The Baghdad Blog - Part 2

In the second part of this three part blog on our recent trip to Baghdad I want to concentrate on the Church we spent most of our time filming and the incredible believers we met while we were in Baghdad.

St. Georges is in the Red Zone in Baghdad – about a 5 minute drive from the Green Zone. I have to say I had no sense of Geography while we were there, I couldn’t tell you where in relation to “downtown” Baghdad the Church is located – in fact I couldn’t even say if Baghdad has a downtown. I do know however that the Church is in an area mainly surrounded by Government buildings which means 2 things, one, it has more protection around it (probably) than it would if it wasn’t and two it also means its more in the firing line than it would be otherwise. A couple of years ago there was a bomb attack just outside the walls of the church compound, blowing out all the windows of the church (including the original stained glass ones) and causing considerable damage both to the church and the clinic next door – in fact it pretty well wrecked the clinic. I don’t know if the bomb was targeted at the church OR the government offices – but either way it was not good for St Georges.

Just to give a little flavour of how difficult things have become for Believers in Iraq, you have to look back a little. Up to the fall of Saddam, being a Christian was relatively easy. Saddam even had a number of Christians in his cabinet (because he could trust them not to stab him in the back) and because Saddam himself came from a “minority” group he made a point to protect the other minorities in the country – including the Christians. However all this changed when he was overthrown. It is now MUCH harder being a Christian in the country and indeed, MANY Christians have fled the country or moved to the north where things are easier for them. Since the fall of Saddam, there have been frequent attacks on Christians and Churches culminating in the attack on the Assyrian Church in Baghdad last October when over 50 Christians were callously gunned down or blown to pieces when they went to their Sunday service. The one good thing to come out of that however was that it did force the religious groups (Muslims and Christians) to get together and issue a joint “Fatwah” declaring that attacks on Christians (and indeed all minorities) were to stop – and generally this has made the situation easier – though still far from easy!!

So, that’s how life is generally for Christians – and yet, life for them goes on. Now for a little background on St Georges and Andrew’s work there. Generally speaking, it operates in a way that would be recognisable in most Anglican churches throughout the world – in fact one of the things Andrew is keen on emphasising is that this is a “normal” church – it has prayer meetings, youth meetings, conducts weddings, baptisms etc. and sits under the auspices of the Bishop of Cyprus – who also (I was pleased to find out) visits on occasions. However there is generally where the similarities with Western churches end. This is NOT Church as we know it. The cost of keeping St Georges running is around $177,000 per MONTH!! (this went up $2,000 in the time we were there – due to demands for more medicine for the clinic). Why so expensive you may ask? Well there are a number of reasons – for instance the cost of security. The Church compound is surrounded by high walls, barbed wire and has armed guards stationed on the gateway into the complex 24/7 – to get in to the church you have to go through their checkpoint and have your vehicles checked for bombs etc. Also, the church operates a free clinic to all comers – included in this service is a dentists, 2 doctors, pharmacy and also a laboratory – where they can do all their own blood tests, develop new treatments etc. and as I said it is all FREE to anyone who needs it – as there is little else for the Baghdad population. In fact it is the largest clinic in Baghdad treating hundreds of people every week – quite an achievement and a major part of their outreach in the community. Also, they have a comprehensive feeding programme, providing food for over 4000 people a week who cannot afford basic necessities – this isn’t just for the Church members and Christians but also many Muslims who are not being taken care of by their own “religious” leaders – again this is a major outreach to the community – and you often see many of the Muslims in the Church during the service. They are also in the process of building a school – which they plan to have opened later in summer – this will be a tremendous addition to the work they are doing in the community as there are MANY kids around. All of this however takes lots and lots of cash – and that is one of Andrew’s biggest frustrations – he has to leave the church frequently to travel to other parts of the world to raise the support he needs to continue the work at St Georges – he would much rather not have to do that PLUS when you think he has Multiple Sclerosis travelling for him is no fun at all – but it is necessary or most of the crucial work would stop due to a lack of finance.

As hopefully you can appreciate from the above being a Believer in Baghdad is NOT easy – and yet the church is usually filled every service with overflow rooms operating, a very busy Sunday school and women’s meetings (the Mothers Union) also well attended. When you consider that in order to GET to church these people have to travel some very dangerous roads, have their vehicles checked and be searched on the way into the church compound – attending services is not an easy process. Even the 18 buses the church use to collect and transport people to church are subject to the same treatment. I often think I’ve done well to arrive at Church before the end of the first song – these people have to aim to be there anything up to 2 hours prior just to ensure they get a seat AFTER going through all the security checks!! There is a real commitment and love for their church.

The other couple of things that become obvious about the Believers here are that everyone has a story to tell of how their lives have been impacted by the trouble in their country. We spoke to many people who had either lost loved ones who had been killed, or who had to move due to threats of violence against them – the troubles in Iraq have not left many people unscathed, one of the most touching was meeting a guy who carries around in his wallet pictures of his 2 children (not unusual for a father you might think) until you see the photos and realise they are pictures of his children lying in pools of blood with a bullet hole in their heads – dead. It is VERY sobering and truly makes you realise just what being a Christian in Iraq can cost. The other thing you notice very quickly is that there are MANY MANY more women and children than men – the simple fact is that most of the men have been killed!! I’ll tell you the stories are simply heartbreaking.

BUT BUT BUT BUT BUT and I really cannot stress this ENOUGH – the incredible, amazing, awesome thing is that there is so much JOY and LIFE in the Believers – their eyes physically sparkle and their faces shine as they tell you about their Jesus, who He is to them, the life He gives them, the hope they have in Him – they really are radiant. It is the most wonderful thing – these people LOVE God with all their hearts DESPITE the challenges they have they literally glow when they tell you what being a Christian means to them – it was so incredibly humbling for all of us to see this and realise just how lack lustre our Faith is in comparison. They also have many stories to tell of Jesus talking to them, warning them, guiding them etc. To encourage you, let me just quickly share two of them. One was told us by a guy who works in the clinic. He told us of the time when he was studying at University and this particular morning was on his way into the campus. He heard a voice in his head (which he knew was Jesus) telling him to not go into his usual entrance BUT instead go into the building a different way – one which was a considerable distance out of his way – he tried to ignore it, but the voice persisted until he gave in. JUST as he was entering the building a bomb went off at the entrance he usually used – killing many – he knew Jesus had re-directed him. The other story involves Andrew himself. One of the young people in the church came up to him one evening when he was planning on going out to a meeting and told him not to go. Like all of us would do, Andrew ignored it at first and said he had to go, however the guy was VERY insistent that Andrew MUST not go – that Jesus had told him, so in the end Andrew didn’t go. Good job because there was a bomb attack – and all those who had gone to the meeting were killed. These guys REALLY know how to hear from God – they have to their very LIVES depend on it!!

Our few days there really did have a powerful impact on us, we were treated SO well, really taken care of by Andrew’s staff and it was an amazing time just meeting the Believers – one that I hope impacts me for many years to come – the LIFE these people have is not easy and yet they are SHINING brightly for their Lord and Saviour and truly put us to shame – this is somewhere that Faith matters and where their Faith can be a matter of life and death – one person we met summed this up more than anyone, his name was Toma (not his real name – the reason for which will become clear).

Toma is in line to become a VERY powerful tribal chief once his father dies. The family are staunch Muslims and very powerful people in the hierarchy of Iraq. Toma was working for the US forces as a translator – however for some reason that he still doesn’t know (other than he puts it down to Jesus) he was put in prison for no reason – in fact he was never told why. He spent over a year in prison, during which time as a good Muslim he prayed to his god to help him – however he got no response. Eventually when this wasn’t working, he asked one of the US guards for a Bible – he asked for an English bible as he knew the people he was in prison with couldn’t read English BUT would kill him if he got one in Arabic. He started reading this and eventually started praying to Jesus and that was when things started changing. In a short space of time his circumstances completely changed and he was soon released from prison – he knew it was his prayers to Jesus that had changed things. Once he was released he wanted to find out more about this Jesus and decided he wanted to follow Him – one of the American soldiers put him in contact with Andrew White. He went to see Andrew and told him he wanted to follow Jesus. Now, basically when a Muslim converts to Christianity in Iraq they are signing their death warrant if anyone finds out. Andrew has baptised 13 Muslims who became Christians – 11 of them have been killed very soon after, Toma is one of the remaining 2. Andrew explained all this to him and he still chose to be baptised, so Andrew baptised him there and then. We had the honour to meet Toma and film him as he told his story (from behind so no one could see him) however I did have the pleasure of watching him as he told his story and his whole face was a light with the Glory of God – it was a remarkable site, and I for one was in tears at one point where he said that while he had no desire to die, that if he were to die because of his Faith in Jesus he would consider that the greatest of honours – WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I still feel chocked as I am typing this now – never have I met someone like this who so powerfully sums up how important Jesus is and His life changing power.

I really don’t have much more to say or to add – I believe Toma’s story speaks volumes of the Believer’s in Iraq – this is a Nation where their Faith could cause them to die and yet they are so joyful, lovely, peaceful and some of the most life filled bunch I have ever had the honour and privilege to meet. The work that Andrew is doing out there, meeting the practical needs of BOTH Christians and non- Christians is incredible and I thoroughly commend it. BUT it is the Glory and Presence of God in His people that shines forth so brightly that is the most amazing thing – and that experience I found life-changing – there is something so beautiful about Jesus in these people that my words would never do it justice – but trust me when I say this GOD is there in ways we in the west could only hope for – until we fully understand what our Faith means and it becomes as important as breathing to us (as it is for them) – these wonderful Iraqi Believers will always have things to teach us – and I am incredibly blessed to have had the chance to learn from them.

The Baghdad Blog - Part 1

This is the first of 3 Blogs I intend to write on my recent simply amazing visit to Baghdad. This one will focus primarily on my impressions of the place, the people and the overall “environment” we experienced during my time there. The second will be more specific to the people we met at Canon Andrew White’s Church, my impressions of them and the general “spiritual” climate PLUS a little about Andrew’s work and the third (if you can get that far) will be more around filming and producing content in these kind of situations. Whether you choose to read one or all three my hope is you find them entertaining, a good read AND there is something in them you can take away. Please humour me if you think it’s a bit long – because I really want to do the trip justice.

So here we go, let me start off with the framework for our visit and who came with me. GOD TV has for many years been financially supporting the work of Andrew White and the church in Baghdad and we went to tell the story of the incredible ministry that is going on there. PLUS in June, GOD TV is planning on running a series of programmes focusing on the Middle East and raising finance towards GOD TV’s plans for the region – the tithe of which will all go to St. George’s Church in Baghdad – so we want to show our viewers where the money will go. I was joined on this trip by 3 other GOD TV people; Rory Alec, the CEO and Co-founder, Bo Sander, one of the Senior Management Team at GOD TV and Dan Woodrow, who is GOD TV’s senior cameraman – out of these ONLY Bo had been to Baghdad before. For those involved with TV, you’ll notice there is one glaring omission from the list – and that is a soundman, regrettably we were told 4 was the maximum number we could take and whilst I tried VERY hard to persuade them to sacrifice me for the soundman it was to no avail – in hindsight something I am INCREDIBLY grateful for. BUT it did mean as well as producing, I was also responsible for recording the sound – no one has YET screamed at me, so I think it must have been OK.

The planning for this trip dates back to the beginning of March when Rory, Bo and I met with Andrew and his people at a hotel at Heathrow – as usual I was on the way somewhere else so this worked great. They stressed to us at the time two things, firstly our trip was totally dependent on them getting the necessary visas for us and secondly the need for security – no one could know (beyond close friends and family) where we were going and VERY importantly when we were going. The MOST dangerous times in Baghdad are when you are travelling around – and it is vital you don’t give away your plans. In fact so much so that in the time we were there the plans for even short 5 minute trips were changed a number of times so that if there is anyone passing on information to the “bad guys” you keep them guessing as much as you can.

Well, the Visas came through (which was our confirmation) and off we went. We all met up the day prior in Amman in Jordan (there are no direct flights to Baghdad from Heathrow – surprisingly) and had an overnight in a hotel there before catching the morning flight into Baghdad. The first thing to say was we were all VERY apprehensive – this was not a “jolly” and certainly not something we undertook lightly. Baghdad is probably the most dangerous place on the planet at the moment and not somewhere we would choose to go for sure, BUT I think all of us felt we were supposed to go – certainly if I hadn’t had a peace about going I would not have gone. This was confirmed for all of us at breakfast in Amman before we headed off to the airport. Rory prayed for us as a team, basically proclaiming Psalm 91 over us – I know BOTH Dan and my wife’s prayer life over these 4 days consisted of that Psalm a LOT. It is an incredible promise of God’s protection, and as Rory prayed ALL of us felt a real peace AND a profound sense of God’s presence with us – it was simply wonderful, kind of like God’s thumbprint on the trip.

Nonetheless, when we were later landing at Baghdad there was still a major sense of apprehension – I don’t believe we ever felt afraid BUT certainly there were lots of nerves.

The first thing that struck me when we arrived is an incredible lack of people at the airport. I travel a lot and regularly spend time at airports – I don’t think I have ever been to one where the security people outnumbered the passengers – it was very strange. Thankfully Andrew and his guys met us at the airport and showed us into our vehicles – there were 2, Rory and Bo went with Andrew in one and Dan and I were in the other. We then drove out of the airport. Leaving Baghdad airport is strange as it is a secure area with fences, walls etc. all around for quite a distance from the terminal and there is NO ONE on the road other than you – very helpful when you are travelling at the kind of speeds we were. You drive for around 5 minutes before you reach the perimeter of the airport. It was here that we were met by our security detail.

Baghdad is basically divided into 2 areas, the Green Zone – which is where all the embassies, foreign nationals, government buildings etc. are and the Red Zone – which is everywhere else. The Red Zone is dangerous and is where virtually all the suicide bombings etc. happen as even though there is LOTS of security everywhere; people can still get around and travel – both “normal” people and the “bad guys”.

Whenever we were outside the Green Zone (which was most of the time as Andrew’s church is OUT of the Green Zone) we always had a security detail with us. These are private security guards and usually consisted of 2 pickup trucks, one that drove in front of us clearing the way and one behind – the pickup trucks BOTH had an armoured plated turret in the back and there were 5 heavily armed guards in both trucks – so 10 in total. This is obviously designed (and worked, clearly) to keep us safe – BUT I must say it is somewhat intimidating to have that many armed people around you. However whenever we were out and about they were with us and as you’ll see in the photos when we were filming out in the Red Zone formed a protective perimeter around us.

Back to the Journey into Baghdad (and don’t worry this isn’t going to be a blow by blow account of the entire 4 days – this is simply trying to put into words my first impressions). The road we were on (from the airport to the Green Zone) is apparently the most dangerous road in Baghdad. Our driver took great delight in pointing out where 3 car bombs had been detonated the week before – killing many!! So we drove along here VERY quickly. There were virtually no other vehicles (other than army and police) on the road and I have to say I wondered if that was normal in Baghdad – people simply didn’t go out. However I later discovered two things, firstly this is a very dangerous road and ONLY goes from the airport to the Green Zone, so not well travelled by the “locals” and secondly this was Friday – which is the first day of their weekend – so a lot of people were at home or prayers etc. I have to say, the other days when we were out and about in the Red Zone we came across a lot more people and traffic – and even got stuck a few times in traffic jams – so I can tell you people are getting on with their lives despite the day to day challenges they face. Talking of traffic jams – if we ever felt particularly nervous it was when stuck in a traffic jam, you realised there were hundreds of people all around you any of whom COULD want to cause you harm and if anyone of the cars around you had a bomb in it – that could be over and out – it was quite a disconcerting feeling as you were completely at the mercy of any crazies out there – we were very glad when the traffic started moving again.

One of the things that particularly struck me in the time I was there was the incredible level of security people have to live with on a daily basis. Pretty well every street corner had either an armoured car with soldiers and machine guns, or a police vehicle – again with machine guns – it really is like nowhere else I have ever been in my life. And the other thing is even after 3 days there I still didn’t have a clue who was who – you have army, police, private security and I’m sure others as well BUT despite all this people get on with life as best they can. Even in the Green Zone – which can take forever to get into as you have to pass through at least 3 checkpoints – each time having your ID checked and the car checked for bombs etc. and sometimes you even have to get out and get patted down – but after ALL that, even in the Green Zone there is security EVERYWHERE – tanks, cars, police and soldiers with guns still on every street corner – and although you are free to move around you can still be moved on by the army, as we were twice when we tried to stop and film – it is just bizarre and still feels like a war zone.

The other thing is that it is now entirely policed and controlled by the Iraqi army and police. You do still see US forces, but mainly only guarding their embassy OR assisting/observing the locals at checkpoints etc. Now, here’s an interesting aside – make NO mistake the US have absolutely NO intention of leaving the place and you just KNOW they will be involved behind the scenes pulling the strings for many years to come. How do you know? Well their “new embassy” cost $1 BILLION to build – yes, that’s true (unconfirmed reports say up to $6 BILLION) it even goes 16 floors underground!! Now, here’s the thing, the second biggest embassy in Iraq is the British – we have 400 staff there which is a lot for an embassy. Guess how many are in the US embassy (which is the biggest) – the internet says over 5000!! However Andrew told us (and he should know, he oversees the US embassy chaplaincy) it is actually 39,000!!! And that’s just the embassy NOT the US army in Iraq!!

I digress, anyway, the only place we really went to in the Green Zone was Dojo’s diner – which is a strange place, kind of like an American Diner, but run by a German and American and mainly employing Philippinos – but the food was fine (and safe) and the beer was always cold – so what more could you want  As far as I could judge it is the ONLY restaurant in the Green Zone and certainly busy most of the time – if you’re ever in Baghdad, it’s worth checking out – BUT note the locator on Trip Advisor (yes it is on Trip Advisor) isn’t accurate as that way it won’t have rockets and mortars fired at it – a regular occurrence for places in the Green Zone.

In the Green Zone, pretty well everyone is either an ex pat, embassy staff OR local government employee – so (other than the risks of rocket and mortar attacks) it’s pretty safe – outside the Green Zone is a whole other story!! The other thing worth saying at this point is Baghdad feels like one massive building site, there are broken buildings and rubble everywhere – most from the war but there is a LOT of building work being done here and you sense it will go on for quite a while – this is true in both Green and Red Zones.
We only drove around outside the Green Zone twice (other than when we were driving to the Green Zone) or to the airport as put simply it isn’t safe!! In terms of filming, we were able to stop ONLY once to film, and this was at the famous square where they pulled down the statue of Saddam Hussein – we had 5 minutes here before our security detail insisted that we left – and trust me, you do what they tell you!! We wanted to film outside the Church where last year gunmen killed 58 (or there abouts) Christians who were gathered for their Sunday service which is not far from that point – but the security guys said no. Getting around and about for us was not easy, I can only imagine what it is like for the average Iraqi with ID checks everywhere and everyone suspicious all the time.

Overall we felt safe, nervous at times – BUT really had a tremendous sense of God’s Presence with us at all times NOT JUST when we were in the Church Compound (more about that on the 2nd blog) but everywhere we went. I can’t say I enjoyed my time there – though there were MANY things about being there I did enjoy (again see the next blog) but I am certainly glad I went and I think we all had a sense of fulfilling destiny by going – PLUS it meant a great deal to our Brothers and Sisters at the Church for us to go and be with them for a few short days. A few of them Dan and I got to know reasonably well, despite the language barrier – they don’t speak good English and my Arabic was nonexistent before going – I now know 3 words (forgive the spellings) Shukran – Thank You; Marko Mushkilah – Of Course, No Problem and Siddiki – My Friend. BUT meeting them and spending time with them was by far and away the highlight of the trip and that will be the main focus of Part 2 of this Blog.

So, what are my closing thoughts for this Blog – well, Baghdad is like nowhere else I have ever been, and I don’t think what I have written above will even do it justice, BUT I was very glad to have had the chance to go – and to come away again. I already had tremendous respect for Andrew before going – NOW, I am in awe, this is his life, he truly loves these people (not just his congregation BUT the people of Iraq) and the place and he knows that he knows that he knows he is 100% where the Lord wants him RIGHT NOW – and so has the Grace to do it and live there despite the challenges – how many of us as Believer’s can say the same?

The other thing that I want to stress is that we in the west HAVE NOTHING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT AND NO LEG TO STAND ON WHEN IT COMES TO PERSECUTION (we might think sometimes as Christians we are persecuted but we are NOT!!) – these people do and yet they rise above it and still worship God with all their hearts – they are an example to us all and I was incredibly humbled to share 3 days with them – I can honestly say I would go back (if I know it was of God) in a heartbeat JUST to be with them – GOD IS THERE IN A VERY REAL AND TANGIBLE WAY THAT I HAVE NEVER ENCOUNTERED ANYWHERE ELSE!!