Rome, Italy, Jun 4, 2008 / 11:04 am
One year after the murders of Father Ragheed Ganni and Deacons Basman Yousef Daoud, Ghasan Bidawid and Wahid Hanna, Archbishop Louis Sako of Kirkuk has said, “We need peace and reconciliation. That’s what we hope will come from this sacrifice.”
In comments to Vatican Radio, the archbishop said he was close friends with Father Ragheed, who was his student in Mosul. He said the other companions that were killed as well as the Archbishop of Mosul (who was kidnapped and killed earlier this year) “give us great hope and comfort. They died a martyr’s death because for us that’s what they were.”
He said that while there are “many dangers and problems” in Iraq, “we also have much hope in the Lord.”
Speaking about the ongoing exodus of Christians from Iraq, Archbishop Sako said the Church in Iraq and its neighboring countries needs to develop a ministry to “help Christians and their families return.”