Christmas Eve midnight masses canceled in Iraq

The Catholic Church has canceled Christmas Eve midnight masses. I’m not sure how much of a surprise this is or how the Catholic Church avoided doing this in years past, but security risks are too high now.

Vatican Radio reports:

“We have many difficulties because of the situation that there is no peace and no security, permanent security,” said Bishop Mar Shlemon Warduni, Auxiliary Bishop of the Patriarchate of Babylon, Iraq, of the Chaldean Catholic Church. “So for these days of Christmas and the New Year, we hope to celebrate the feast, but not Midnight [Mass], because there are too many difficulties.”

Bishop Warduni said that, despite many difficulties, for Christians in Iraq, “Our duty is to pray for peace.”