A first-time Columbus author has written a work of historical fiction that weaves themes of suffering, courage, faith and redemption within a simple story of four people attempting to reach safety in the midst of chaotic events in Iraq in 2014.
Nazar’s Journey by Paul T. Mascia views the attempt by ISIS terrorists to take over Iraq’s Nineveh Plains in August of that year through the eyes of Nazar, a 14-year-old Christian who is forced quickly into adulthood as terrorists attack his village and he must flee. Joining him are Yousif, a builder; Amira, Yousif’s daughter, whose fiancé died in the Gulf War of 1991; and Omar, one of Yousif’s best workers, a Muslim who is opposed to the terrorists.
The four are among about 500,000 people, some Christian but most of them non-Christian, attempting to reach safety in Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan. They have done nothing wrong but suddenly must leave everything they know and flee on foot to an uncertain future – innocent civilians who are the “collateral damage” of war.
Nazar also is on a personal quest to find his father, from whom he has become separated because of the fighting. Added to their difficulties is that Yousif is injured and has to be carried by his companions in a homemade stretcher, slowing the group’s progress toward Erbil. As the story ends, their problems are not resolved, but the four have stayed together and events have enabled them to face the future with hope.
Mascia has a degree in religious studies from Yale University and spent more than 30 years assisting people in central New Jersey with long-term care and disability insurance needs. He and his wife, Theresa, are members of Columbus St. Catharine Church. They have five children and seven grandchildren and moved to Columbus 3 ½ years ago to be closer to a daughter and her family. He is semi-retired, working only with the clients he had before retiring.
“I wanted for some time to find a way to display my gratitude to God for all the goodness and blessings He has given me,” he said. “I’ve had a yearning for creative writing ever since I took a writing class at Yale and wrote a work of fiction about a boy caught up in the Vietnam War whose story was like Nazar’s. My professor said I should try to get it published.
“I never did because of my involvement in the insurance business, but the idea for the story stayed with me for more than 50 years. A few years ago, I read in the National Catholic Register and the Knights of Columbus magazine about the persecution of Christians in Iraq. I remember reading about how terrorists would paint the letter N on the doors of Christian households to encourage people to attack residents of those homes – sort of a reverse of the Jews in Egypt marking their doors with lamb’s blood before Moses led them to freedom.
“I wanted to make the story as authentic as possible, so I placed it in sites that would have been along the road refugees traveled on the way to Erbil. One of those places is a town called Karemlesh, which had an active Christian community and where Nazar had been attending school.
“The book refers to a destroyed church in Karemlesh and a statue of the Virgin Mary inside the church. I didn’t know at the time I was writing about the horrific desecration of that little village church that the statue would be restored and taken to the stadium in Erbil, where it was part of a Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in 2021 during his visit to the region. The statue has become a symbol of survival and restoration for the Iraqi Christian community.”
One scene in which Nazar and Amira gaze at the stars at night has a Columbus connection. Mascia said he was inspired to write it when he heard the Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral choir sing a composition of Psalm 91 – “He will conceal you in his wings. You will not fear the terror of the night” – by Dr. Richard Fitzgerald, the cathedral’s music director.
“Through Nazar’s story, I hope readers will be more cognizant of that fact that we are all part of the Body of Christ,” Mascia said. “We all share in the sufferings and trials of our fellow Christians, even if they are thousands of miles away from us.
“Another lesson I hope will come from the book is that there is a grace of perseverance God provides for suffering people. Nazar goes through a lot of trauma but is given the grace to endure it and to move forward.
“I also feel that in a subtle way the book will show people the beauty of the Catholic faith,” the author said. “Nazar’s search for his father includes elements of the parables of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son as part of an unspoken theme of having a personal relationship with God the Father through the redemption provided by Jesus Christ.
“My desire is that the book will touch hearts everywhere and that its message will be a mustard seed of evangelization.”
The story is about 100 pages long. The rest of the 141-page book includes an Introduction by well-known Catholic writer Joseph Pearce, five endorsements, an afterword by an eyewitness, notes on the art by the author, and nine expressionist paintings by Qais Al-Sindy, an Iraqi-American from San Diego. They were created specifically for the book and add significantly to the emotion of the story.
The book will be of interest to both adults and young readers. It can easily be read in one or two sittings and provides rich material for spiritual and literary discussion.
The project is a charitable endeavor. Mascia plans to donate the proceeds to Aid to the Church in Need, a 77-year-old international Catholic pastoral aid organization that works with Catholics in Iraq and many other nations.
The publication date is Friday, May 24, but it may be ordered now for $20.95 online at amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com andwalmart.com. It also will be available at the Generations religious gifts store in Columbus and Gramercy Books in Bexley. The publisher is Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd. of London.
