Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Out with the old, and in with the new. Hopefully for us that means new treatments and a better handle on the coronavirus. This pandemic has put a serious damper on social activities for the better part of two years now, and we are so ready for it to be done running riot through our families and communities. We’ve done our part by masking up and social distancing, getting vaccinated, again, and then boosted to boot!
The beginning of a new year is a good time to get reoriented and realigned with your priorities. In our cover article, Dr. Miri tells the story of Mor Nicodemus Daoud Matti Sharaf, the “Brave Bishop” of Mosul and Kirkuk, who held out as long as humanly possible to serve his congregation in Iraq. He is brazenly outspoken in his fight to establish rights for displaced Christians in the Middle East and in his condemnation of the “superpowers” that he holds responsible for the situation in the region. Some people, like this bishop, live their calling with gusto.
Other articles penned by Dr. Miri this month celebrate this same type of individual, including Sabah Summa, founder of the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce, and the Jesuits that came to Iraq to educate future generations and fulfill their mission of social responsibility.
Jeff Kassab submitted an article on laity in the Church and the importance of recognizing when God is calling. It is, after all, the people who make up the Church and we all have a role. Kassab encourages any who might be interested to accept the mission of evangelizing the world.
In community news, we celebrate Renee Tomina, who as senior vice president of Major Enterprise Projects for DTE Energy might be the highest-ranking Chaldean at a Fortune-500 company, plus culinary artists Rachell Yousif and Jonathan Elias (AKA “The Pastry Guru”) who had their moment of fame on Disney’s Foodtastic series.
We take a look at some hurdles in the business world, including the lack of affordable housing, supply chain issues and the difficulty of staffing, especially for restaurants and banquet halls.
In this age of coronavirus, it’s important to remember that other viruses, like the flu, are still around and still threatening lives. In Dr. Is In, Julie Kado, MD, reminds us why we get the yearly influenza shot and how it works.
In Iraq today, we learn about Christians’ struggle to be counted, which is a shared struggle as we define new districts in America and Chaldean communities in Michigan and California fight for the right to be counted here as well.
Sports are back (kind of), and we tell the story of Ava Sarafa, who has made a name for herself in the world of high school volleyball, taking her Marian High School team to the state championship and securing her spot for sports in college.
More and more, the Chaldean community is being recognized for their contributions to the past and nowhere is that more evident than at the Chaldean Cultural Center, which just received a $150,000 grant to grow its offerings. The significant artifacts and relics help teach history to the generations, and it’s good to see that happening.
It’s also good to see young Chaldean students on college campuses coming together to preserve and strengthen their cultural bonds. Cal Abbo visited the CASA group at Wayne State University and shares his take on the Chaldean Mass they’ve been celebrating each month.
Other notable accomplishments include the election of a Chaldean mayor in New Baltimore. Along with the growing of the Church by ordaining new priests and subdeacons and the birth of our Savior, we had much to celebrate at the end of 2021.
Here’s to a new year, full of hope and happiness!
Sarah Kittle