To members of the Special Synod of the Chaldean Church of Iraq

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
TO MEMBERS OF THE SPECIAL SYNOD
OF THE CHALDEAN CHURCH OF IRAQ

Saturday, 12 November 2005

Your Beatitude,
Venerable and dear Brothers,

In offering you a cordial welcome, I thank you for your visit, which enables me to convey, through you, a word of fervent encouragement to your Communities and to all the citizens of Iraq.
My expression of solidarity brings the assurance of my remembrance in prayer, so that even in the current difficult situation, your beloved Country will not lose heart and will be able to continue on its way towards reconciliation and peace.

During your stay in Rome you have celebrated a Special Synod in which you have finalized the project of the revision of the texts of the Divine Liturgy in the Syrian Catholic rite, preparing a reform that should pave the way to a new impetus of devotion in your Communities.

This work has entailed years of study and decisions that were not always easy, but it has been a period in which the Chaldean Church could reflect more deeply on the great gift of the Eucharist.
Another important area on which you have focused your attention was the analysis of the draft of the Particular Law that must regulate the internal life of your Communities. An appropriate canonical discipline of your own is necessary for an orderly fulfilment of the mission entrusted to you by Christ.

In the synodal spirit that is a feature of the Chaldean Church's government, you have experienced a period of intense communion, mindful throughout of the supreme good of the salus animarum.

Now, when you are returning to your respective Sees, you feel reassured by your experience of communion beside the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul. This communion finds a special expression here, today, in your common prayer of thanksgiving, raised to the Lord together with the Successor of Peter.

I urge you, dear friends, to continue in your pastoral commitment and in your ministry of hope for the entire Iraqi Nation. As I entrust each one of your Communities to the sweet protection of the Mother of God, I very willingly impart my Apostolic Blessing to you, your priests, your men and women religious and all your faithful, as a pledge of peace and consolation from Heaven.