The Archbishop of Westminster and Catholic and other bishops have renewed pleas for peace in the Holy Land in Christmas services and messages.
“Let us join our voices to those of the angels, in prayer for such peace, for a cessation of violence, for the relief of such suffering and the release of hostages,” said Cardinal Vincent Nichols at Midnight Mass in Westminster Cathedral.
“For this is the birthday of the Prince of Peace, who alone by his power as God can heal our hearts, broken by sin, and through his sharing in our human flesh, can instil in us the same mercy and compassion.”
He continued: “Bethlehem, today a silent city. All public celebrations have been cancelled, out of mourning for the dead of the terrible war ravaging parts the Holy Land. A song has emerged from there, sung in English and Arabic, entitled ‘Hear Angels Cry’. Yes, the angels must weep for the callous murders, the horrendous butchery of 7 October and for the consequent terrible destruction and loss of innocent life among millions of displaced people who now languish in hunger and disease, their homes, hospitals, schools and places of worship destroyed. Let us hear the angels as they cry out for peace.
“Let us join our voices to those of the angels, in prayer for such peace, for a cessation of violence, for the relief of such suffering and the release of hostages.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, in his sermon at Canterbury Cathedral, spoke about the suffering of children caught up in the Israel-Gaza war. “This year, the skies of Bethlehem are full of fear rather than angels and glory,” he said. “Ukraine hears the wails of the sirens. Sudan and South Sudan ring with warning and terror. Around the world, we are beset with violence. The skies that rang with the angels on that first Christmas also heard the cries of despair, pain and suffering.
“What is God’s answer? The cries of a newborn. Far below wing-born angels, wondering shepherds, wandering magi, lies a child. Today a crying child is in a manger somewhere in the world, nobody willing or able to help his parents, or her parents, who so desperately need shelter. Or perhaps lying in an incubator, in a hospital low on electricity, like the Anglican Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza, surrounded by suffering and death.”
He also spoke out against terrorism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism and other ills of society.
Bishops of the Holy Land Coordination also called for peace. They referred in particular to the recent killings in Gaza’s Holy Family parish.
After two Christian women were killed in a sniper attack on the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza on 16 December 2023, the bishops said yesterday they were “profoundly shocked and distressed”.
“The Holy Land Coordination has been warmly welcomed by priests and parishioners on numerous occasions. We have witnessed first-hand the faith and commitment of the few parishioners who remain; and the dedicated care by the Missionaries of Charity of some 50 profoundly disabled people who live in the convent alongside the church.
“The desecration of this compound and the destruction of the Sisters’ convent, ‘signalled’, according to the patriarch, ‘as a place of worship since before the beginning of the war’, is profoundly disturbing. The shooting in cold blood of Nahida Anton and Samar Antoun, a mother and daughter seeking to enter the convent is unfathomable.”
The Holy Land Coordination bishops represent a broad sweep of countries and visit the Holy Land regularly to reassure these Christians that they are not forgotten.
“The atrocities perpetrated against Israeli Jews on 7 October and the subsequent killing by the Israel Defence Force of nearly 20,000 Gazans, of whom 70 per cent were women and children, would appear profoundly to jeopardise the prospects of any such resolution of this deep-seated conflict.
“Yet, the approaching celebration of Our Saviour’s birth two thousand years ago in the heart of the West Bank should serve as an incentive to people of faith, across the globe, to call down the Holy Spirit ever more fervently to move the hearts of all who can bring influence to bear on these lands and to find a way to cease the hostilities from all sides.”
Signatories included Bishop Nicholas Hudson, chair of the Holy Land Coordination and auxiliary in the Archdiocese of Westminster.
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