A Car for Pastoral Work in Iraq

Today, Christians are only a small minority in Iraq. Until 2002, there were more than 1.2 million of them, but war, persecution, and poverty have led to a mass exodus by the country’s Christian population. Estimates now put the number of Christians in Iraq at only around 150,000.

The city of Basra has a population of about 1.4 million, the third-largest in Iraq. Lying on the Persian Gulf, it is the country’s major port city. It was established as early as the seventh century and has echoes of the tale of One Thousand and One Nights, as the place where Sinbad the sailor set out on his many adventures.

However, little remains of that fairytale magic. The city was the site of heavy fighting in all three Gulf wars and suffered widespread destruction, the consequences of which are still seen today. 

Only about five percent of the Christians who once lived in Basra have stayed there. But Archbishop Atanasius Firas Mundher Dardar of the Syrian Catholic Church says that the Church wants to give them hope. A vital part of this is the religious education of children, and this is why the Archbishop asked for our help. The Sacred Heart Parish of the Syrian Catholic Church needed a minibus to bring the children of the parish to their classes, quickly and safely.  

Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we were able to give him the $23,044 he needed, and the minibus was welcomed with great joy. The Archbishop wrote to us, saying, “We pray that our Heavenly Father blesses you, all your benefactors, and your mission in the Middle East.” 

Code: 319-01-29