As we give thanks and recognition to priests for all they do, and pray for their continued spiritual well being on Priesthood Sunday, Oct. 26, we pray that those called to priesthood vocations will hear and answer the call.

Caught up in the many things happening in the news today, it is easy to miss events happening in far off places. Almost buried amongst  coverage of the upcoming presidential election, the financial market crisis, and increased troop deployments to Afghanistan, news of Christians fleeing from the Iraqi city of Mosul, is almost overlooked.

Violence against Christians in the northern Iraq city has intensified in recent weeks, and authorities are unclear as to who is behind it. Since the first of this month, 13 Christians have been killed in Mosul, three Christian homes were destroyed, and a homemade bomb placed at the door of a church in the Old City district of Mosul was detonated, causing some damage to the building, but no casualties.

Last March, Paulos Faraj Rahho, a Chaldean Catholic archbishop, was kidnapped and later found dead near Mosul.

In the recent terrorism campaign, Christians were sent flyers, e-mails and text message threats advising them leave to the city where they have coexisted in relative peace with other religions for 19 centuries. Iraq holds special significance to Christians, Jews and Muslims, because it the birthplace of Abraham, a figure revered in all three religions.

Unlike Iran, Iraq was not a fundamentalist Islamic government at the time of the Gulf War in 1991. Catholic religious sisters in Mosul wore their religious habits when they traveled to and from the university for classes. Christian clerics had a visible presence. But those days are long gone. Since the 2003 Iraq Conflict, Mosul has become an Islamist stronghold. Its Christian population has dropped from 25,000 to 7,000. Convents in Mosul were closed, the younger sisters sent back home to live with their families. Only the oldest sisters remained at the convent.

Some say the recent persecution campaign is a response to the hundreds of Christians who took to the streets in Mosul and surrounding villages, demanding reinstatement of Article 50 of the Provincial Election Law, which secures seats on the provincial councils for minorities.

It is unclear as to who is responsible for the attacks. Some Arab politicians have blamed the Kurds, Kurdish politicians have said former Baathists and terrorists are responsible. Sunni insurgent groups have released statements disavowing the attacks.

For Christians who have had to flee their homes, it doesn't matter as much to them who are responsible for the campaign, but what is being done to give them the protection they need.

The Iraqi government finally sent troops to patrol the Christian neighborhoods in Mosul. But the Vatican has called upon Iraq and human rights groups to do more to protect the Christian refugees. The United States, whose presence is very much still in Iran, needs to do all in its power to protect these innocent victims of war.