» With Pope Francis, we are losing a tireless fighter for religious freedom and oppressed Christians. «
Regina Lynch, ACN Executive President
His commitment to the Christians in Iraq will also remain unforgotten. In March 2021, the pope visited the Nineveh Plains, where ACN has rebuilt churches, monasteries and Christian homes. Regina Lynch, now Executive President, and then Director of ACN’s Project Department, was part of Pope Francis’ delegation. She remembers: “He thanked ACN and the benefactors for all we are doing for Christians in the Middle East and around the world.” Pope Francis had already expressed his respect for the work of ACN in 2016. He supported the medical care of Christians displaced from the Nineveh Plains with a personal donation to ACN. Through numerous other actions, he consistently reinforced his support for our foundation’s mission. For example, during the Sunday Angelus prayer
in St Peter’s Square, Pope Francis lit a candle made by ACN’s project partners in Syria, thereby expressing his support for our Advent campaign “Light a Candle for Peace in Syria”. In 2019, Francis received a delegation from ACN and blessed 6,000 rosaries and an icon – after which he once again called for prayer for Syria. Francis continued the path of his predecessors in ecumenical and interreligious dialogue and met with several Orthodox patriarchs, including Kirill of Moscow and Bartholomew of Constantinople. He also sought contact with representatives of non- Christian religious communities. Our foundation will always be grate ful to Pope Francis for his prayers and for consistently advocating for persecuted Christians and the right to religious freedom. May he rest in peace.
Blessing of the icon “Our Lady of Sorrows, Comforter of the Syrians” in September 2019.
In conversation with ACN Executive President Regina Lynch on the flight to Iraq in March 2021.
Meeting in Iraq with representatives of the three Abrahamic religions in March 2021.
ACN Activity Report 2024 | 9
ACN mourns the death of Pope Francis |
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