King attends multi-faith Advent service

King Charles attended a special Advent service on Tuesday that was held to honour the courage and perseverance of Christian communities suffering for his or her faith world wide. 

The service was held on the Church of the Immaculate Conception, in Mayfair, London, and was co-hosted by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

It also coincided with the tenth anniversary of the ISIS invasion of Mosul and the Nineveh Plains in northern Iraq, which led to the untold suffering of Christians and other minorities. 

During the service, King Charles met with members of the Iraqi Christian diaspora, including individuals who experienced persecution and displacement when ISIS took control of the Nineveh Plains.

He also met representatives of the 175-year-old Jesuit parish, which supports homeless and vulnerable people.

Dr Caroline Hull, national director at ACN (UK), said: “Throughout their long history dating back to the first century, the Christians of Iraq have been no strangers to suffering.

“But little could prepare them for the terrors that may be inflicted each on them and so many other communities lately.”

Dr Hull continued: “Since his time as Prince of Wales, the King has shown profound and unstinting compassion, going out of his solution to hear the private stories of the afflicted faithful.

She added: “The King’s constant concern has been an enormous source of encouragement for us at ACN.”

She said that the journey towards restoration and renewal for Iraqi Christians “has been a protracted and sometimes painful one” and that “there remains to be a protracted solution to go towards full recovery”.

“But that they’ve achieved a lot and accomplished the work so quickly is a tribute to the compassion, the care and concern their friends and benefactors have shown them. Such help got here at a time after they sorely needed it,” she added.