On the morning of March 8th, when I saw Pope waving his final goodbye to the president of Iraq and many others from the gate of his plane, I wrote this imagined farewell speech…
An Imagined Farewell Speech of Pope Francis to Iraq
Goodbye, Iraq
Goodbye, lovely Iraqi people
Four days ago, I waved hello to you
Now, I wave goodbye to you
But my heart will stay with you
in the ancient two river basins
and the cradle of human civilization
The paradise where Adam and Eve lived
the tree of life and that of knowing good and evil
standing right in the middle
The original sin’s strain was also lurking
Nearly ten thousand year-long human history
has exposed it into the open
The grace of God, nevertheless
had been continually showered upon the Earth
He then turned eyes to Ur
and called Abraham away from his land
blessing him to be the blessing of all nations
moreover, to be the common father of faith
for the Jews, Christians, and Muslim
It is this indisputable historical fact
that has prompted me to ignore the pandemic
and possible terrorist attack
to come to Baghdad, Najaf, Ur
and to the devastated Kurdish region in the North
with limping legs due to sciatica
to meet with government officials, religious leaders,
and the general public, so as to spread
“peace, fraternity, reconciliation and coexistence”
the teachings and will of the only true God
and the covenant He made with Abraham
more than four thousand years ago
The experiences of the past three days
will be firmly embedded in my memory
even the Alzheimer cannot make me forget:
the warm and polite hospitality
the old and innovative cultural heritage
the steady elders and the innocent child
the colorful dress and the delicious food
the ethnic diversity and religious common good
the enduring laughter and overflowing tears
…
all but the manifestation of the same Divine Word
Why some want to destroy with hatred and violence
instead of appreciating and celebrating?
Goodbye, dear Iraqi people
I will always pray for you
and ask you to remember what I said to you:
Like our father Abraham
wherever you are, whatever you encounter
don’t forget to look up at the stars
The stars that carry the promise of God
will lead us out of strayed paths
into the promised land of Canaan
where milk and honey flows
This is also the message
I want to send to the entire world
（三月八日早上，当我看到教宗从飞机口向伊拉克总统和欢送人群挥手道别时，我写下了这篇想象中的“告别词”……）
—韩清平
再见了，伊拉克
再见了，可爱的伊拉克人民
四天前，我向你们挥手致意
现在，我向你们挥手道别
但我的心却留在了你们这里
留在了那古老的两河流域
以及人类文明的摇篮里
亚当和夏娃生活过的乐园啊
生命树和知善恶树就在中央
但“原罪”的毒株也潜伏于此
近万年的人类历史将其暴露无遗
而神的恩赐却不断撒向大地
最终将目光对准了乌尔
召唤名叫亚巴郎的男子离开故土
祝福他成为万民的祝福
更成为犹太人、基督徒和穆斯林
共同宣认的信仰之父
正因这无可争议的历史事实
才促使我不顾疫情和可能的恐袭
拖着因坐骨神经痛而颠簸的腿脚
来到巴格达、纳贾夫、乌尔
再北上到满目疮痍的库尔德地区
会晤政府官员、宗教领袖和普通民众
传播“和平、友爱、和解、共存”
这来自唯一真神的教导和旨意
也是四千年前祂和亚巴郎的盟约誓词
过去三天的亲身经历和感受啊
将牢牢地镶嵌在我的记忆里
即使有一天得了老年痴呆也不会忘记：
那热情且礼貌的好客之道
那古老又新颖的文化传承
那沉稳的老人和天真的儿童
那多彩的服饰和爽口的美食
那民族的多样和宗教的共同向善
那止不住的欢笑和抹不干的泪水
…
这都是对同一圣言的彰显和传递
为何有人不欢欣庆祝
反而要用仇恨和暴力来杀戮？
再见了，亲爱的伊拉克人民
我会常常为你们祈祷祝福
也请你们记住我对你们说过的话语：
像我们的父亲亚巴郎那样
无论身处何方，也不论遭遇什么
都不要忘记仰望星星
那承载着真神许诺的星星
终将引领我们走出迷途
进入流奶流蜜的迦南福地
而这也是我想向全世界传递的讯息
