Parolin praises so-called Marshall Plan for Iraqi
Christians
Cardinal Parolin at the conference on Iraqi Christians.- ANSA |
(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican
Secretary of State, on Thursday praised a "so-called Marshall
Plan" that seeks to encourage and support Iraqi Christians to return
to their homes in the Nineveh Plain area of northern Iraq.
The Cardinal also stressed the importance of
safeguarding the presence and the rights of Christians in Iraq by means of
adequate juridical instruments with "adequate conditions of security;
respect for religious freedom and, above all, the importance of applying the
concept of citizenship, which entails equality of rights and obligations."
His remarks came in an address at a conference in Rome sponsored
by the Pontifical Foundation, Aid to the Church in Need.
Please see below the full text of Cardinal Parolin's
Address:
Address by His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary
of State
to Participants in the Conference
“Return to the Roots: Christians in the Nineveh Plains”
organized by the Pontifical Foundation Aid to the Church in
Need
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends,
Allow me, first and foremost, to express my thanks to the
Pontifical Foundation “Aid to the Church in Need” for organizing this gathering
and for extending me an invitation to take part. I cordially greet all
present, and in particular His Beatitude Louis Raphael I Sako, Chaldean
Catholic Patriarch of Babylon, His Excellency Yohanna Petros Mouche Syrian
Catholic Archbishop of Mosul, and His Excellency Mor Nicodemus Daoud Matti
Sharaf, Syrian Orthodox Archbishop of Mosul. I am grateful to each of you
for your constant and generous commitment to helping the Church in difficult situations,
especially the Christians of the Plain of Nineveh, which is the subject of this
Conference.
From the outset, the Holy Father has followed with deep
concern the tragedy of the thousands of families forced to abandon their own
cities and villages due to the invasion of the so-called Islamic State,
starting in June 2014. Two months later, in a letter addressed to the
then Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr Ban Ki Moon, Pope Francis
asked the international community to help Christians and other groups, which
had fled the brutal violence of ISIS, to return to the safety of their own
homes (Letter to the Secretary General of the United Nations, August,
2014). The same concern has also been reflected in the diplomatic
activity of the Holy See, which has missed no opportunity to speak out on
behalf of those Christians, reiterating on numerous occasions the necessity of
facilitating their return and ensuring adequate measures of protection and
respect for their rights. In the various international forums and
high-level meetings, the Holy See has continued to emphasize that the Christian
presence is fundamental in the Middle East for peace, stability and pluralism –
to which the Christian communities have made their own contribution through the
centuries. This presence is in constant decline due to the migration of
many families which abandon their historic homelands, in search of security and
a better future. In the Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Medio Oriente,
Pope Benedict XVI noted that “a Middle East without Christians, or with only a
few Christians, would no longer be the Middle East, since Christians, together
with other believers, are part of the distinctive identity of the region” (N.
31).
We are all aware that the conflicts and tensions of recent
years represent a risk, not only for the survival of Christians, but also for
the very possibility that the Middle East can be a place of coexistence between
peoples belonging to different religious and ethnic groups. The Holy See,
therefore, continues to reaffirm: the importance of safeguarding the presence
and the rights of Christians by means of adequate juridical instruments; the
right to return of displaced persons and refugees, under adequate conditions of
security; respect for religious freedom and, above all, the importance of
applying the concept of citizenship, which entails equality of rights and
obligations. There is likewise a need to address the root causes of the
phenomenon of terrorism and to promote interreligious dialogue, mutual understanding
and education.
For about a year now, from the time the battle of Mosul
began and various territories were liberated from occupation by ISIS, including
the villages of the Plain of Nineveh, various efforts have been made to help
Christians return. Much has been done, yet much remains to be done.
On this subject, I would like to express my sincere
appreciation for the support which, in the three years since the ISIS invasion,
the “Aid to the Church in Need” Foundation has offered to the many Christian
families that were able to endure this situation with dignity and in
security. Your reconstruction project “Return to the roots”, the
so-called “Marshall Plan” for the Plain of Nineveh, is yet another sign of the
concern you have shown, with a sense of urgency and with remarkable efficiency
and organization.
In addition to expressing the solidarity of the universal
Church, demonstrated not only through spiritual closeness and prayerful
support, but also at the level of practical charity, your project aims to
restore to the Christian communities that environment of a normal life,
essential for overcoming fear and despair, and looking to the future with hope.
The reconstruction of houses and villages is the first and
fundamental condition for the return of Christians to their own lands. We
know, however, that beyond the rebuilding of cities, villages and homes, there
is the more burdensome obligation of reconstructing Iraqi society and
consolidating a harmonious and peaceful co-existence. Here Christians
have a specific mission: to be artisans of peace, reconciliation and
development (cf. Letter of His Holiness Pope Francis to the Christians in the
Middle East, 21 December 2014). This mission is more necessary than ever
in the current Iraqi context, and urgently demands for a process of national
reconciliation and a shared effort by all parts of society to achieve shared
solutions for the good of the whole country.
It is significant that this Project is being undertaken with
the involvement of the representatives of the three Churches: Chaldean, Syrian
Orthodox and Syrian Catholic. May the cooperation between the different
Churches be a tangible sign of unity in charity. I take this opportunity,
therefore, to thank the bishops here present for their generous commitment, and
to invite them to spare no effort in overcoming any sources of tension between
the various communities in order to attain renewed unity. Such a witness
of Christian unity is made all the more necessary and urgent by the complex
situation that the country faces and the real danger of the loss of the
Christian presence.
The greatest challenge, then, is to create the social,
political and economic conditions to enable a new social cohesion, which
favours reconciliation and peace, and gives to Christians and other minorities
the possibility of working to rebuild the future of a country where their
presence is deeply rooted. As has already been made clear on many
occasions, Christians do not want to be a “protected minority” that is benignly
tolerated. They want to be citizens whose rights are protected and
guaranteed, along with all the other citizens. That said, without the
possibility of returning to their villages and cities of origin, very little of
the aforementioned would be possible.
The process of reconstruction started by the Foundation, and
the return of Christians to a degree of normality in their lives, should be the
primary and urgent objective of our efforts. This will allow the
Christian community in due course to face up to other challenges that await
them, so that they can be fully and generously engaged in working for the
common good of the entire nation.
Thank you for your attention.
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