Young girls take a selfie in front of a poster promoting the upcoming trip of Pope Francis on March 4, 2021 in Erbil, Iraq. On March 5, Pope Francis will start the historic first ever papal visit to Iraq. In his first foreign trip since the start of the pandemic Pope Francis will visit Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil and the cities of Qaraqosh and Mosul, which were heavily destroyed by ISIS.

Chris McGrath
Young girls take a selfie in front of a poster promoting the upcoming trip of Pope Francis on March 4, 2021 in Erbil, Iraq. On March 5, Pope Francis will start the historic first ever papal visit to Iraq. In his first foreign trip since the start of the pandemic Pope Francis will visit Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil and the cities of Qaraqosh and Mosul, which were heavily destroyed by ISIS.

COMMENTARY: A specific dimension of the Holy Father’s visit will lift up the figure of Abraham, which Pope St. John Paul II planned to do 21 years earlier.