Baghdad Patriarch Louis Sako continues to warn against Christians leaving Iraq. Catholic Culture reports. Apparently the bishop does not see such a decision as being necessarily helpful to the state of their souls.
Patriarch Sako also objected to a suggestion that American Catholics should provide homes for Iraqi refugees. He said that he is trying to persuade the faithful to remain in Iraq, to endure the current trials, and to maintain the Christian presence. “But many fall victim to this ‘leaving’ frenzy,” he lamented.
Migration is not the solution, the Patriarch said. Many refugees, he said, are “transferred from one bleak situation to another.” Away from their home and their culture and without proper pastoral care, they might be in worse condition abroad. “As if the migration of thousands of Iraqi Christians to the US was something to ask God’s blessing for!” he said.