Solidarity with the Church in the Holy Land

As a Christian who believes it is each of our calling to work to build the peaceful and just world that God intended, I have felt called for some time to visit the Holy Land and better understand the conflict there. I know that while violence rages and peace talks stall, ordinary people of many faiths are demonstrating radical courage and love in working to promote peace and I want to learn from them in order to better understand my own calling as a peacemaker.

I want to express my solidarity with people, Palestinian and Israeli, who are suffering from needless violence. My faith identity allows me to express a special solidarity with Christians struggling there. A friend recently sent me an article published in America Magazine's blog, A Vanishing Church which highlights the recent Middle East Synod meeting around the vanishing Christian population in the Holy Land. It's brief and very much worth a read. “The future of the Church in the Holy Land is now in doubt unless fellow Christians around the world step up efforts to help them," a church leader shared. Why is the Church vanishing? The article provides several examples:

Most Christian owned lands have been and continue to be confiscated for the building of illegal settlements. Home of Our Lady of Sorrows outside Jerusalem, is one of many examples. The Sisters there care for the elderly. Yet a giant wall has been built on their property effectively cutting off their patients from their families and limiting hospital access.

There have also been more than 500 visas denied for religious and clergy who live and work in the West Bank and Gaza denying them entry into Palestine. Making them unable to minister to its’ people. Some priests are even afraid to leave, for fear they may not be allowed to return.

There are a number of reasons I will visit the Holy Land, but I wanted to highlight one dear to my heart. On this day when we celebrate the Epiphany, may we pray for peace for all people in the place where, 2000 years ago wise people pilgrimaged to visit the Prince of Peace, humbly lying in a manger.