Christianity and Christians in Iraq

The terrorist bombing suicide bombing, which occurred in the Church of Our Lady of Deliverance and adopted by the group Islamic State in Iraq affiliated with al Qaeda, which resulted in a large number of dead and wounded was not the first bombing and the destruction of a church in Iraq and will not be the last blow as well, raise some questions about Christianity in Iraq past , present and future of the mysterious and the fate of Christians in Iraq, why are targeted and destroyed churches and caused them to immigration and how they will end up in the past, present and future. This article is a brief overview and summary of Christianity in Iraq and the situation of Christians in it. The number of Christians in Iraq, such as changing the former regime in April 2003 about a million and a half million people, but it went down in the post because of the violence that affected by migrated a large portion of them abroad, estimated today, according to unofficial statistics up to 750 thousand people. Includes Iraq four Christian denominations main Chaldean "followers of the Church of the East converts to Catholicism, and Syrian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, caste Latin Catholic, and Assyrian (Eastern Church), in addition to a small number of followers of the Churches of the Armenians, Copts, and Protestants, and Christians differ Westerners from the East in date celebrating the birthday of Jesus Christ, while Catholics and Protestants celebrated in the twenty-fifth of December, the Orthodox Church in the Middle celebrate on the seventh of January each year.

Peaceful coexistence

Long live the people of Iraq and the long period of time with love and peace is not known rivalry of religious and sectarian route them where you can find in the neighborhood one and even the camp, and the alley family friend and of different religions, but one's heart in the neighborhood where I live most of the family of Christian religion, but the love of man and one I did not find in the ever Until this moment, Emma difference in love, but what is believed to rights in the rituals and what is happening now in Iraq is nothing but ordered an emergency came from behind the limits of love and peace of Iraq we are still brothers in one homeland and that there were many colors, religions and belief, however, continue to love man to his fellow man is a character real for the people is always trying to peace in the land of the Imams and the prophets.

 

History of the destruction of churches in Iraq

   

In a study prepared by the Iraqi Association for Human Rights on the number of churches that were destroyed in a time of dictatorship, Black, one of the historic churches important ones: the monastery of Saint odisho in the village of Derry area Amadiyah that established by the 1300 years was destroyed in 1988 and also destroyed in the same year the church of Saint Qaradagh and the Church of St. John in the village of Daoudia the Monastery of St. Joseph and a history dating back 1400 years ago and also the church of Saint Georgis in the village of Hesagne, The Monastery of Saint Moshe in the village of Jqla lower Berwari Bala established before 1300 years was destroyed in 1977 and also the church of Saint Georgis created by more than 1300 years old were destroyed in the in 1977 and there are a lot of other churches that were destroyed as each village was of one church.
   
The continuation of aggression
 

It seems that birds of darkness that came from outside of the Dark Ages are still going to approach the bloody one way or another after the fall of the statue of Saddam Hussein in April 9, 2003 returned to its approach to criminal and reached wings Black after the crimes of Karbala and Kadhimiya and other churches in the capital, Baghdad, Mosul those places hallowed for the content of the symbols of peace and the men marched along the lines of goodness and love.
  

The reasons for the persecution of Christians in Iraq now
 

That the Christians living in a safe environment and subject to protection under the government of the head of the Iraqi regime, but that the arrival of U.S. forces put the Christian community in a difficult position, they have suffered "the Christians" of the coming of the Americans because our Muslims thought they were Christians, and Iraqi Christians, and they must be allies together. Christians are not part of the opposition against the head of the Iraqi regime, in contrast to most of the Kurds and the range (the majority). But as soon as it was overthrown by the Americans, took many of the Christians to work with the U.S. Army. With the laxity of law and order in the "new Iraq", the vacuum filled by extremists. Christians were accused of being traitors, and attacked churches and businesses, and asked them to convert to Islam. Without the presence of militias protect them, the Christian community began to flee from the face of death. Some people came to this large village - Qaraqosh - where security measures were tight. Qaraqosh village is located in the plains of Nineveh, just north of Mosul - Iraq's north is a safe haven for Christians.
   

Christianity in Iraq
 

Christianity is the second religion in Iraq in terms of the number of followers and after Islam is a religion recognized by the Iraqi constitution, where it recognizes fourteen Christian community in Iraq is allowed to worship them. Distributed to her children and speaks several communities, mostly of Arabic as a mother tongue, while the percentage of them speak many different dialects of the Syrian language and Armenian language.
  

History of Christianity in Iraq
 

Christianity emerged in the first century AD, where most of Iraq's population professing Christianity, and some of them Jewish, Zoroastrian and Manichean and the worship of idols, and after the Islamic conquest of Iraq has diminished significantly the number of Christians over the centuries for many reasons, including many of them convert to Islam. The oldest church in Iraq are its implications in the province of Karbala near the town of Ain pass and is considered one of the oldest churches in the world.
 
The contemporary situation of Christianity in Iraq
 

 The proportion of Christians in Iraq, according to statistics in 1947, 3.1% or about 149 thousand people out of the four million and one-half the total population of Iraq. And estimated at between one million in the eighties and two million people of the total population of Iraq. The percentage declined due to emigration during the nineties and the ensuing Gulf War II political and economic conditions deteriorating. And that this migration has accelerated the pace after the occupation of Iraq in 2003 and sectarian violence that has ravaged Iraq and led to the displacement of a large number of Christians in the capital, Baghdad, and especially the suburb of the session in addition to other cities Christians out of Iraq or to the Kurdistan region of Iraq is relatively safe.
 
Geographical distribution of Christians in Iraq
 

We have Christians in Iraq in almost all provinces, but they are concentrated in the capital Baghdad, where resides the largest population to them and in the Nineveh Plain near Mosul in northern Iraq. While they are in Dahuk, Erbil and Mosul, Basra and Amarah and Hilla and Baquba and Kirkuk, and Habaniyah and other places where the churches in which they reside.

Sectarian distribution of Christians in Iraq
 

Christians of Iraq are distributed to several churches belonging to several sects follow different rituals. The majority of Christians in Iraq are the followers of the Chaldean Catholic Church, where the scattered Christians in Iraq on the following denominations:
1 - followers of the Chaldean Catholic Church and Christian communities are the largest number in Iraq.
2 - Syrian Orthodox
3 - Syrian Catholic community
4 - Armenian Catholic Church
5 - the Armenian Orthodox Church and the Armenians are the majority of Iraq.
6 - the ancient Church of the East
7 - Assyrian Church of the East or Assyrian Church.
8 - Roman Catholic
9 - Roman Orthodox
10 - National Evangelical Protestant community
11 - Evangelical Protestant Assyrian community
12 - a Seventh Day Adventists
13 - Latin Catholic community.
14 - Coptic Orthodox community (they are of the Egyptian community in Iraq) (continued)  

Edited by nagy