A Message from Bishop Francis Kalabat on the Election of His Beatitude Mar Polis III Nona
April 12, 2026
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
On this blessed New Sunday of the Easter season, as my brother bishops and I gathered for the recent Chaldean Synod held in Rome, I write to share with you the joyful news of the election of our new Patriarch, Patriarch-elect Mar Polis III Nona. This election follows much prayerful discernment, and we trust that the Holy Spirit has guided us in choosing a worthy shepherd for our Church in these times of growing challenge and adversity.
At the same time, we offer our heartfelt gratitude to His Beatitude, Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako I, for his years of faithful service to the Chaldean Catholic Church. We thank him for his steadfast leadership, his witness of faith, and his tireless dedication to our people, guiding the Church through times of unprecedented trial. We pray that God may grant him good health, peace, and continued strength in the years to come.
Patriarch-elect Mar Polis III Nona served faithfully as Archbishop of Mosul during a time of great persecution under ISIS, when our faithful endured uncertainty, fear, and suffering. Yet, even in those dark days, he bore witness to the deeper reality of the enduring presence of Christ, meeting that fear and suffering with a faith that overcomes all things.
More recently, he served as the devoted shepherd of the Chaldean Church in Australia and New Zealand, continuing his ministry with the same pastoral zeal and fatherly care entrusted to him.
Reflecting on those difficult years of ministry in Mosul, he once remarked that it was the “best time of my life.” This striking remark does not at all negate or diminish the suffering that was endured; rather, it reveals the depth of his faith: that even in moments of great trial and uncertainty, he experienced the grace of God at work among his flock. It was in those trying times that he reminded the faithful to remain rooted in Christ so as to be sustained in the midst of suffering.
This profound witness of hope, courage, and faith, both in trial and service, has helped to forge within Mar Polis III Nona a pastoral heart that will continue to guide and strengthen us in unity and faithfulness to the Gospel of Christ.
We continue to pray for Mar Polis III Nona as he receives this new ministry of leading the Chaldean Catholic Church through the many challenges of our time. May the Lord grant him wisdom, strength, and perseverance, and sustain all of us as an Easter people, steadfast and ever rooted in the hope of Jesus Christ.
Your Servant in Christ,
+Bishop Francis Y. Kalabat
Bishop of the Chaldean Catholic Diocese of St. Thomas the Apostle, USA
