His Eminence Mor Severius Hawa, Archbishop of Bagdad and Basra Visits the Archdiocese

On Tuesday, the 27th of July, 2010, His Eminence Mor Severius Hawa, Archbishop of Bagdad and Basra arrived in New Jersey. He was greeted at Newark Airport by His Eminence Mor Cyril Aphrem Karim and some clergy and parishioners.

At 5:00PM on Wednesday evening, the 28th of July, evening prayers were held at Mor Aphrem’s Chapel in the New Archdiocesan Center in Paramus. The service was lead by Their Eminences: Mor Severius Hawa, Archbishop of Bagdad and Basra, Mor Cyril Aphrem Karim and Mor Titus Yeldho, Archbishop of Malankara Archdiocese of the Syrian Orthodox Church in North America. Several priests and parishioners joined the service. After the service all were invited to dinner in honor of of His Eminence Archbichop Mor Severius. During dinner, His Eminence Mor Cyril Aphrem Karim welcomed their Eminences, the honorable clergy and the guests present there. Archbishop Karim praised Archbishop Hawa’s experience in serving the Holy Church, which he acquired while serving as Patriarchal General Vicar in Damascus and later as the Archbishop of Baghdad and Basra in Iraq. He highlighted the tremendous growth which the Archdiocese of Baghdad has witnessed in different aspects.

His Eminence Mor Severius Hawa thanked His Eminence Mor Cyril Karim for his kind words saying: “What you said about me showed a sincere love for my weak person. My respect to you increased when I saw the great projects you are planning for your people. May the Lord help you to overcome all the obstacles while completing these projects. But, what attracted my attention mostly about you, is the spirit of brotherly love and appreciation you treat your clergy with, as a father of all”.

Then, the honorable guest directed his address to the faithful saying: “I am very happy to meet you, and I thank you for your love. I bring you my people’s greetings and ask you please to pray for them during these hard times that we are passing through in our beloved Iraq. As our ancestors struggled and prevailed, we will continue to pray till we obtain peace and tranquility. May the Lord bless you and keep you”.

After Dinner, the honorable guest spent some time with the faithful, especially those who came from his Archdiocese and are residents in the United States now.

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