Pope Francis recalled his historic visit to Iraq made a year ago this March. The Pope remembered the event in a meeting Iraqi Christian leaders at the Vatican on Monday.
The trip to Iraq on March 5-8, 2021, was an “unforgettable visit” and emphasized the importance of the Christian presence in the Middle Eastern country, the Pope said.
“I wish to say with you once again that it is not possible to imagine Iraq without Christians. This conviction is based not only on a religious foundation but on social and cultural evidence,” he said on 28 February.
Francis became the first Pope to visit Iraq. Through that visit, the Pope aimed to foster interreligious fraternity with the Christian minority.
He traveled 900 miles within Iraq, meeting with Iraq’s top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, and speaking to political leaders and Christian communities.
“Dear Brothers in Christ, know that you are in my heart and in the prayers of so many people. Do not be discouraged: while so many, at various levels, threaten peace, we do not look away from Jesus, the Prince of Peace, and we do not tire of invoking his Spirit, the creator of unity,” he said.
The Christian population in Iraq, a country of around 40 million people, has been steadily dwindling for decades, from around 1.4 million in 2003 to about 250,000 today.