Deep in the Iraqi desert, near the highway leading to the Saudi Arabian border, lie the ruins of al-Qusair Church, the oldest church in Iraq and said to be one of the most ancient in the Middle East.
Walking through the sand-coloured ruins of al-Qusair – believed to date back to the 2nd century – is a step back to a pre-Islamic era when Christianity dominated a country which, in the past two decades, has seen its minority Christian population diminish from 1.5 million to an estimated 300,000.
Because of security concerns, the area has long been largely off-limits for Iraqi Christians but, since 2014, small groups have been visiting al-Qusair (also called al-Aqiser). Chaldean Catholics Tony Hana, 31, and his brother Adnan, 21, who both live in Baghdad, have made three such journeys, the first in 2014 and the most recent in 2019.
“This church is very important for Iraq’s Christian community,” Tony Hana told the Catholic Herald. “We’ve almost nothing left of our ancient heritage and culture, especially after the destruction of many historic churches in Mosul by the Islamic State (ISIS).”
Their visit in 2019, as part of a group of 18 Catholics from Basra and Baghdad, was the most profound. “There were 18 of us. We couldn’t hold an actual Mass because it’s just a ruin but we had group prayers, led by Father Mansour al-Mukhals,” Hana said. “During the prayers and that moment of silence when the wind blew through the ruins, I felt a very strong sensation, as though the souls of all the departed who had worshipped there were with us.”
The Muslim Mayor of the nearby town of Ain al-Tamr, Raed Fadhel, was instrumental in arranging these visits. “We invited them because we respect Christians and want to promote harmonious coexistence in Iraq, and we provided support and security,” he said.
Relations between Iraq’s minority faiths and majority Shia and Sunni Muslims soured during the sectarian violence that followed the US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the emergence of ISIS in northern Iraq – where many of Iraq’s Christians lived – prompted many more to seek asylum abroad. The historic Iraq visit of His Holiness Pope Francis in March 2021, entitled “We are all brothers” was seen as an important step in promoting interfaith dialogue and harmonious coexistence.
In 2021, Fadhel welcomed two further Christian groups, one of which travelled more than 300 miles – from Erbil in northern Iraq – to visit al-Qusair. “That the Christians of Iraq are still trying to put life into these places demonstrates how strong the attachment and the faith is that still remains,” the Chaldean Catholic Archbishop of Erbil, Bashar Warda, told the Catholic Herald. “Al-Qusair proves how old Christianity is in Iraq, and these southern Iraqi areas had strong dioceses and evangelisation up until the eighth century.”
The visible ruins of al-Qusair (meaning “small palace”) comprise the church itself, a group of nearby monastic buildings including a library with shelving bases still discernible, an outbuilding reserved for washing the dead before burial, and a school. An ancient well, the looted graves of the churchyard and pottery fragments can also be seen. Archaeological studies indicate that this religious centre was formerly surrounded by a protective fortress and it is believed that the remains of a sizeable town lie beneath the long-since encroaching desert sands.
A view of the ruins from the graveyard (CREDIT: Tom Westcott)
Although historic facts about the church are scant, both Fadhel and Hana, who has been studying Christian history in Iraq, believe it was originally established to protect strategic (and lucrative) trade routes running through the desert.
Al-Qusair today stands remote and largely unvisited, but Fadhel hopes the anticipated renewed interest in the country’s Christian heritage in the wake of Pope Francis’s visit might include this ancient site.
“It is important to make pilgrimages to holy places, for it is the most beautiful sign on Earth of our yearning for heaven,” said Pope Francis, at an interfaith meeting held in southern Iraq.
“To love and protect holy places, therefore, is an existential necessity, in memory of our father Abraham, who in various places raised to heaven altars of the Lord.”
Fadhel is optimistic both about future visitor numbers and the possibility the church could spark the interest of international archaeological expeditions, as most of the once-expansive site remains unexplored. “Iraqi expeditions came in 2008 and tried their best but they lacked the tools, capacity, money and expertise to continue,” he said. “This kind of work needs patience and very experienced people and we would welcome any international archaeological expeditions.”
Fragments of ancient pottery found around
the site (CREDIT: Tom Westcott)
Hana also hopes for future attention upon, and preservation of, this neglected site. “Al-Qusair church is very important to us, and it’s the history of Iraq, so it must be preserved,” he said. “it should also be important for Iraq’s Muslim community, as a symbol of history, coexistence and solidarity.”
Hana said that although the deteriorating condition of al-Qusair and its lack of security – it stands isolated and unguarded – is of concern, the far greater issue facing Iraq’s indigenous Catholics, which comprise one of the oldest continuous Christian communities in the world, is maintaining their presence in the country. “Historic sites need conservation and security,” he said. “But, as Iraqi Catholics, we remain far more concerned about stopping the ongoing emigration of Christians from Iraq than preserving our ancient heritage.”
Until such time as any further work might be undertaken on al-Qusair Church, its poorly signposted ruins offer the intrepid visitors who are able to track it down a magical glimpse into a forgotten chapter of Iraq’s history.
Tom Westcott is a Middle East-based freelance journalist, who has contributed to the Sunday Times and Middle East Eye.
This article first appeared in the February 2022 issue of the Catholic Herald. Subscribe today.
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