Louis Raphael I Sako
His Beatitude
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| Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans | |
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| Church | Chaldean Catholic Church |
| See | Chaldean Catholic Patriarchate of Babylon |
| Appointed | 1 February 2013 |
| Predecessor | Emmanuel III Delly |
| Other posts | Chaldean Archbishop of Baghdad |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1 June 1974 |
| Consecration | 14 November 2003 by André Sana |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Louis Sako |
| Born |
4 July 1948 Zakho, Iraq |
| Denomination | Chaldean Catholic |
| Residence | Iraq |
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| Ordination history of Louis Raphaël I Sako | |
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Priestly ordination
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| Date of ordination | 1 June 1974 |
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Episcopal consecration
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| Principal consecrator | André Sana |
| Co-consecrator | Shlemon Warduni |
| Co-consecrator | Paulos Faraj Rahho |
| Date of consecration | 14 November 2003 |
Louis Raphaël I Sako (Syriac: ܠܘܝܣ ܪܘܦܐܝܠ ܩܕܡܝܐ ܣܟܘ) (born 4 July 1948) was chosen as Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Babylon and the Head of the Chaldean Catholic Church at his election on 1 February 2013.
Sako was born in the city of Zakho on the Iraq–Turkey border. He is an Chaldean Catholic from a religious community that has had presence in the city of his birth since the 5th century AD. Before he was consecrated bishop, then-Father Sako had demanded to see President Saddam Hussein after the Iraqi Government refused to allow him to teach religious education. Saddam refused his request but the cleric responded by doing a separate doctorate and, because it had little religious content, the Government gave him his teaching licence, which enabled him to teach the subject.
On 1 February 2013, Pope Benedict XVI granted him ecclesiastica communio (ecclesiastical communion) which the leaders of the Eastern-rite Catholic churches seek as a sign of their unity with the wider Catholic church. Patriarch Louis Raphaël I Sako speaks Syriac, German, French, English, Italian, and Arabic.
Sako was ordained a priest on 1 June 1974 for the Chaldean Archeparchy of Mosul. After his election and subsequent confirmation in 2003 he was consecrated the Chaldean Catholic Archeparch of Kirkuk on 27 September 2003. He was elected to the position by a synod of bishops of the Chaeldean Catholic Church on 24 October 2002. He was awarded the Defensor Fidei prize in 2008 and in 2010, he was awarded the International Pax Christi Award.
In August 2009, and at the beginning of Ramadan, Sako sent out an appeal for national peace, reconciliation and end to violence along with other religious leaders in Kirkuk. Archeparch Sako explained that this is "a gesture of closeness to our Muslim brothers. We are all brothers, sons of the same God we must respect and cooperate for the good of the people and our country. " "Iraq – said Msgr. Sako – needs reconciliation and dialogue”. The participants included representatives of Ali Sistani and Muqtada al Sadr. Sako has stated that he would go against a centuries-old tradition of wearing the traditional Chaldean head cover "shash".
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