Amid heavy security, the only Anglican Church in Iraq held its first service since the conclusion of the recent war to topple Sadaam Hussein. St. George's Church in Baghdad has been without a priest or an official congregation since the conclusion of the first Gulf War in 1991, according to Church Times.

About 100 people attended a morning Eucharist on June 15. The Rt. Rev. Clive Handford, Bishop of Cyprus and the Gulf, delivered a special greeting as armed soldiers stood guard outside and military helicopters patroled the sky above after a bomb threat.

Although virtually penniless and badly damaged by looters toward the end of the war earlier this spring, the bishop wanted to find a full-time priest who would understand the Iraqi culture and be sensitive to the needs of the area, a spokeswoman for Bishop Handford told the Times.