Spokesman for Eastern Christians, Cardinal Sako resigns

An emblematic figure of Eastern Catholics, Cardinal Louis-Raphaël Sako leaves his seat as patriarch of the Chaldean Church. The Vatican announced on Tuesday March 10 that Pope Leo XIV had accepted his resignation, submitted two years earlier, when the high prelate had reached the theoretical canonical retirement age of 75.

In a letter relayed by the official media Vatican NewsCardinal Sako indicates that he now wants to “dedicate himself to prayer in calm, to writing and to simple service” after having “led the Chaldean Church in extremely difficult circumstances and in the face of great challenges” for thirteen years, and “preserved the unity of its institutions (without) sparing any effort to defend it”.

If the one who received the cardinal’s bar in 2018 from the hands of Pope Francis assures that this resignation was presented freely, the timetable for its acceptance is not without raising questions. The headquarters of the Chaldean Church is in fact located in Baghdad, Iraq, a country swept away by the war between Iran on one side, and the United States and Israel on the other. Just three days ago, Cardinal Sako explained to Vatican News to be “very concerned”, recalling that his community had “experienced the same scenario in 2003” with the consequence “chaos, disorder, revenge, attacks”.

Another bishop resigns

In addition to this worrying international calendar, there is the resignation on the same day of another bishop of the Chaldean Church, Mgr Emanuel Hana Shaleta. At the head of ecclesial jurisdiction for members of his community living in the western half of the United States, he was arrested on March 5 while “trying to leave the country”. He is accused of embezzling funds from his community.

Born in Iraq in 1978, perfectly French-speaking, Cardinal Sako was elected Patriarch of Babylon by the synod of the Chaldean Church in 2013. In these responsibilities, he notably carried the voice of his community when it saw its ancestral lands being devastated and occupied by the Islamic State from 2014. In 2021, he welcomed Pope Francis to these same lands, liberated, during the trip historic pontifical in Iraq.

His mandate at the head of the Chaldean Church was also marked in 2023 by an episode of strong tensions with the Iraqi government authorities. They had for a time withdrawn their recognition as head of the Church, leading to the departure of Cardinal Sako from Baghdad to Erbil, capital of the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan. He returned to his historic seat after a year, once confirmed in his status.