Chaldean Patriarch Emmanuel III visited CNEWA’s New York office on 10 June, part of his first pastoral visit to the United States and Canada. The patriarch, who is based in Baghdad, said that Iraq still lacks “security, peace and stability” but added that the Chaldean community was “full of hope” for the future.
Edward Cardinal Egan, Archbishop of New York and President of CNEWA, hosted a luncheon for the patriarch, who was accompanied by Mar Ibrahim N. Ibrahim of the Eparchy of St. Thomas of the Chaldeans in Detroit and Chorbishop Philip Najim, Patriarchal Procurator in Rome.
The following day, Patriarch Emmanuel joined Msgr. Robert L. Stern and senior staff members in a teleconference with European funding agencies to discuss aid to Iraqis.
Elected patriarch by the bishops of the Chaldean Church in December 2003, Patriarch Emmanuel leads a worldwide community of nearly 400,000 people.