The Oldest Christians

Followers of St. Thomas preserve a partrimony of faith

They call themselves "Children of St. Thomas", as they originated from the preaching done by that apostle among the Middle Eastern populations of what is today Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Baluchistan (42-49 CE). In 53-60 CE evangelization had reached the southwestern coast of India, today's Kerala.
Thanks to the work of St. Thomas and his disciples Thaddeus (known as Addai in Chaldean), Mari, and Aggai, the Chaldean Church was founded in what would become Iraq and the Syro-Malabar Church in India.
After St. Thomas' martyrdom in India, his disciples kept proselytizing and created Christian communities subordinated to the churches of Seleucia and Ctesiphon. These towns were located on opposite sides of the Tigris River, not far from Baghdad.
In the course of the centuries, the Chaldean Church kept its faith in Christ alive, within the limitations posed by the Muslim majority where most of the church members, in fact, live in Iraq.
North of Iraq, Chaldeans, like the Kurds who settled later in the same area, survived wars that have been ravaging the land since 80 CE.
In southern Iraq, another Chaldean community coexists with a majority of Shiite Muslims (62 percent of the population).
In central Iraq, around Baghdad, the majority of the population is made of Arabs, mostly Sunni Muslims (34.5 percent of the 22 million Iraqis).
However, the Chaldean faith is not confined to the Middle East; due to emigration, the Chaldean Church thrives in the communities of the Diaspora. There are over one million Chaldeans worldwide, with 150,000 of them that live in the USA (mostly around Detroit). The same goes for Oceania and Europe, where over 70,000 Chaldean Catholics can be found. Canada accommodates 17,000 faithful, from coast to coast. There are Chaldean communities in Vancouver, Saskatoon, Calgary, Montreal, Ottawa, Windsor, London, and even Toronto, which has the largest Chaldean community of Ontario.
Tandem interviewed the Archbishop of the Chaldeans in Toronto In order to find out about the Chaldean Church in the world and in Iraq. The Most Reverend Hanna Zora invited us to attend the liturgy in the church of the Good Shepherd, built in Chaldean-Babylonian style. Attending a mass celebrated, according to the Chaldean liturgy, is a highly emotional and unforgettable event. It is almost exclusively celebrated in the Chaldean language, full of ancient sonority and beautiful music.
Who are the Chaldeans, and how did their faith originate?
"The Chaldeans are the 'oldest Christians' of the Middle East; a people deeply attached to God and that, in the course of the centuries, had to suffer great sorrows, supported only by an unshakable faith. They are the heirs of the preaching done by St. Thomas the Apostle, who brought Christianity in the area between Tigris and Euphrates. The great faith of the Chaldeans originated in the land of Abraham our father."
How are the relations between the Eastern and Western churches?
"The cultural and spiritual heritages of the East and West are not at odds with one another; rather, they walk side by side, they are 'the two lungs of the Church', as the Pope called them. The Holy See always encouraged us to keep our liturgy as a patrimony. The Eastern Church is a richness that adds to the spirituality of the whole Church."
How do Iraqi Chaldeans live their faith among a Muslim majority?
"Iraq is a mosaic of ethnic groups and religions, the heir to a land of most ancient civilizations and great empires, where different cultures coexisted; the State religion is Islam, because 90 percent of Iraqis are Muslims. The Constitution grants freedom of religion, and we Christians have always been on a par with Muslims. Our coexistence with our Muslim brothers is amicable: we're all Iraqis. The common denominator of misery creates solidarity. Occasionally there have been problems, but I feel these would diminish if the people could rid themselves of their poverty and 'fear of the future'. That would give everybody, regardless of ethnic origins or professed religion, the possibility to live in dignity."
Coming to recent events, how did the Chaldean community live in the moments leading up to war on Iraq? Also, how are things now?
"The whole Chaldean community, since the very first rumour of war, lived in huge anxiety and worry. All the Christian communities prayed for peace, together with the Muslim communities. All the Catholic bishops joined the Chaldean bishops, in accordance with the Holy Father's will, to try and avoid the war. Unfortunately, the war was waged all the same... In a land ravaged by poverty, the risk of epidemics is mush higher, and of course the first victims of war are the children, which by the way are the majority of the Iraqi population. Today in Iraq misery has added to misery, sorrow to sorrow... The people are confused and afraid, and the emigration the began in 1980 with the Iran-Iraq war and the first Gulf War is continuing unabated."
Emigration, which hit the Chaldean Church over the last 20 years, formed numerous communities abroad. Where and how do these Chaldeans live?
"They live in Canada, the United States, Europe, and Oceania, keeping our liturgical language, the Chaldean, and also using the local languages, in accordance with Chaldean liturgy.
The Government of Canada granted me the possibility to teach Chaldean in 1993. The study of our language is recognized as an educational credit in Grades 10 and 11. Thanks to the good will of the Government, we have some classes linked to the Church of the Good Shepherd, here in Toronto; they include some 250 kids.
On the one hand, we try and get the younger generations involved; on the other, we intend to preserve a great patrimony of culture and faith. By their mediation between modernity and tradition, the Chaldeans bear witness to the glorious, century-long history and traditions of the Chaldean Church."

Publication Date: 2003-07-06
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=2907