There has been a lot of media coverage of the pope's trip to Iraq, including articles in NCR and America Magazine (if you can get past the paywall).
In an NCR article, Pope Francis "... urged Iraqi Christians not to lose hope and not to seek vengeance over their suffering during the brutal Islamic State regime, in a pair of poignant and dramatic visits March 7 to churches that were desecrated and destroyed by the terrorist militant group."
"Standing amid piles of the sand-colored brick rubble of four churches in a square in Mosul, under ISIS control from 2014 to 2017, the pontiff lamented the "tragic consequences of war and hostility," but said the desire for peace "can never be silenced by the blood spilled by those who pervert the name of God."
And President Biden was quoted as saying this: "To see Pope Francis visit ancient religious sites, including the biblical birthplace of Abraham, spend time with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf, and offer prayers in Mosul — a city that only a few years ago endured the depravity and intolerance of a group like ISIS — is a symbol of hope for the entire world,"
What impressed me in reading the coverage of the pope's trip was the scenes of tremendous suffering of the Christians there, and the destruction which had been wrought upon their holy places and homes. I read one statistic that in 2003 prior to the Iraq war there had been 1.4 million Christians. Now there are something like 250,000. They are truly the church persecuted and suffering.
Francis' meeting with Ayatollah Sistani was historic. His focus is peace and reconciliation with the Muslim community.
Much has been made of the pope's choice to go to Iraq now, when the pandemic is still raging, that he should have done it later, or not at all. My take on it is that he felt that "later" would be too late, both for him personally at nearly 85, and the Christians of Iraq, who are existing on shifting sands which at any moment could take a turn for the worse. I think Francis felt that he could further the cause of peace and tolerance by going there at this time.
The visuals have been very inspiring and moving, and I hope that his visit calls attention to the sufferings of the Christians in the Middle East. (Jews in Iran is another group that has suffered tremendously.) Raber gives regularly to one of the Middle Eastern missions, and he was happy to see this.
ReplyDeleteThe pope has looked to be quite frail, and I think he did the right thing by going now.
I hope he will not drag himself around in extreme infirmity like Pope St. John Paul II did. I realize this was an inspiration to some, but I felt that the the appearances he made when he was very ill mostly called attention to his poor health and frailty rather than whatever larger point he was making, especially since he could barely speak.
Pope Benedict retired at 85. I wonder if that will make it easier for popes to do so.
The pope said he was more tired after this trip, saying that "The 84 years do not come alone," in an apparent reference to his suffering from sciatica.
DeleteWhat would be weird is if he retired while Benedict was still alive. Would we then have two "popes emeriti"? But I don't actually think he is ready to retire yet.
Ugh, sciatica. Poor man. When that flares up, you can't sleep, and you end up wanting to beat people with your cane.
DeleteI saw an item in Robin Wright's New Yorker report on the trip:
Delete"Notably absent from the Pontiff’s trip were Iraqi Jews, who trace their roots back to Biblical Babylon and for millennia were one of the world’s oldest Jewish communities. Before the First World War, a third of Baghdad’s population was Jewish, and Jews had important government posts. Sassoon Eskell became the first minister of finance, and played the same kind of role in creating a new national financial system that Alexander Hamilton did in the United States. In 1936, four years after Iraq’s independence, Hebrew was one of Iraq’s six official languages. But the birth of Israel, followed by the Arab-Israeli wars and the rise of a virulent Iraqi nationalism during Baathist rule, led Jews to flee. The Vatican said that Jews had been invited to the papal prayer event in Ur, but the community—Iraq’s Catholic Church could identify only a dozen individuals in the country—is almost extinct."
Sad that there are so few Jews left. I wonder if the families who were there previously had been there since the Babylonian captivity.
DeleteBenedict resigned because of the difficulty he was experiencing in travel. Specify he did not want to attend a forthcoming World Youth Day in Brazil. The next one was originally scheduled for 2022, but has been postponed until August 2023. It will be held in Lisbon, not that far of a trip.
ReplyDeleteThe Vatican does not want to cancel the pope going to a WYD; in fact the choice of Lisbon may have been made to make the trip easier on Francis. Both JP2 and B16 tended to confine their trips to Europe in their later years. Look for the next WYD after Lisbon to also be close by.
Francis has described himself as a homebody who does not like to travel. Recently he said that he intends to die in Rome and not return to Argentina if he is forced to retire.
Francis has succeeded in making the Synods of Bishops held in Rome large media events rather than the boring meetings they were under JP2 and B16. So the Vatican is less dependent upon WYD and other traveling events for world- wide publicity.
Francis has used papal trips to underline important issues often in remote countries with few Catholics. That is certainly the case with Iraq. He has also tended to make more quick trips for religious purposes that do not use the pomp of a head of state visit.
Right now the Vatican is probably extremely pleased with his continuing efforts on Islam as one of their best ways to contribute to world peace.
Of course there are always trips that cannot be resisted. Francis will go to Russia and China if they offer him the chance!
I doubt Francis is going to want to stay in Benedict’s monastery even if Benedict is no longer around, unless it has to be turned into a nursing home for him.
I can imagine a retired Francis living In a Jesuit house in Rome and doing simple ministry, like giving retreats, hearing confessions, having Masses like he does at the hotel until he is no longer able to do these things. Those would fit the pattern of Father Jorge as a “retired Jesuit” rather than a Pope Emeritus.
This Pope is very much a Jesuit at heart. He has put a lot of effort into being reconciled with the Jesuits after how poorly they treated him while he was still one of them before becoming a bishop.