Pope receives Cardinal of Iran

Pope Leo XIV receives this morning in audience Cardinal Dominique Mathieu, Archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan. For the moment, no details have been released about the matters to be discussed during the meeting. However, all indications are that the Cardinal has reportedly conveyed to the Pontiff the situation of the small Catholic community in Iran, as well as the prospects for the establishment of peace in the country.

Mathieu is currently the only priest in his archdiocese. The Catholic Church of the Latin rite in Iran has about 2,000 faithful, most of them foreigners, within a population of approximately 90 million inhabitants, predominantly Shiite Muslims. The Catholics of the Latin rite are distributed in four parishes: three in Tehran and one in Isfahan.

Cardinal forced to leave the country

The Cardinal had to leave Iran last weekend because of the war. The Cathedral of the Consolata, along with the Archbishop's residence and administrative offices, are located within the compound of the Italian Embassy in Iran. Faced with the temporary closure of the diplomatic headquarters, the archbishop was forced to leave the country to preserve his security.

After his evacuation to Rome, the Order of Friars Minor Conventual, to which he belongs, confirmed that the cardinal is in good condition.

Mathieu expressed his sadness for having to leave the country and the pain he feels for “his brothers and sisters” who remain there. The prelate also expressed his hope to be able to return soon and asked for prayers so that “hearts may find inner peace”.

A pastor for a small church

The 62-year-old Belgian cardinal was appointed archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan in 2021 and created a cardinal in 2024 by Pope Francis.

In addition to the approximately 2,000 faithful of the Latin rite that he pastors, there are other Eastern Catholic communities in Iran. The most numerous is that of the Catholics of the Chaldean rite, made up mainly of faithful of Assyrian origin who celebrate the liturgy in Aramaic and who are estimated to number between 7,000 and 10,000 believers.

There is also a small community of Catholics of the Armenian rite, a minority within the Armenian community of the country -mainly Orthodox- with a few thousand faithful.