Gaza at Christmas: where there is love, there is hope

In the midst of war, the Holy Land’s Christians are struggling to remain united, writes Michael Kelly

It was not in splendour and worldly power that God came to Earth, but in the humility of a defenceless baby born in the manger of Bethlehem. No wonder the strong and the powerful are so perplexed by the paradox of Christmas with God seemingly stripped of power, while the poor and the powerless see in it immediately ‘Emmanuel’ – a God who is with them.

It is to that same God-made-flesh in Jesus that the tiny Christian community in Gaza, and indeed across the Holy Land, turn again this Christmas as they live another nativity season surrounded by the guns of war.

In Gaza City, the remaining Christians live in the heart of the largely destroyed city in the Catholic Holy Family Parish and the neighbouring Orthodox Church of St Porphyrius. Immediately after the October 7 terrorist attacks, they decided that they would be together for the inevitable war. And they have shared their joys and hopes, sorrows and despairs together day after day.

Humbling

It has been a humbling honour for Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) to serve God’s holy and faithful people struggling to survive in an existential periphery between a wider conflict in the Holy Land.

Responsible for their pastoral care is the war-weary Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa. An Italian Franciscan, he has dedicated his life to trying to build peace, reconciliation and mutual understanding in the Holy Land.

He is cautiously optimistic this Christmas, as many dare to dream of a better future for all the people who share the Holy Land, and particularly for the people of Gaza.

“I think that the peak of the war in Gaza is behind us. The ceasefire with Hezbollah also influences Gaza and Hamas. My impression is that in the coming weeks or months we will arrive at some compromise,” the cardinal told a recent meeting of ACN.

But, when the war ends – for all wars end – what will the future hold? “The end of military hostility is not the end of conflict. When the military operation finishes, what will life be like in Gaza? Who will be there? It will take years to rebuild, and I am sure the border with Israel will remain closed, so what is the future for these people?” the patriarch asked.

We have had other wars, but there is a before and an after October 7, because the kind of violence that took place, and the emotional impact on the respective populations has been enormous”

The cardinal, who some speak of a potential future Pope, is clearly downbeat about the current atmosphere of distrust in the Holy Land, saying that “what concerns me is the level of hatred. The hate speech, the language of contempt, the denial of the other, is very problematic.

“We have had other wars, but there is a before and an after October 7, because the kind of violence that took place, and the emotional impact on the respective populations has been enormous. While the events were a sort of ‘Shoah’ for Israelis, for Palestinians what happened afterwards is a new ‘Nakba’, trying to expel them from their land.”

A man steeped in the history of the peoples of the Holy Land does not use such words lightly – the Shoah, of course, is the Hebrew word the Jewish people use to describe the ‘catastrophic destruction’ that was the Nazi holocaust. For the Arab inhabitants displaced at the creation of Israel in 1948, the Arabic word Nakba describes their own experience of ‘catastrophe’.

When the war finally ends in Gaza, he added, “we can rebuild the infrastructure, but how can we rebuild relationships?”

Patriarch

The patriarch believes that Christians, who compose about 1.5% of the population of the Holy Land, are in a privileged position to contribute in this respect. “Because we are so small, and politically irrelevant, we have the freedom to connect with everyone. Where there are so many wounds and divisions, being able to reconnect is one of the main missions for the future.”

Although the Christians in the Holy Land may be few, and Latin rite Catholics fewer still, there is no shortage of variety. The Arab-speaking Christians form the majority, but there is also a small community of Hebrew-speaking Catholics, and another of refugees and asylum seekers. Holding these communities together has at times been difficult, Cardinal Pizzaballa readily admits.

“While in this war everybody is struggling to divide, we are struggling to remain united. It was not easy, especially at the beginning of the war. We have one faith, but people have different visions and ideas. Now it is much better, but after the war we must talk about our differences and about what unity is. This is also something very healthy, for us Christians, it helps us to take a step forward. We must grow in our relations, to have a deeper, more serious relationship between us,” he said.

Keep the memory of Jesus alive in the land of Jesus”

The war in the Holy Land is having serious economic consequences for the Christian population. Almost all the Christians in the West Bank who worked in Israel have had their permits revoked since the beginning of the conflict, and those who depended on pilgrims have been faced with the paralysis tourism sector.

Stressing that it is essential that Christians remain to “keep the memory of Jesus alive in the land of Jesus”, the Patriarch insisted on a narrative of hope which cannot, however, be confused with a belief in a short-term political solution to the crisis.

“If you identify the hope for the future with a political solution, there is no hope, because there is no short-term solution. I hope to be wrong. But I am afraid I am not,” he said.

“However, hope is an attitude of life, a way of seeing the reality of your life with faith. Faith is to believe in the presence of God, who transcends our earthly life. If you can see with faith, you are able to see something that transcends, goes beyond the dark reality we are in. Only with faith can you do this. And this is still possible!” the patriarch exclaimed.

“Many people think these are just nice words, but it is real. Everywhere, from Gaza to the West Bank, Jerusalem and Israel, I see wonderful people ready to commit themselves to doing something for others. Where there are these acts of selfless love, there is hope, it means it is possible to change something. Maybe we cannot change the macro political situation, but we can change something where we are, and this is what comforts me.

Powerless

“I also feel powerless sometimes, because I see problems everywhere, but when I see all these wonderful things still being done in all the parts of our Church, I see there is still hope,” the cardinal said.

During the conference Cardinal Pizzaballa thanked ACN who has had projects in the Holy Land for many years, but since the beginning of the war in October 2023 has stepped up its support. According to executive president Regina Lynch, who welcomed the patriarch to the conference, “thanks to our benefactors we have been able to provide more than €1.2 million in emergency relief support to the Christians, specifically as a response to the acute crisis. The projects supported include emergency food, water, medicine supplies and job creation and internship opportunities.

We also have a duty to promote reconciliation and peace between religious and ethnic groups, however impossible this may sometimes seem”

“But ACN’s mission is not only to provide material support for the Christians in the Holy Land but to pray for them and to give them a voice. We also have a duty to promote reconciliation and peace between religious and ethnic groups, however impossible this may sometimes seem,” the Tyrone native concluded.

Michael Kelly is Director of Public Affairs for Aid to the Church in Need, Ireland. You can find out more about ACN’s work in the Holy Land, and support the community there this Christmas by visiting www.acnireand.org