The Pope met Ayatollah Ali al-Sis in Iraq …

Francis met this Saturday for 45 minutes with the main Shiite religious leader, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. The meeting took place in the town of Najaf as part of the Pope’s visit to Iraq, and it is considered a historic gesture.

The Pope entered Al-Sistani’s modest house, in one of Najaf’s poor neighborhoods, surrounded by security forces, in what was the first act of the second of his three days in Iraq. It is the first trip of a Pontiff to this country and it is also the first departure of Jorge Bergoglio outside Italy since the start of the coronavirus pandemic a year ago.

In a statement released by the Vatican press office, it was reported that The Pope underlined “the importance of collaboration and friendship between religious communities so that by cultivating dialogue in mutual respect, we can contribute to the good of Iraq, the region and the whole community. “..

The meeting, the text adds, allowed the Pope to thank the 90-year-old Grand Ayatollah “for raising his voice in defense of the weakest and most persecuted, asserting that what is sacred is importance of the unity of the Iraqi people. ”The two religious leaders offered their prayers for a future of peace and brotherhood for all Iraqi land, for the Middle East and the world.

For its part, in a statement from Al-Sistani’s office, it was explained that they were discussing the great “challenges facing humanity” and that the Ayatollah spoke of “injustices and oppression, religious and intellectual persecution (. ..) the economic blockade and the displaced persons of many peoples of the region, including the Palestinian people “. The highest Shiite authority has expressed “its interest in Christians living like Iraqis, in peace and security and with all their rights.”

Only three photos were distributed showing the Pope and Grand Ayatollah seated face to face and, next to Francis, the translator, the Babylonian Patriarch of the Chaldeans, Raphael Sako, and the President of the Council for Interfaith Dialogue, the Spanish Cardinal. Miguel Ángel Ayuso. Francisco had to respect protocol and take off his shoes before entering Al-Sistani’s room.

Najaf is a holy city, about 100 miles south of Baghdad, the main religious center of the Shia branch of Islam and pilgrimage destination for the faithful from all over the world. The city houses the tomb of one of Islam’s most revered figures, Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law and the first man to convert to Islam. Arriving from Baghdad at Najaf airport, a huge poster with the face of the Pope and Ayatollah and the caption “you are a piece of us and we are a part of you” received Francis.

At the meeting, there was no common document like the one signed in Abu Dhabi two years ago by the Pope and Egyptian Sheikh Ahmad al Tayyeb, Grand Imam of Al Azhar, the largest Sunni institution, and which was one of the biggest milestones between Islam and Catholicism.

The Iranian-born Ayatollah is a spiritual guide highly regarded for his sobriety and wisdom, even by those outside the Shiite branch.. Their religious decrees led to protests in 2014 against the Islamic State, when a third of Iraqi territory was in the hands of this group. In January 2019, Ali al-Sistani called for an investigation into the “heinous crimes” perpetrated by jihadists against certain minorities in Iraqi society, such as the Yazidis in Sinyar, Christians in Mosul and Turkmens in Tal Afar.

Al-Sistani credited with valuable role in efforts to pacify Iraq after 2003 US invasion and he is known for his support for the separation of religion and state, an issue still hotly debated among Muslims today.

In dialogue with the press accompanying the Pope on tour, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, considered the meeting as “a step forward” in the interreligious dialogue promoted by Francisco, while Vatican Chancellor Archbishop Paul Gallagher called it “a meeting that opens a way”.

The Pope in Ur

After the meeting, the Pope embarked on the most spiritual stage of the journey: the pilgrimage to Ur to pray for “freedom” and “unity” and to end wars and “terrorism”.. To this place, cradle of Patriarch Abraham, one of the great prophets of Christianity, Islam and Judaism, Pope John Paul II wanted to go in 2000, but Saddam Hussein prevented him.

Francisco prayed with Yazidi officials (a small Iraqi minority martyred by Islamic State jihadists); Sabeans and Zoroastrianists (ancient communities in the country); and Muslims, Shiites and Sunnis. These groups were victims of the Islamic State. The jihadists have killed thousands of Yazidi men, recruited children and made thousands of women sex slaves. For the UN, this could be “genocide”. More than 6,400 Yazidis have been kidnapped by jihadists, half of whom are still missing. In Ur, the Pope said he was praying “that they will return home soon”.

It has also wreaked havoc in neighboring Syria, which the Pope has not failed to mention in his speeches since Friday. François advocated moving “from conflict to unity” in “the whole Middle East” and “in particular in martyred Syria”. He declared that “there will be no peace without sharing and welcoming, without justice that ensures equity and promotion for all, starting with the weakest. There will be no peace without peoples extend their hand to other peoples “.

The day before, during a reception by the authorities in Baghdad, François had already spoken about Syria, where the war that began ten years ago after a popular revolt left nearly 400,000 dead. Francisco defended “freedom of conscience and religious freedom”.

“These are fundamental rights, because they make man free to contemplate the Heaven for which he was created,” added Francisco, in a country where its Christian minority (1% of the population) claims to be the victim of discrimination.

The next stop on the trip is a mass at a church in Baghdad, in what will be his first meeting with the Catholic faithful of Iraq. The Pope’s visit, under strong security measures, takes place amid total containment of the population after the increase in cases of covid-19, or around 5,000 daily infections.