Ray Repp was there during a great transition between the Latin Mass and the early post-Vatican II liturgy. Ray stepped in, not simply to fill a gap, but to call the church to wake up and sing.
Before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Christians numbered around 1.5 million, but sectarian attacks on churches in Baghdad and other areas soon followed, and the population either headed north or left the country altogether.
Fra’ Giacomo led the 1,000-year-old sovereign order following an institutional crisis that caused deep internal fractures and a confrontation with the Holy See.