Mosul: Ancient Relics Emerge from the Church of Mar Thomas, Ravaged by Isis

AsiaNews ^ | 6/11/22

[marshmallow]

A discovery of historical and religious value, confirming the Christianity's connection to Iraq. In six stone containers ancient relics and parchments with references to saints, from Simon to St John. Smuggling of antiquities is back on the agenda, Briton sentenced to 15 years.

Baghdad (AsiaNews) - A discovery of great historical, religious and cultural value that confirms - once again - the bond of Christians with Iraq and, more generally, with the Middle Eastern region of which they are the original people and an integral component since the first centuries.

Over the past few days, a dozen or so ancient relics and parchments belonging to some saints have emerged inside a church devastated by the Islamic State (IS, formerly Isis), which is now undergoing restoration.

The site of the discovery was the Syrian Orthodox Church (in the photos) of Mar Thomas in Mosul, once the economic and commercial capital of the north and in the recent past the stronghold of the Islamic "caliphate" established by Isis. Found inside were six stone containers bearing Aramaic inscriptions of saints and several manuscripts in Syriac and Aramaic languages.

The workers who made the discovery immediately called the leaders of the local Church, starting with the Syrian Orthodox Archbishop of Mosul Mor Nicodemos Sharaf. Among the relics that emerged was a stone container with an inscription relating to Saint Theodore, a Roman soldier born in the province of Corum, Turkey, in the 3rd century and beheaded for having converted.

The prelate immediately contacted Mor Ignace Ephrem II, the patriarch of the Syrian Orthodox Church who was in Damascus, with a video call to allow him to share the discovery live. At the conclusion of the excavations, five more reliquaries were collected: of Saint Simon 'the Zealot', a first-century apostle; relics of Mor Gabriel bishop......

[skeeter]

Perhaps it’d be better for posterity if these relics were to be stored in Britain as opposed to Iraq. Thanks to Obama’s toads in the White House ISIS will be making a comeback any moment.

[Beowulf9]

This stuff breaks my heart. The artifacts when found in place reveal things that are lost forever when disconnected like that. The history lost is priceless.