In an economy hit hard by the pandemic and the lack of pilgrimages and other tourism for two years, Christians in the Holy Land “are in desperate need of support,” said an April 5 news release about the 2022 Good Friday Collection that continues to support the work of the Franciscans of the Holy Land.
Pope Francis has called on the world’s Catholics to pray May 22 for dialogue, forgiveness and peaceful coexistence in the Holy Land.
There is a great deal of excitement in the Diocese of Brooklyn over the impending return of pilgrimages to important religious sites.
Catholics longing to walk in the footsteps of Jesus Christ will finally get that chance now that COVID-19 restrictions are easing.
The injury and death of so many innocent people, especially children, caused by escalating violence between Israel and the Gaza Strip is “terrible and unacceptable,” putting the area at risk of sinking into “a spiral of death and destruction,” Pope Francis said.
Bethlehem, the biblical birthplace of Jesus, continues to feel the economic impact of the pandemic since essentially shutting down on March 5, 2020. After a quiet Christmas season that featured toned-down Mass celebrations and empty streets and shops, the city hopes things will turn around by next year.
This Lenten season, parishioners can make a difference through two upcoming monetary collections that will assist people and places worldwide and here at home.
Franciscan Father Francesco Patton, custos of the Holy Land, asked Catholics around the world to make a virtual pilgrimage to the Holy Land and make a real donation to support the church in the region.
Amid continuing concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, Catholic pilgrims in the Holy Land said they were being cautious but had no regrets about continuing with their pilgrimage.
Staten Island state Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, who was the GOP’s mayoral candidate in 2017, spoke out against persecution against Christians in the Middle East after she returned from a trip to the Holy Land and learned about the situation there firsthand.
At this very moment, I am penning this article from the city of Jerusalem. I, along with two other priests, and 40 pilgrims from the Diocese of Brooklyn are walking in the footsteps of our Lord, and Savior Jesus Christ through the cities of Bethlehem, Nazareth and Jerusalem.
