The lead-up to the first-ever papal visit to Iraq has been somewhat overshadowed by concerns over its timing. The Vatican’s ambassador to Iraq, Archbishop Mitja Leskovar, is currently self-isolating after testing positive for Covid, and there are fears that crowds enthusiastic to see Pope Francis could ignore social distancing rules at public events. He will also visit Christian communities in Baghdad and in Iraq’s north, where thousands of believers were killed by occupying Islamic State forces between 2014 and 2017. The ceremony will be attended by Yazidis and other Iraqi religious minorities, as well as Muslims and Christians. Pope Francis’s trip, and his meeting with the grand ayatollah, will hopefully prove to be landmark moments in that crucial task.

Source: The Guardian March 03, 2021 19:52 UTC