Abducted in Iraq - by Saad Sirop Hanna

About the Book

This riveting book documents Bishop Hanna's twenty-eight days in captivity in Iraq as he struggles through threats, torture, and doubt.

Book Synopsis

This riveting book documents Bishop Hanna's twenty-eight days in captivity in Iraq as he struggled through threats, torture, and doubt.

How do we respond in the face of evil, especially to those who inflict grave evil upon us? Abducted in Iraq is Bishop Saad Sirop Hanna's firsthand account of his abduction in 2006 by a militant group associated with al-Qaeda. As a young parish priest and visiting lecturer, Fr. Hanna was kidnapped after celebrating Mass on August 15 at Babel College near Baghdad. His plight attracted international attention after Pope Benedict XVI requested prayers for the safe return of the young priest.

Through extreme hardship, the young priest gains a greater knowledge both of his faith and of remaining true to himself. This riveting narrative reflects the experience of persecuted Christians all over the world today, especially the plight of Iraqi Christians who continue to live and hold their faith against tremendous odds. The book sheds light on the complex political and spiritual situation that Catholics face in predominantly non-Christian nations. More than just a story of one man, it is also the story of religious persecution and intolerance.

Review Quotes

"Abducted in Iraq is a gripping account of profound faith, authentic courage and hope against all odds. Not surprisingly, the priest's cruel confinement led him to ponder life's ultimate questions, like love's meaning, God's presence and action, and goodness itself." --The Catholic Missourian

"'Kafir! Kafir!' That was the word, meaning infidel or believer, the Muslim extremists shouted as they repeatedly beat Father Hanna in a futile attempt to force him to convert to their faith. . . . As he refused to relent under ever more torturous treatment, Hanna became convinced that his ordeal could end only with his death." --Catholic Library World

"Bishop Hanna varies the pace well between the rapid, intrusive violence and long periods of isolation and reflection, in which his deep spirituality comes to the fore. His recollections are philosophical, elegantly expressed, and colored not with bitterness but with incomprehension and an unselfconscious courage. He humanizes his captors as much as he can manage." --Sight Magazine

"Bishop Hanna's story is one of self-discovery, deepening faith, and an eye-opening reality to the plight of numerous Christians in the Middle East." --Word on Fire

"Bishop Hanna's testimony and story deserves to be read by anyone who has ever wondered how they would react if they were kidnapped, tortured, told to abjure their faith, and faced likely death. It should be read by anyone with even a passing interest in the violence and hatred that has disfigured Iraq and that now disfigures Syria." --David Alton, professor emeritus, John Moore's University, Independent Life Peer of the British House of Lords

"Bishop Saad Sirop Hanna is a philosopher, and this memoir clearly reflects that aspect of a man who grew up living side-by-side with Muslims, when nobody thought that that was anything other than normal. So the destruction of Iraq and the decimation of the Christian community grieves him utterly. . . . He urges looking beyond ethnicity, creed, culture, and religion; connecting on the level of shared humanity." --Church Times

"By the end of Abducted in Iraq readers will not only be inspired, they will also gain a new sense of compassion for those who suffer from religious violence." --Gabriel Said Reynolds, author of The Emergence of Islam: Classical Traditions in Contemporary Perspective

"Father Hanna's gripping and gut-wrenching descent into the terrors of violent Islamic extremism is masterfully crafted, spell-binding, and deeply disturbing. Confronted with intense pressure to abandon his faith, this courageous young Iraqi priest not only refuses to do so, but also refuses to succumb to hatred of his oppressors. Above all else, this is an inspirational witness to the power of Christian hope and love in the face of unspeakable evil." --K​ent R. Hill, Executive Director, R​eligious Freedom Institute

"Hanna's first-person account begins with being waylaid while driving down a Baghdad street. He was quickly blindfolded, handcuffed, and taken captive while his abductors negotiated a ransom and tried, sometimes with violent beatings, to convert him to Islam. . . . The book is poignant in describing and lamenting the destruction of Iraqi culture." --Publishers Weekly

"The bishop's suffering, survival, and ultimately enduring faith make for a heart-rending read." --George J. Marlin, author of Christian Persecutions in the Middle East: A 21st Century Tragedy

About the Author

Saad Sirop Hanna is the Apostolic Visitor for Chaldeans Residing in Europe, the auxiliary bishop of the Chaldean Patriarchate of Baghdad, Iraq, and a recurring visitor at the Medieval Institute of the University of Notre Dame.