Middle East News
Church wants scores of Gaza Christians to attend papal masses
May 5, 2009, 13:26 GMT
Jerusalem - The Roman Catholic Church said Tuesday it is working to enable scores of Christians from the besieged Gaza Strip to attend masses in Jerusalem and Nazareth during next week's visit by Pope Benedict XVI to Israel and the West Bank.
'The pope cannot go to Gaza. It was easier to bring Gaza to the pope,' Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal told a news conference in Jerusalem, outlining the final preparations for the May 8-15 visit to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.
He said he had asked the Israeli government to supply some 200-250 travel permits for members of Gaza's Christian community, who form a tiny minority of some 3,000 people among a mostly Sunni Muslim majority of 1.5 million.
Of the 3,000 Christians, 286 are Roman Catholic, while the rest are Greek Orthodox and Protestant, said the top Roman Catholic cleric in Jerusalem.
'We don't know till now how many will be able to come and for sure some of them will be Christians and Moslems,' he said.
The Jordanian-born Twal expressed 'solidarity' with Gaza's Christians, saying they were suffering like all Palestinians living in the coastal enclave, which witnessed a deadly and destructive 22-day Israeli offensive in December and January in response to ongoing Palestinian rocket attacks from the strip.
Papal Nuncio Antonio Franco told the news conference that Benedict XVI's scheduled visit to Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem was also intended as an expression of 'solidarity' with its some 5,000 residents.
Asked where in the refugee camp the pope was expected to make his address, the panel of Church leaders told the news conference that he was likely to do so in the courtyard of the local United Nations-run school, as had originally been planned.
Israel has objected to the construction of a large platform outside the camp, near its controversial West Bank security barrier. The visit to the Aida camp was originally designed for the camp's population only, the panel stressed.
Archbishop Franco nevertheless reiterated that the visit was religious and non-political. In addition to a personal pilgrimage, the third by Benedict but his first as pope, it was a pastoral visit to the local Christian community by their 'Holy Father,' he stressed.
Bishop Giancinto Boulos Marcuzzo insisted that time restrictions were the main reason behind the chosen location of the pope's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, scheduled to take place in Nazareth, not Jerusalem.
The only opening in his schedule was May 14 and on that day the pope will be visiting Nazareth, he said.
Asked about protests against the papal visit by some local Muslims, he said he did not believe these represented the overall population of the Arab-Israeli town, but only a small margin.
The panel added they had 'full trust' in Israeli security arrangements put in place to protect the Pope during his visit. They added he was likely to use his popemobile to arrive and depart at the cite of the Nazareth mass.
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Eli S. McCarthyMay 6th, 2009 - 17:05:56
Please sign our petition to encourage the Pope to visit Gaza...
(google Pope to Gaza petition)
To Pope Benedict XVI, on the occasion of his visit to the Holy Land in May, 2009:
Your Holiness:
The Incarnation of divine love and our redeemer, Jesus Christ, enacted human reconciliation in part by visiting, eating with, and listening to the least among us: women and children, lepers and tax collectors, many persons deemed inferior and unclean by his society. Through his words and deeds, Jesus taught us to love our enemies as ourselves and to be blessed peacemakers, persecuted for his sake and the sake of the Kingdom. In his incarnation, life, death, and resurrection, Christ challenged sinful social situations that relied on exclusion, dominance, and violence.
In many ways, the people of Gaza have been suffering under similar unjust social systems. In many ways, the Israelis, too, live in fear, distrust, and uncertainty. And thus the deeper justice of mutual healing is needed for both peoples. However, the people of Gaza in large part represent 'the least among us” today. Their territory has been cut off and isolated. Their access to basic health care, education, jobs, adequate nutrition, and clean water, etc. has been severely hampered. Thus, their capacity to participate effectively in their political process and their potential for full human flourishing suffers enormously. When we ask, 'Whose equal dignity is most unequally ignored?' or 'Whose equal rights are most unequally threatened?' the faces of the people in Gaza clearly arise.
Mindful of the Gospel’s call and the Gazan’s need, we believe there is a unique opportunity for Christians as the body of Christ, especially for our leadership, to cooperate with God in the redemptive work of reconciliation. As in all times, the way of reconciliation exemplified by Jesus calls us to initiate social healing by visiting, eating with, listening to, and risking our safety in solidarity with the “least among us” -- in this case the people of Gaza. Moreover, like Christ, we need to be willing to risk our lives without the protection of arms, and thus, to live by the loving wisdom of the cross and the divine hope of the resurrection. Such witness by Church leadership will inspire the Catholic faithful, particularly the young, to embrace their Church and its rich tradition, particularly Christ’s wise, loving, and nonviolent way of promoting reconciliation. Such witness will also encourage other religious leaders to practice nonviolent peacemaking. We trust and hope that through such courageous love, embodied in nonviolent peacemaking, God’s Spirit and our participation will draw us all further into the Reign of God.'
In about 7 wks., we have gathered over 2750 signatures from 62 different countries across the world (including Israel). The total signatures includes over 1600 Catholics, over 150 Catholic priests (105) and brothers, over 100 Catholic sisters, over 60 pastors from other Christian communities, over 175 Muslims, over 120 Palestinians including Fr. Musallam, who is the one Catholic parish priest in Gaza, leaders of various organizations, and Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, other Christians (signers have indicated over 22 different types of religious affiliation) as well as other non-religious persons.
eli_trinity@hotmail.com
PhD Candidate
Graduate Theological Union
USA
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