AEI/ Pax Christi- Bethlehem/ Palestine-2024
“Glory to God in heaven, peace to people of goodwill”
As we are approaching Advent and Christmas listening to the angels’ songs and the waiting of our Savior and Redeemer birth of Jesus Christ in our town-Bethlehem, Palestine, our people and all peoples of the world are watching the horrors, killings, sufferings, displacements and devastation not only of our Holy Land in Gaza and West Bank but also in Lebanon.
During Advent – which is the time of expectations, waiting and preparing for the Prince of Peace birth-celebration, we have to remember and reflect on Christmas meanings: salvation, freedom, justice and peace in the face of wars and human and material losses.
We are also asking and appealing to all mankind and freedom voices to read, reflect and act in accordance with his holiness-Pope Francis two cries and requests “caring for the cry of our “common home=our mother earth” and also his cry for caring to the cry of the poor here in our Holy Land and Lebanon and in all corners of the world. This interconnectedness between land and people which summarizes the urgent issue “the integral ecology” means we are all equal but we are all different and we have to care for our land and its people.
We urgently appeal to all the international community, world leaders and human rights organizations and to “Arab and Islamic leaders to take immediate actions to address the roots of the conflicts here and elsewhere so as to bring back justice, freedom, and lasting peace to our peoples and holy lands.
Let us prepare our minds and hearts thinking about Advent not only hoping against hope but also in pursuing a process of national unity, more social cohesion, living together, and deepening our Sumud or steadfastness, faith in God and in our Palestine and among ourselves.
May this Christmas and its lights, peace, humanity and humility bring us all not only in prayers, reflections to stop the sufferings but also aim to enlighten us and all peace builders to protect these holy lands and their peoples by praying, loving, hoping, and giving to the needy and our planet. May our almighty God help us to translate Christmas meanings into a peaceful and brighter future.
A Very Joyful, Merry Christmas and a Peaceful 2025.