Fr. Ragheed, Priest-Martyr, singing a hymn to the Virgin Mary

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Also, just as a point to clarify in case there was any doubt as to my intentions, I have set all items related to Fr. Ragheed at my store to be sold at cost. I have no desire to profit in any way because of this holy man’s death - only to help him and his companions to become better known and loved for their courageous sacrifice!
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Servant of the King,

I just ordered a hooded sweatshirt 🙂

Thank you for your efforts in making him known. We Chaldeans appreciate it.

God bless,

Rony
 
That’s great! Hope you enjoy it!

Rony,

Do you know if a book on his life is being written? What an inspiring story that would be.

I am very devoted to the Syrian stream of Christian tradition. It is one of the reasons why I wanted to enter the Melkites, since our roots are both Greek and Syrian.

God bless,

Gordo

PS: Be sure to send me your e-mail address…
 
Do you know if a book on his life is being written? What an inspiring story that would be.
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No, I’m not aware of any book on him being written. It would indeed by inspiring.
I am very devoted to the Syrian stream of Christian tradition. It is one of the reasons why I wanted to enter the Melkites, since our roots are both Greek and Syrian.
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I have a Melkite friend at Franciscan University who is a member of this forum. I occasionally accompany him to the Divine Liturgy at St. Joseph Melkite Catholic Church in Akron, Ohio. It is quite beautiful.
PS: Be sure to send me your e-mail address…
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PM sent.

God bless,

Rony
 
A Muslim Friend’s Letter to Slain Father Ragheed
“In the Name of What God of Death Have They Killed You?”
ROME, JUNE 6, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of a letter written posthumously to Father Ragheed Aziz Ganni by a Muslim friend of his who is a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Father Ragheed and three deacons were shot and killed in Mosul, Iraq, on Sunday after Mass.
In the name of the compassionate and merciful God,

Ragheed, my brother,

I ask your forgiveness for not being with you when those criminals opened fire against you and your brothers. The bullets that have gone through your pure and innocent body have also gone through my heart and soul.

You were one of the first people I met when I arrived to Rome. We met in the halls of the Angelicum and we would drink our cappuccino in the university’s cafeteria. You impressed me with your innocence, joy, your pure and tender smile that never left you.

I always picture you smiling, joyful and full of zest for life. Ragheed is to me innocence personified; a wise innocence that carries in its heart the sorrows of his unhappy people. I remember the time, in the university’s dining room, when Iraq was under embargo and you told me that the price of a single cappuccino would have satisfied the needs of an Iraqi family for a whole day.

You told me this as if you were feeling guilty for being far away from your persecuted people and unable to share in their sufferings …

In fact, you returned to Iraq, not only to share the suffering and destiny of your people but also to join your blood to the blood of thousands of Iraqis killed each day. I will never forget the day of your ordination [Oct. 13, 2001] in the [Pontifical] Urbanian University … with tears in your eyes, you told me: “Today, I have died to self” … a hard thing to say.
\u003cbr>It was difficult for me to imagine you a “canonical judge” … And
today your blood and your martyrdom have spoken for you, a verdict of
fidelity and patience, of hope against all suffering, of survival, in
spite of death, in spite of everything.
\u003cbr>
\u003cbr>Brother, your blood hasn’t been shed in vain, and your church’s
altar wasn’t a masquerade. … You assumed your role with deep
seriousness until the end, with a smile that would never be
extinguished … ever.
",1] ); //–>

I didn’t understand it right away, or maybe I didn’t take it as seriously as I should have. … But today, through your martyrdom, I have understood that phrase. … You have died in your soul and body to be raised up in your beloved, in your teacher, and so that Christ would be raised up in you, despite the sufferings, sorrows, despite the chaos and madness.

In the name of what god of death have they killed you? In the name of which paganism have they crucified you? Did they truly know what they were doing?

O God, we don’t ask you for revenge or retaliation. We ask you for victory, a victory of justice over falsehood, life over death, innocence over treachery, blood over the sword. … Your blood will not have been shed in vain, dear Ragheed, because with it you have blessed the soil of your country. And from heaven, your tender smile will continue to light the darkness of our nights and announce to us a better tomorrow.

I ask your forgiveness, brother, for when the living get together they think they have all the time in the world to talk, visit, and share feelings and thoughts. You had invited me to Iraq … I dreamed of that visit, of visiting your house, your parents, your office. … It never occurred to me that it would be your tomb that one day I would visit or that it would be verses from my Quran that I would recite for the repose of your soul …

One day, before your first trip to Iraq after a prolonged absence, I went with you to buy souvenirs and presents for your family. You spoke with me of your future work: “I would like to preside over the people on the base of charity before justice” – you said.

It was difficult for me to imagine you a “canonical judge” … And today your blood and your martyrdom have spoken for you, a verdict of fidelity and patience, of hope against all suffering, of survival, in spite of death, in spite of everything.

Brother, your blood hasn’t been shed in vain, and your church’s altar wasn’t a masquerade. … You assumed your role with deep seriousness until the end, with a smile that would never be extinguished … ever.

Your loving brother,

Adnam Mokrani
Rome, June 4, 2007
Professor of Islamic Studies in the Institute for the Study of Religion and Culture,
Pontifical Gregorian University
 
bpbasilphx said:
A Muslim Friend’s Letter to Slain Father Ragheed
“In the Name of What God of Death Have They Killed You?”
ROME, JUNE 6, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of a letter written posthumously to Father Ragheed Aziz Ganni by a Muslim friend of his who is a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Father Ragheed and three deacons were shot and killed in Mosul, Iraq, on Sunday after Mass.
In the name of the compassionate and merciful God,

Ragheed, my brother,

I ask your forgiveness for not being with you when those criminals opened fire against you and your brothers. The bullets that have gone through your pure and innocent body have also gone through my heart and soul.

You were one of the first people I met when I arrived to Rome. We met in the halls of the Angelicum and we would drink our cappuccino in the university’s cafeteria. You impressed me with your innocence, joy, your pure and tender smile that never left you.

I always picture you smiling, joyful and full of zest for life. Ragheed is to me innocence personified; a wise innocence that carries in its heart the sorrows of his unhappy people. I remember the time, in the university’s dining room, when Iraq was under embargo and you told me that the price of a single cappuccino would have satisfied the needs of an Iraqi family for a whole day.

You told me this as if you were feeling guilty for being far away from your persecuted people and unable to share in their sufferings …

In fact, you returned to Iraq, not only to share the suffering and destiny of your people but also to join your blood to the blood of thousands of Iraqis killed each day. I will never forget the day of your ordination [Oct. 13, 2001] in the [Pontifical] Urbanian University … with tears in your eyes, you told me: “Today, I have died to self” … a hard thing to say.
\u003cbr>It was difficult for me to imagine you a “canonical judge” … And
today your blood and your martyrdom have spoken for you, a verdict of
fidelity and patience, of hope against all suffering, of survival, in
spite of death, in spite of everything.
\u003cbr>
\u003cbr>Brother, your blood hasn’t been shed in vain, and your church’s
altar wasn’t a masquerade. … You assumed your role with deep
seriousness until the end, with a smile that would never be
extinguished … ever.
",1] ); //–>

I didn’t understand it right away, or maybe I didn’t take it as seriously as I should have. … But today, through your martyrdom, I have understood that phrase. … You have died in your soul and body to be raised up in your beloved, in your teacher, and so that Christ would be raised up in you, despite the sufferings, sorrows, despite the chaos and madness.

In the name of what god of death have they killed you? In the name of which paganism have they crucified you? Did they truly know what they were doing?

O God, we don’t ask you for revenge or retaliation. We ask you for victory, a victory of justice over falsehood, life over death, innocence over treachery, blood over the sword. … Your blood will not have been shed in vain, dear Ragheed, because with it you have blessed the soil of your country. And from heaven, your tender smile will continue to light the darkness of our nights and announce to us a better tomorrow.

I ask your forgiveness, brother, for when the living get together they think they have all the time in the world to talk, visit, and share feelings and thoughts. You had invited me to Iraq … I dreamed of that visit, of visiting your house, your parents, your office. … It never occurred to me that it would be your tomb that one day I would visit or that it would be verses from my Quran that I would recite for the repose of your soul …

One day, before your first trip to Iraq after a prolonged absence, I went with you to buy souvenirs and presents for your family. You spoke with me of your future work: “I would like to preside over the people on the base of charity before justice” – you said.

It was difficult for me to imagine you a “canonical judge” … And today your blood and your martyrdom have spoken for you, a verdict of fidelity and patience, of hope against all suffering, of survival, in spite of death, in spite of everything.

Brother, your blood hasn’t been shed in vain, and your church’s altar wasn’t a masquerade. … You assumed your role with deep seriousness until the end, with a smile that would never be extinguished … ever.

Your loving brother,

Adnam Mokrani
Rome, June 4, 2007
Professor of Islamic Studies in the Institute for the Study of Religion and Culture,
Pontifical Gregorian University
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Wow. That was a very sincere letter.
 
Beautiful stuff. Too bad we won’t hear more.

What makes you think that? My heart tells me that we’ve not heard the last of Fr. Ragheed!

Especially as long as their are people like us who keep the memory of his exploits alive.
 
HailMary said:
youtube.com/watch?v=KzTFqy6MmXY
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Thank you for sharing this.

We read of the persecutions of early Christians with thousands of years separating us. The Iraqi Christians risk their lives to read them at all and when they do live their faith, they face martyrdom. May we all have the strength and courage of the Iraqi martrys! May they and all the saints guide us.

Does anyone know an estimated number of how many modern people have been martyred for the faith by extremist Muslims?
 
Woodstock said:
Does anyone know an estimated number of how many modern people have been martyred for the faith by extremist Muslims?
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Woodstock,

If by “modern” you intend to limit the matter to the extremism manifested in the past 2-3 decades, the specific number of those martyred in odium fidei or any of the 4 other categories of martyrdom is not high. Most acts of extremism resulting in death have been directed at persons for being non-Muslim, rather than being specifically directed at them for their faith - the criteria by which the Congregation would assess the appropriateness of terming them martyrs.

Other than Father Ragheed, of blessed memory, about two dozen events come to mind in the last ten years or so. The largest single instance in that timeframe was the murder of 7 French Trappist monks in Algeria; that occurred in 1996 or 1997.

Several of the two dozen were in the Philippines, where it’s hard to separate the Muslim political agenda from faith-based issues. There have been either 2 or 3 bishops - 1 in Algeria about 10 years ago and 1 in the Philippines, about the same time.

The most notable of recent times were Sister Cecilia Hanna, an elderly Chaldean nun, about 5 years ago, and Father Santoro, the Italian priest murdered in Turkey a few years ago. The murder of a Melkite priest serving in Russia (Siberia actually) a couple years ago was rumored to involve a Muslim, but was eventually attributed to a robbery, if I remember correctly.

The rumors to the contrary, there is no confirmation of a crucifixion of a young teen in Iraq this past year.

Many years,

Neil
 
Holy Martyrs Ragheed, Basman, Wahid, and Gassan pray for us that we may be proper witnesses for Christ Our God!
 
This thread is great! I was just asking about Father Ragheed yesterday in the thread “Chaldeans and Irish.”

What a powerful witness for the Faith!

Holy Chaldean martyrs, pray for us.

Blessings,
Marduk
 
ebed_melech said:
That’s great! Hope you enjoy it!

Rony,

Do you know if a book on his life is being written? What an inspiring story that would be.

I am very devoted to the Syrian stream of Christian tradition. It is one of the reasons why I wanted to enter the Melkites, since our roots are both Greek and Syrian.

God bless,

Gordo

PS: Be sure to send me your e-mail address…
Click to expand...
I became aware of Father Ragheed through an old issue of the National Catholic Register sent to me by a friend. It is the June 17, 2007 issue. The article is entitled “Slain Iraqi Priest’s Heroic Witness” and spans a full half of a newspaper-size page.

It has great biographical info, with comments from people who knew him (including a photo of him). Do you have that article? I don’t know what the forum rules are about posting an article from a publication.
 
mardukm said:
I don’t know what the forum rules are about posting an article from a publication.
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We prefer you summarize and link.

** Banned Topic #22**
Lengthy excerpts of articles or publications that exceed standards for “reasonable use” (generally no more than three paragraphs) or might otherwise be construed to infringe copyright.
 
HailMary said:
I suppose it would be ok with proper citation.
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In that case, I will post it. Actually, I’ll have to type it out, so please forgive me if I don’t present it till this weekend. Don’t have a lot of time right now.:o I also don’t have a scanner handy, so I can’t include the photo. It is a close-up of him smiling in a collared (secular) shirt.

Blessings,
Marduk
 
mardukm said:
In that case, I will post it. Actually, I’ll have to type it out, so please forgive me if I don’t present it till this weekend. Don’t have a lot of time right now.:o I also don’t have a scanner handy, so I can’t include the photo. It is a close-up of him smiling in a collared (secular) shirt.
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According to the suggestion and graciousness of our mod, here is a link to the article on Fr. Ragheed to which I referred:

catholicmil.org/html/overthere.php?id=598

Blessings,
Marduk
 
ebed_melech said:
Glory to Jesus Christ!

This is nothing short of amazing! Thank you for sharing it. It brought tears to my eyes. Prayers to the holy martyr, Father Ragheed and his three martyred subdeacons!

Someone should write an icon of these Holy Martyrs.

In ICXC,

Gordo
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Thank you; reacted the same. Want to let others know your site www.catholicchurchgeek.com has links and more information on the martyrs.
 
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