Iraqi archbishop appealed for help in letter released after his death

Published: 2008-03-18

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The kidnapped archbishop of Mosul, Iraq, recently found dead there, had asked for prayers for Iraqi Chaldean Catholics and said he would be the last person to leave Mosul. "We are asking for your prayers to remove this cloud from our country and our church," said Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho of Mosul, in a Jan. 18 letter to the New York-based Catholic Near East Welfare Association. The letter, which the association sent to Catholic News Service March 17, referred to a series of church bombings in Mosul in early January. "We want to stay in our beloved land, despite the situation and the sufferings, especially after these last bombings," said Archbishop Rahho. The archbishop asked for support from the association and said that "as a result of immigration, violence, kidnappings, bombings and unemployment" the church's revenue had declined by more than 25 percent.

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