yet this millennia-old connection is looking increasingly tenuous. Christians are an integral part of the mosaic that is Iraq, but their numbers are dwindling.