The mission of the Church is to “proclaim the kingdom of God” by strengthening human values and morals “through the education of new generations,” in particular “in an area like ours where there is a high percentage of poverty and illiteracy,” says Msgr Alhava Habib Jajou, Chaldean Archbishop of Basra, in southern Iraq. He tells that days ago the Ministry of Education granted the local church permission to build a Christian primary school. An exceptional event, given that it is the first Christian educational institution to be granted a permit since the 1970s. Preparatory work for took a year and a half and the opening is scheduled for September 2018.

The Archbishop continues: “Our institution will be open to all groups, even though there will be mostly Muslims. We believe in the culture of diversity. Here, Christians date back to the second century, even before the Mandaeans, but in the last few decades they have abandoned the south in huge numbers and chosen, for many reasons, to migrate. That is why we have decided to invest all of our efforts in helping the [local Christian] community.

As a result of the “critical” situation that emerged after the US invasion in 2003, one of the many challenges is “violations of the dignity of children,” the Archbishop says. Since the 18th century, the Basra’s Christians have opened nine elementary and middle schools, but since 1974 the institutes have been nationalized. “Today,” he continues, “we have decided to open the doors of hope, create employment for adults, and improve relations with Muslim families.”

According to recent estimates today little more than 10% of the original population remain in the area, a few hundred of the original three thousand Christian families. In September 2015, the local community celebrated the inauguration of the first Christian museum in southern Iraq. Inside, there are over 200 religious artefacts, documents, liturgical objects, photographs, clothes and furniture, some of which date back to the 17th century.