Conger

Friday’s kidnapping of the Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul was likely a criminal rather than a political act, the vicar of Baghdad, Canon Andrew White tells The Church of England Newspaper.

“Most of the kidnapping of Christians are economic rather than political,” Canon White said in a March 1 email from Baghdad.  The kidnapping of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho is “distressing,” but has only made headlines in the West because he is an Archbishop.

“The fact that he is a Chaldean Archbishop also makes things worse as it is known that they are linked to the Roman Catholic Church so it is perceived that they should have plenty of money,” he said.

While the security situation has improved in recent months, “the fact is that this is still the most dangerous place in the world.”  However, “the kidnapping of the Archbishop is not in any way a sign that things are getting worse but the continuation of the same saga,” Canon White said.

Gunmen seized the Chaldean Archbishop following a service at the Church of the Holy Spirit the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on Friday, killing his driver and two guards.

Pope Benedict XVI called the crime “despicable” and urged the gunmen to free the archbishop.

“The Holy Father asks the universal Church to join in his fervent prayer so that reason and humanity prevails in the kidnappers and Monsignor Rahho is returned to his flock soon,” the Vatican statement said.

Speaking to the congregation following a midday Angelus held at St. Peter’s Square in Rome on March 2, Benedict repeated his call for the “immediate” release of the Archbishop—”who is also in very poor health.”

“May the efforts of those who control the fate of the Iraqi people be multiplied so that, thanks to the commitment and wisdom of all, this people may again find peace and security, and the future to which it has a right not be destroyed,” the Pope said.

“For the moment,” Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, the Chaldean patriarch told L’Osservatore Romano, “we have no news and no claims of responsibility from the captors. We only have a lot of fear.  The people leave and go elsewhere. Prayer is our only consolation.”

“Things are still more than desperate for all Iraqis,” Canon White said.  “From our own Anglican congregation we have had 58 people killed or kidnapped in the past year. There are still bombs, rockets and countless shootings.”

“We need the Anglican world not to forget us and to know that we have one of the largest if not the largest Churches in Iraq. We have to support our people totally with food, medicine healthcare and education,” he said.