The Holy Land
Supporting and strengthening the Faith of children in the Holy Land – Ankawa Parish, Iraq
In the ongoing turbulent situation in the Middle East, it is difficult to maintain a semblance of normal life. This is especially true for children and young people who have witnessed horrific events and often forgotten what normal life looks like.
Last year, the Galileo Foundation received a request from Archbishop Nathanael Nizar Semaan of the Hadiab Syriac Catholic Diocese in Iraq, asking for help for the parish of Ankawa. The Archbishop explained that there were no funds available to transport the 250 children of the parish, aged 6-12, to their catechism lessons in preparation for their First Communion.
The parish needed to rent buses in order to facilitate the transfer between home and the Church for the children, often a long journey too difficult to undertake on their own.
As Archbishop Nathanael wrote to the members of the Galileo Foundation on March 1st: “Your donation was crucial and has allowed us to continue our activities this year. The Catechism lessons started in September 2019 and will continue until the end of June 2020. Each Friday we rent buses to drive 250 children and 60 young people from the two parishes in Ankawa from their home to the Church and drive them back again. The children spend three hours on various activities and learning. We are also preparing 70 children for First Communion, which will be celebrated this coming summer.”
He continued: “I would be grateful if we could continue to count on you for support in years to come, so that we can work in partnership to prepare an educated generation to serve the Church in Iraq in the future.”
These children are the ‘living stones’ of the Holy Land and we hope to be able to continue to help their formation with your generous support.
