Ho Chi Minh City (Fides Service) - Catholics in Vietnam who experienced with their fellow countrymen and women great suffering and loss in wars 1945-1975, now cherish peace and they are committed to praying for the people of Iraq, threatened by a military attack on their country. In response to a pastoral letter issued in mid-January by Bishop Paul Tinh Nguyen Binh Tinh of Da Nang in central Vietnam, Catholics are organising prayers in front of the Blessed Sacrament and benediction and, in keeping with the wishes of Pope John Paul who has made this the Year of the Rosary, regular recitation of the Rosary with the intention of peace in the Middle East.
Bishop Tinh's letter was also a New Year greeting for the start of the Lunar Year followed in Vietnam and known as here Tet. In his letter the Bishop shared with his people a message last November issued to all the Catholic Bishops of the world by Chaldean Bishop Warduni, auxiliary of Baghdad who called for prayers and actions to prevent war in Iraq where people are very poor and the many undernourished children, the sick and the elderly would be the ones who suffer most in the case of a military strike. Bishop Warduni pleaded, "I beg the whole world, all people of good will, to join the Pope in prayer. Please pray for us. Do not forget us!". Bishop Tinh recalled that Iraq has about 670,000 Catholics belonging to various rites and they are only about 3% of a population of about 22 million. UCA News reports that the Vietnam Bishops' Conference has not yet issued an official statement on the threatened war on Iraq. A foreign ministry spokesman reflected the official government position on 6 February when he said, "Vietnam wishes to see the Iraq issue resolved peacefully on the basis of respect for Iraq's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity in conformity with the UN Charter and international laws". PS(Fides Service 20/2/2003 EM lines 23 Words: 346).