The Chaldean Church Refuses Fiducia Supplicans

As a reminder, the synod of an Eastern Church brings together all the bishops of a Patriarchate, a meeting that can be regular or extraordinary. It is the synod that elects the Patriarch in the event of a vacancy in the see and that has the exclusive competence to pass laws for the entire patriarchal Church. It is also a tribunal for this Church. This meeting was an ordinary or annual meeting.

The Synod, held “just after the return of His Beatitude to his patriarchal seat in Baghdad,” was an opportunity for the Chaldean bishops to express “their gratitude for the legal and courageous initiative of the Prime Minister, Mr. Mohammed Shia’ Al-Sudani,” for having published the decree confirming the designation of Patriarch Sako as head of the Chaldean Church and the one responsible for its goods.

The Synod mentioned the agony of Iraqi Christians, recalling their suffering over the “last two decades”: deprivation of their rights, marginalization, exclusion, and dispossession of their properties and their goods, “which has forced many of them to emigrate in search of a better life.”

This is why the bishops ask “that their rights be fully respected as citizens, with equal representation and employment,” and refuse “the seizure of their property because of the ‘exclusivity’ of a political party.”

They called on “the international community to make the decision to immediately put an end to the destructive war of people and stones” in the Holy Land, believing that the best solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is “to establish two neighbor States that live in peace, security, stability, and mutual trust.”

As for the Christians of the East, “the synodal bishops” renewed “the call for unity and solidarity of Patriarch Sako. The main thing that should unite us is our faith and our land,” they said. They want “courageous practical measures, to stabilize Christians in their land, preserving their identity, but also to reinforce their role and their presence.”

During the meeting, the Fathers discussed the question of sexual harassment and that of the blessing of homosexual couples on Tuesday, July 16. A communiqué was issued as a result:

The Decision of the Chaldean Synod on the Blessing of Same-Sex Unions

During the evening session on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, the Synod Fathers examined the topic of sexual harassment and the LGBT issue.

1. They highlighted the need to protect children from sexual harassment and to educate the priests on the seriousness of this phenomenon, and stressed the importance for priests to participate in the child protection program and obtain a certificate from the local ecclesiastical authority.

2. As for homosexual unions (two people of the same sex), they adopted the following resolution: The Chaldean Church in Iraq and in the world does not consider homosexual unions as marriage, because it defines marriage between a man and a woman as the only legitimate marriage to found a family, and refuses to bless homosexual unions, in order to preserve the sanctity of marriage, one of the seven sacraments.

This is a new refusal of Fiducia supplicans to add to the dozens of others already expressed by cardinals, episcopal conferences, bishops, and religious societies.