Eight years after ISIS ravaged Mosul, the heart of northern Iraq once again echoes with the sound of church bells. Two of the city’s most historic Christian sanctuaries, the Syriac Orthodox Church of Mar Toma and the Chaldean Church of Al-Tahira, have reopened their doors, marking what one local cleric called “a sign of hope” for a community long scarred by violence and exile.
A City Reclaiming Its Soul
When the so-called Islamic State captured Mosul in 2014, the city, built on the ruins of ancient Nineveh, became a symbol of persecution. Christians, Yazidis, and other minorities were forced to flee as ISIS desecrated sacred sites and turned holy places into prisons and fortresses. By the time liberation came in 2017, Mosul’s Old City lay in ruins, its churches charred and gutted.
Rebuilding was neither easy nor quick. Yet on October 15, 2025, hundreds gathered in Mosul’s Old City to celebrate the reopening of Mar Toma and Al-Tahira. Both structures had been painstakingly restored after years of meticulous work by international preservationists and local craftsmen.
“These churches are our roots, our history,” said Patriarch Louis Raphaël Sako, head of Iraq’s Chaldean Church, according to Vatican News. “We need to keep them alive.”
Restoring What Was Lost
The Mar Toma Church, dating back to the 7th century, once served as a prison under ISIS rule. Its most notable feature, the 13th-century Gate of the Twelve Apostles carved from local marble, was nearly destroyed. Now, it stands repaired thanks to a dedicated Franco-Iraqi restoration team.
Fadi, a 27-year-old Christian craftsman from Mosul who helped rebuild the gate after three years of training, told Vatican News, “It shows the Christians living abroad that things are better here now, that they can move back home.”
The neighboring Al-Tahira Church, an 18th-century Chaldean landmark, has also been restored, with its reconsecration scheduled to follow shortly after the secular inauguration ceremony.
International Partnership and Local Faith
The restoration was spearheaded by ALIPH, a global fund dedicated to safeguarding cultural heritage, in collaboration with L’Oeuvre d’Orient, a French Catholic charity that supports Christian communities across the Middle East.
“Today is a great celebration not only for Mosul’s Christians, but for all its inhabitants,” said Msgr. Hugues de Woillemont, Director General of L’Oeuvre d’Orient, according to Vatican News. “Worship will begin here again. And the church bells will ring out once more.”
A Symbol of Resurrection
For many, the reopening of these churches represents more than physical restoration ,it is a spiritual resurrection. The return of liturgies and the sound of bells in Mosul stand as a testament to endurance, forgiveness, and the Christian belief that life conquers death.
In a city once silenced by hatred, the faithful now sing again. The churches of Mar Toma and Al-Tahira, scarred but not destroyed, proclaim a truth that every Christian knows by heart: after the cross comes resurrection.
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