Kirkuk, Iraq, Sep 7, 2012 / 03:01 am
Iraqi Archbishop Louis Sako of Kirkuk has asked the Catholic patriarchs and bishops of the Middle East to speak with Pope Benedict XVI about their fears that the survival of Christianity in the region is at risk.
"The patriarchs and the bishops should go beyond the formalities to speak directly and openly with him about their fears and concerns. We should make clear our worries and the challenges ahead," the archbishop told Aid to the Church in Need on Sept. 4.
Christian leaders will meet with the Pope in Lebanon during his Sept. 14-16 visit.
"The rise of political Islam is a matter of worry," he said. "We Christians are a minority and there is no prospect of us gaining equal citizenship in the concrete reality of day-to-day life and there is no vision of a better future."