Stole for Pope Francis's visit to Iraq
In advance of Pope Francis visiting Qaraqosh during his trip to Iraq during Lent, the local Christian population has been hard at work preparing. These preparations include making a special stole for the Pope.
By ACN Staff
Khaya Bakter making the fabric for the Papal stole. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)
There is a lot of work involved in preparing for a Papal visit. In advance of the visit of Pope Francis to Iraq, the local Christian community has been hard at work. One of the many things that needs to be provided for are the vestments that the Holy Father will wear in Iraq. On Sunday 7th March, Pope Francis will visit Al-Tahera Syriac Catholic Church in the Assyrian Christian town of Qaraqosh in the north of Iraq. Qaraqosh was one of the areas of Iraq where Christians were forced to flee in advance of ISIS. The church was largely left in ruins, but with the help of ACN the church is now nearing the end of renovation.
In preparation for the Pope visit their church, local Syriac Catholics of Qaraqosh have been making preparation, including sourcing vestments. The stole is made of handmade fabric woven by local artisan, Khaya Bakter. The stole’s colours of purple and black are the local colours of Qaraqosh. The embroidering of the stole was tasked to a local woman called Gorjia Kapo. Gorjia is a mother of two sons and one daughter. Her family have lived in Qaraqosh for several generation and were forced to flee when ISIS invaded in 2014. The family have now returned to their ancestral home after the defeat of ISIS. One of Gorjia’s sons was ordained a priest a year ago.
Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) spoke with Father Yako Ammar, the parish priest at Al-Tahera Church. He explained some of the significance behind the stole:
“On one side of the stole is the Lord’s prayer – Our Father - in our language, Syriac, which comes from Aramaic, the original language of Jesus. On the other side is the Hail Mary… The crosses at the two ends of the stole are the crosses of the Al-Tahera church, the same crosses as inside the church that were destroyed by ISIS during the occupation. These crosses are now the symbol of a new life. As the stole is a very symbolic ornament for us, priests, Gorjia has also included bread and wine in the embroidery, the symbols of the Eucharistic mystery.”
Father Ammar had two stoles commissioned for Pope Francis’s visit. The first one by Gorjia represents the Christians who stayed in Qaraqosh. The second one was commissioned to represent Qaraqosh’s Christians who have left. This was given to a Christian woman from Qaraqosh named Iman Qasab who has moved to Canada after being forced to leave her home because of terrorism. This stole is decorated with palm trees, which are a symbol of Iraq and appear on the official logo for the Pope’s visit to the Middle Eastern country. The two stoles represent both sides of Christian community of Qaraqosh, those who decided to stay and those who felt they had to leave. ACN is determined to help those Christians in places in Iraq like Qaraqosh who want to stay and thrive in their ancestral homeland. To learn more about ACN’s work in Iraq, and the upcoming Papal visit to Iraq, please visit our Lenten Campaign page.