ASIA/IRAQ - “Young people, please stay in Iraq!” says Iraqi Catholic priest Father Bashar Warda working to keep hope alive

Baghdad (Fides) - “Young people please stay in Iraq and help our society develop!”: this was the calllaunched by Iraqi Catholic priest, Father Bashar Warda, aged 32, who teaches in Baghdad at Babel College for Philosophy and Theology. Babel College an ecumenical institute open to future priests of the different Christian confessions in Iraq has at present 280 students.
As violence in Iraq continues and new political leaders are assassinated one after the other, Father Bashar, who is also local Catholic secretary for Humanitarian Aid, urgesall Christians to help build the new Iraq particularly young people. His appeal was also sent to Aid to the Church in Need Catholic aid agency of Pontifical right.
Father Bashar said that the Church in Iraq intends to help provide young people with their human, cultural and spiritual development. It plans in fact to open social and pastoral Youth Centres all over the country. He also stresses the importance of formation for priests and catechists “so our pastoral work and mission in Iraq may continue”.
Father Bashar said Iraqi Christians consider themselves fully citizens underlining the fact that Christians are more and more present in Iraqi society, this, he said, is a “signal of hope”.
The priest had a message for the whole country of hope and reconciliation and he called on every Iraqi citizen to assume full responsibility for the country’s past, the present and the future.
(PA) (Agenzia Fides 17/06/2004 Lines: 18 Words: 131)