Baghdad celebrates first public Christmas

CNN ^ | December 21, 2008 | Jill Dougherty

[ksm1]

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- From a distance, it looks like an apparition: a huge multi-colored hot-air balloon floating in the Baghdad sky, bearing a large poster of Jesus Christ. Below it, an Iraqi flag. Santa and his helpers stand under palm trees at Baghdad's first public Christmas festival. Santa and his helpers stand under palm trees at Baghdad's first public Christmas festival.

[Irish Rose]

The Iraqis seem to be learning.

[wildandcrazyrussian]

There have been Christians in Iraq for almost 2,000 years, and in fact there was a story during the 1991 war that the oldest continuously used Christian church in the world is in Baghdad. It was only after 632 that the Christian nation of Mesopotamia was destroyed by the Islamic hordes. The 700,000+ Christians still there are descendants of the original inhabitants of that land.

[lilycicero]

Too bad you didn’t see this....D’oh!!!

[Lurker]

I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a happy, prosperous, and SAFE New Year.

L

[Allegra]

I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a happy, prosperous, and SAFE New Year.

Thank you and I wish the same for you.

Christmas has indeed come to Baghdad and it is beautiful.

This place is getting more normal every day. :)

[Allegra]

Probably the only Christians left are our troops.

Not at all. The Christian churches have begun opening around Baghdad over the past year and are being attended by Iraqi Christians regularly.

[Lurker]

This place is getting more normal every day. :)

Talk about a Bizarro world...things here are getting weirder by the minute..

L

[Allegra]

Talk about a Bizarro world...things here are getting weirder by the minute..

LOL - I was just home on leave and I concur. I arrived back here just a couple of days ago.

I keep saying things like "Now that I'm back home....I mean...ahh...back here..."

I'm sooooo confused. ;-)

[Mr. Peabody]

This kind of thing is banned in San Francisco. Those Iraquis would be arrested if they tried that over here.

[Allegra]

Have the riots started yet? I can't believe the Imans are going to give Jesus a pass. I bet that sign's destroyed before Christmas!

I bet it's not.

[Righting]

... worth menetioning thugh that there was a pogrom (Farhud) on the Jews of Iraq in 1941 (7 years before re-establishment of Israel) - a massacre incited by the infamous Mufti of palestine.

[ksm1]

Well, Iraqis and most Arabs in general pride themselves on their hospitality, so I’m a bit more optimistic.

Can’t say the same about San Francisco liberals though when it comes to tolerance...