Archbishop Mgr. Yousif Thomas Mirkis, is the Archbishop of Chaldean Catholic Archeparchy of Kirkuk-Sulaimaniya[1][2][3][4][5] whose cathedral, St Paul's, was repeatedly bombed and rebuilt by Islamic State in the early 2000s.[6] He announced a policy of starting a new university in Iraq,[7] and has been described as a both a journalist and a human rights activist;[8] he organised the purchase of Kituk's first Ultrasound system.[9]

Mgr. Yousif Thomas Mirkis
Archbishop of Chaldean Catholic Archeparchy of Kirkuk-Sulaimaniya
Yousif Thomas Mirkis
DioceseChaldean Catholic Archeparchy of Kirkuk-Sulaimaniya
SeeChaldean Catholic Archeparchy of Kirkuk-Sulaimaniya
PredecessorLouis Raphaël I Sako
SuccessorIncumbent
Orders
Ordination26 March 1980
Consecration24 January 2014
RankArchbishop of Chaldean Catholic Archeparchy of Kirkuk-Sulaimaniya
Personal details
Born21 June 1949
DenominationChaldean Catholic Church
ResidenceKirkuk
Alma materUniversity of Strasbourg

Yousif Thomas Mirkis studied first at the Saint - John Seminary in Mosul, then continued his studies in France where he joined the Dominican Order. He made his first profession in the Order in 1975. At the University of Strasbourg, he obtained a doctorate in theology and religious history. Then he also obtained a degree in social anthropology at the University of Nanterre 1.

He is ordained priest on 26 March 1980.

Intellectual Professions In 1989, Father Mirkis co-founded the Theological and Philosophical Faculty of Babel College in Baghdad, where he taught from 1989 to 2014 . In 1995, he became director of magazines Al-Fiker Al-Masihi and Al-Nasira. In 2006, he founded the Academy of Human Sciences in Baghdad. He is also a member of the Union of Iraqi Journalists, "Third World Journalists" based in Berlin and the International Catholic Press Union 1.

He is fluent in Arabic, French and English and also knows Aramaic 1.

He held the office of superior of the Dominicans in Baghdad.

He was elected archbishop of Kirkuk by the synod of bishops of the Chaldean Church on 10 June 2013. Pope Francis confirmed his election on 11 January 2014. He was consecrated on 24 January 2014 by Patriarch Louis Raphael I St Sako, assisted by Mgr. Shlemon Warduni and Mgr. Jean Benjamin Sleiman and chose the motto "Do not be afraid, O little flock."

References

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  1. ^ "Chaldean Metropolitan Archdiocese of Kirkuk–Sulaimaniya, Iraq (Chaldean Rite)". gcatholic.org. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  2. ^ Service, Catholic News (5 June 2018). "Naming Chaldean as cardinal is gift to struggling Church". The Catholic Sun. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  3. ^ "Iraqi Christians cautiously welcome start of battle to push ISIS from Mosul". Catholic Herald. 18 October 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  4. ^ Wilton, Carlos (June 2004). Lectionary Preaching Workbook: For All Users of the Revised Common, the Roman Catholic, and the Episcopal Lectionaries. Series VIII. CSS Publishing. ISBN 9780788023712.
  5. ^ Lisicki, Paweł (28 October 2015). Dżihad i samozagłada Zachodu (in Polish). Fabryka Słów Sp.zo.o. ISBN 9788379640799.Girling, Kristian (2 November 2017). The Chaldean Catholic Church: Modern History, Ecclesiology and Church-State Relations. Routledge. ISBN 9781351706742.
  6. ^ Girling, Kristian (2 November 2017). The Chaldean Catholic Church: Modern History, Ecclesiology and Church-State Relations. Routledge. ISBN 9781351706742.
  7. ^ Holmes, Eric (December 2004). Iraq: Providing Hope. Timberwolf Press. p. 135. ISBN 9781587522529.
  8. ^ Betz, Helmut; Lechler, Walther H.; Meier, Alfred; Waldau, Knut (May 2003). Publik-Forum (in German). ISBN 9783466366774.
  9. ^ Pons, Frédéric (1 March 2017). Le Martyre des chrétiens d'Orient (in French). Calmann-Lévy. ISBN 9782702159088.