Listening to Christians in the Holy Land

Fr Gabriel Romanelli

An international audience of around 200 people listened in admiration and silence on 27 November as a live webinar heard Fr Gabriel Romanelli, Parish Priest of the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, and Sami El-Yousef, Chief Executive Officer of the Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem and the first lay person to hold the post, speak about their experiences in the Holy Land over the past year. Gaza had seen 33 deaths in the previous 24 hours of the Israel-Palestine conflict.

They shared their struggles, hopes, and resilience in an online event organised by Pax Christi England and Wales, Pax Christi International and Passionists. Joint chairs were Ann Farr of Pax Christi and Paschal Somers of the Passionists.

Comments in the chat included: "What a huge privilege to see and hear you today. I watch the Holy Family Facebook everyday and I'm in total awe of your inspiring resilience."

Fr Gabriel talked of the "very important mission" of the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, its only Catholic parish. "Tradition has it that the Holy Family travelled through Gaza to Egypt and then again on the return to Palestine, so they were here at least twice," he said. Today, there are around 650 Christians in the Gaza Strip - most of them Greek Orthodox - of the enclave's total population of 2.3 million. The Greek Orthodox church of Saint Porphyrius is just 400 metres away. "We share food and medicine," he said; "so we are really an ecumenical parish." And there are close links with the majority Muslim population of Gaza, particularly those living near the parish.

The Holy Family parish has been a refuge for hundreds of people since the beginning of the conflict in October 2023. This number then increased with Christians being taken in from Saint Porphyrius after this third-oldest church in the world was bombed twice, killing civilians seeking sanctuary there. With the Catholics, that makes around 500 people currently living in the Holy Family church. Fr Gabriel reported that "we had three bombings here - especially in Mother Teresa House - but thank God no children were wounded." However, "we are close to bombing and there is often shrapnel around." His parish lost its generator and the majority of its solar panels in attacks.

There clearly is little or no heating in the parish. Over the course of the webinar, Fr Gabriel put on his coat, then a woolly hat, and then wrapped a thick scarf around his neck. He explained that families were settling down for the night all around him. A family lived at the other side of the curtain behind him. "Every space is taken up," he reported.

Comment in chat: "For all who are taking refuge in the churches and for those that have nowhere to go and for all those who are grieving. Lord Have Mercy."

Fr Gabriel pointed out that Gaza was called a prison even before the current war. "This has been a reality for many years," he said, "and now "Gaza Strip is a cage and no one can go outside." He reported that very few people can come and go. The community has lost 45 people over the past year and two Catholic women who had actually been sheltering in the church were killed by a sniper of the Israeli Defence Forces.

The Israel-Hamas war has killed more than 44,000 people in Gaza since October 2023, Palestinian health officials say. More than two million people in Gaza do not have enough to eat. Fr Gabriel described the past year as "catastrophic", and "it is not easy for 500 people to all live together." The majority of people in the packed church "have lost their places of work, their streets, everything." There are just four bakeries in Gaza City for 400,000 people, so access to food and water is very restricted. "It is very rare that people eat meat," he said, "and if they do it is corned beef, which is difficult to obtain."

The parish has a daily Mass with a homily, daily Rosary and one hour of silent adoration everyday. "We continue to pray and to nourish hope and we try to keep morale high although we hear bombing daily," he said. "Our mission involves caring for all ages" he added; "each day we visit sick and elderly people and more than 50 disabled children who shelter with us." The parish centre for youth training is now closed. Outside the parish, Gaza's Anglican hospital "is very important to us."

Comment in chat: "Please keep hoping. Please stay in the Holy Land. You are our mother Church. Let us hope to see a cease fire as soon as possible with humanitarian help as well."

Sami El-Yousef is a 'Living Stone'. His family is one of the oldest Christian families in Jerusalem, tracing its history back many centuries in the region. He gave an overview of the work of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which runs 60 parishes and 44 schools, with 200,000 Catholics in Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Cyprus.

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem launched a large-scale emergency humanitarian relief initiative in May 2024 to address the urgent needs of the Christian community in Gaza. It has been delivering food - including fresh fruits and vegetables - and hygiene supplies. This month, the relief initiative delivered critical support to over 1,000 families from the Christian community and neighbouring areas near the Holy Family compound.

Regarding the West Bank, he spoke about the collapse of pilgrimages/tourism over the past year, which supported many livelihoods in the West Bank. In addition, "people can't get permits to work in Israel and civil servants in the West Bank are not receiving their salaries," he said. It is thought that Israel is holding money back. The Patriarchate is supporting tens of thousands of people, "giving food, providing cash for work and utility support," Sami reported. "We're trying to help people support themselves," and the Latin Patriarchate is currently appealing for funds. He told listeners that in the countryside settler violence has mounted with regular confiscation of land and harassment of Palestinians.

Some Palestinian families have left the region. However, despite the challenges, Sami said, "we are here to stay and there are plans for our work to increase after the war." He reflected that Palestinian Christians are calling "for tolerance, peace, justice" and added, "where else do you hear this?"

Comment in chat: "How will you celebrate Christmas? How will you echo the glad tidings?"

Fr Gabriel reported that the Holy Family parish is planning carols with teenagers and chocolates for all the children. "We will try to celebrate," he said.

Last week, the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem issued a statement on the commemoration of the religious observances of Advent and Christmas in the midst of the continuing war. They said: "We encourage our congregations and people to fully commemorate the approach and arrival of Christ's birth by giving public signs of Christian hope. At the same time, we also call upon them to do so in ways that are sensitive to the severe afflictions that millions in our region continue to endure. These should certainly include upholding them continuously in our prayers, reaching out to them with deeds of kindness and charity, and welcoming them as Christ himself has welcomed each of us (Romans 15:7). In these ways, we will echo the Christmas story itself, where the angels announced to the shepherds glad tidings of Christ's birth in the midst of similarly dark times in our region (Luke 2:8-20), offering to them and to the entire world a message of divine hope and peace."

British participants in the webinar included members of Pax Christi England and Wales, 'the churches of Liverpool', Northumberland Justice & Peace Group and Anglican Pacifist Fellowship UK. The Palestinian Solidarity Campaign of Brighton and Hove said, "we are thinking of you every day, we send solidarity and love especially in this season of Advent." From Scotland, "the prayers of Pax Christi Scotland are with the people of Gaza always."

Jan Sutch Pickard, a member of the Iona Community, said, "we will remember all you have shared in Iona Abbey and in this terrible situation the testimonies are a reminder that God is still present."

This solidarity will be important for Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, to hear during his current visit to Britain.

The international audience included Pax Christi members in Uruguay, Germany, Canada and the United States, "Know that many people in Belgium think of you every day, that many people push our government to take a stronger stance; strong wishes of solidarity for you," said Pax Christi Flanders. Caritas-Belgium: "Thank you so much for having organised this. Please convey our thoughts, solidarity, and prayers to the community at large. We are trying to do our best to support your efforts through Caritas Jerusalem." Friends and worshipers at the Cistercian Abbey of Gethsemani in Trappist, Kentucky, said "we pray for you daily and wish others around America knew and understood what is actually going on there - Peace To You!"

The Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco described, being "in communion with you all in prayer and through our offering in various ways; we are daily in contact with our sisters, their people and young people in West Bank, Israel and Lebanon... praying and working with them... Thanks for your courage and strength... Be blessed... We are with you all!" The Salesians of Don Bosco Network said: "May the world come to its senses - Salaam, Shalom, Pax". A representative of Vincentian priests and brothers prayed: "May God bless you and your people, may this tragedy end soon, may peace prevail and with it new life for everyone."

At the conclusion of the webinar, the Christmas message of the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem was read out over an image of candles burning in Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem before a Madonna and Child icon. This event was more than a call to awareness; it was an invitation to act, to pray, and to stand in solidarity with Palestinians in the Holy Land, who continue to endure, love, and hope against all odds.

LINKS

Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem: www.lpj.org/en

Pax Christi International: https://paxchristi.net/

Pax Christi England and Wales: https://paxchristi.org.uk/

Passionists: https://passionist.life/

Today, 29 November, is the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People

www.un.org/en/observances/international-day-of-solidarity-with-the-palestinian-people/message