Pope Francis baptises babies in Sistine Chapel in Vatican City

Pope Francis has baptized 13 babies at iconic Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. This came as the church is celebrating the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. The Sistine Chapel is located in the official residence of the pope, Apostolic Palace, in Vatican City.

Pope Francis exhorted parents of baptized babies to ensure their children must remain in the path they were ushered into through baptism.

Pope Francis also thanked the parents for bringing children to the Catholic Church.

Pope Francis asked parents to teach their children the date and significance of baptism. He said that it is with baptism, they were reborn into Christian life.

Pope Francis starts trip to war-battered Iraq, defying security fears and pandemic

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Pope’s historic trip

According to a report by AFP, Pope Francis starts a historic trip to war-battered Iraq on March 5, defying security fears and the pandemic to comfort one of the world's oldest and most persecuted Christian communities. The 84-year-old, who said he would make the first-ever papal visit to Iraq as a "pilgrim of peace," will also reach out to Shiite Muslims when he meets Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. The four-day journey is the pope's first abroad since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, which left the leader of the world's 1.3 billion Catholics saying he felt "caged" inside the Vatican.

Second wave of vaccination

While Francis has been vaccinated, Iraq has been gripped by a second wave with a record of over 5,000 new cases a day, prompting authorities to impose full lockdowns during the pontiff's visit. Security will be tight in Iraq, which has endured years of war and insurgency, is still hunting for Islamic State sleeper cells, and days ago saw a barrage of rockets plough into a military base. Francis will preside over a half-dozen services in ravaged churches, refurbished stadiums and remote desert locations, where attendance will be limited to allow for social distancing.

Christians deeply touched

Inside the country, he will travel more than 1,400 kilometres (870 miles) by plane and helicopter, flying over areas where security forces are still battling IS remnants. For shorter trips, Francis will take an armoured car on freshly paved roads that will be lined with flowers and posters welcoming the leader known here as "Baba Al-Vatican". The pope's visit has deeply touched Iraq's Christians, whose numbers have collapsed over years of persecution and sectarian violence, from 1.5 million in 2003 to fewer than 400,000 today.

Iraq’s persecuted minorities

"We're hoping the pope will explain to the government that it needs to help its people," a Christian from Iraq's north, Saad al-Rassam, told AFP. "We have suffered so much, we need the support." The first day of the pope's ambitious itinerary will see him meet government officials and clerics in the capital Baghdad, including at the Our Lady of Salvation church, where a jihadist attack left dozens dead in 2010. He will also visit the northern province of Nineveh, where in 2014 IS jihadists forced minorities to either flee, convert to Islam or be put to death.

Holding on to faith

"People had only a few minutes to decide if they wanted to leave or be decapitated," recalled Karam Qacha, a Chaldean Catholic priest in Nineveh. "We left everything -- except our faith." Some 100,000 Christians -- around half of those who lived in the province -- fled, of whom just 36,000 have returned, according to Catholic charity "Aid to the Church in Need". Among the returnees, a third have said they want to leave again in coming years, dismayed by Iraq's rampant corruption, persecution and poverty, which now affects 40 percent of the population.

Pope Francis also told parents to teach their children about the significance of prayer. He said prayer gives strength throughout the life. It also helps thank God in good times and find strength in bad times.

Pope also exhorted parents to teach their children to pray to "Our Lady, our Mother". He said that the most important thing is that the children must learn to be Christians.

FAQs:

Why is Pope Francis so special?
Pope Francis is the first Pope from the Americas and first pope from outside Europe since Gregory III.
Can the pope marry?
Popes strictly remain celibate.

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Pope Francis baptises babies in Sistine Chapel in Vatican City

On the occasion of Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, Pope Francis presided over a baptism ceremony at Sistine Chapel in Vatican City.