Religiously Motivated Violence and Persecution Must End¨ Archbishop Issues Plea at G20 Religious Leaders Summit

On November 2, Archbishop Bashar Matti Warda of the Chaldean Catholic Archdiocese of Erbil delivered keynote remarks at the inaugural R20 Summit on religion in Indonesia, speaking to an audience of church leaders from various faiths.  The R20 is an official side event to the upcoming G20 Economic Summit. Sharing the struggles of religious minorities in Iraq, the Archbishop challenged those present to dig past the typical talking points of interfaith dialogue, instead confronting the roots of issues that lead to religious persecution.

The R20 Religion Forum of International Summit of Religious Leaders is currently being held in Indonesia and attended by leaders from various faiths around the world. Panels, speeches, and sessions have grappled with topics ranging from discovery of mutual values to reconciliation.  Speaking via the Vatican Nuncio to Indonesia, Archbishop Piero Pioppo, a letter of support and encouragement from Pope Francis was read to the participants at the opening of the summit.

While speaking on behalf of Chaldean Catholics, Warda observed the struggles facing Christians in the Middle East, a community that he noted has dropped from 20 percent of the general population to a mere 3 percent in the last 50 years. 

The crisis of extinction is not an impossibility he noted; ¨the challenges faced by Christians are those faced by all religious minorities in Iraq.¨ Likewise, looking at the historic loss of the Jewish community in Iraq, other minorities such as the Yazidi also are currently confronting the threat of being lost. Pointing to the importance of building a culture of religious freedom, the archbishop reflected on the words of Pope Francis in Fratelli Tutti that ¨every human being has the right to live with dignity. A dignity placed not on circumstances but on intrinsic worth in their being. Unless this principle is upheld there will be no future for fraternity or even the survival of humanity.¨

Looking at the persecution that his community has faced in recent years, Warda emphasized the value in a genuine examination of how religious leaders can influence a culture of peace. Calling on those leaders for change, he stressed the importance of a collaboration between faiths that is necessary to build an Iraq where freedom of religion is present.

Before accepting a token of appreciation from the International Summit of Religious Leaders, the Archbishop issued a plea to the religious leaders present. ¨we Christians are a people of hope but facing the end also brings us clarity and with it the courage to finally speak the truth. Our hope to remain in our ancient homeland now rests on the ability of ourselves, our Muslim brothers and sisters and the world to acknowledge these truths. Religiously motivated violence and persecution must end. Those who teach it must stop. Please pray for us as we pray for you.¨