The Sisters of St. Joseph of the Apparition welcomed the Franciscan friars, the Spanish Authorities and many guests with a simple and very family-like ceremony to inaugurate the new extension of the girls’ school of the Custody of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, near the Jaffa Gate.
The Schools of the Holy Land are the oldest schools in the country (since 1518), and the girls’ school has maintained this record: it was opened in 1841, twenty years before the first Jewish school and fifty years before the first Muslim one.
The importance and the need to have schools for girls as well was recalled by the Custodial Vicar, fra Artemio Vítores, who spoke of the opening, the concern, the commitment and the dedication the Franciscans have always devoted to the educational aspect of their centuries-old apostolate towards the people who live in the Holy Land.
The people, because all the (Franciscan) schools in the Holy Land have always been open to everyone, even when the Christians were, in some communities, the majority of the population, and they are still an important point of reference for the education and erudition of young people, a place of dialogue, respect and mutual knowledge, at a time when the majority of pupils are children from Muslim families.
The extension of the School and the development of a number of educational activities have been made possible by the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and the Foundation for social promotion and culture, which is also Spanish.
The words of thanks by the Sister Headmistress were followed by cutting the tape and a visit to the new rooms, in one of which – fitted out for dance lessons – a large group of little girls paid tribute to all the guests with a brief performance.
Through a video presentation, it was also possible to realize the state of the premises before the work was done. Here, many years ago, in the district of Rachel, as it was called, there were some houses of the Custody of the Holy Land where Christian families lived.
Due to the need to adapt the premises of the school to new requirements and the need to renovate this part of the district which looks on to the Sultan’s pool, the families moved to other houses of the Custody, after which major renovation work was started and the new premises were adapted for educational purposes. A fine and especially useful job has been done, to help give opportunities for girls’ education which is decisive for the future of this country.
Everybody gathered together again around refreshments and compliments were extended, in the presence of the Spanish Consul, for the attention and effort, the real solidarity, the sober, targeted and successful use of the aid that Spain offered for the social promotion of this Land.
Schools are to the fore in this effort because culture is knowledge, the possibility of autonomous improvement, of becoming emancipated from situations of extreme poverty and acquiring the capacity to responsibly assume projects of freedom, which is a hope for a better future.
IB
The Schools of the Holy Land are the oldest schools in the country (since 1518), and the girls’ school has maintained this record: it was opened in 1841, twenty years before the first Jewish school and fifty years before the first Muslim one.
The importance and the need to have schools for girls as well was recalled by the Custodial Vicar, fra Artemio Vítores, who spoke of the opening, the concern, the commitment and the dedication the Franciscans have always devoted to the educational aspect of their centuries-old apostolate towards the people who live in the Holy Land.
The people, because all the (Franciscan) schools in the Holy Land have always been open to everyone, even when the Christians were, in some communities, the majority of the population, and they are still an important point of reference for the education and erudition of young people, a place of dialogue, respect and mutual knowledge, at a time when the majority of pupils are children from Muslim families.
The extension of the School and the development of a number of educational activities have been made possible by the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and the Foundation for social promotion and culture, which is also Spanish.
The words of thanks by the Sister Headmistress were followed by cutting the tape and a visit to the new rooms, in one of which – fitted out for dance lessons – a large group of little girls paid tribute to all the guests with a brief performance.
Through a video presentation, it was also possible to realize the state of the premises before the work was done. Here, many years ago, in the district of Rachel, as it was called, there were some houses of the Custody of the Holy Land where Christian families lived.
Due to the need to adapt the premises of the school to new requirements and the need to renovate this part of the district which looks on to the Sultan’s pool, the families moved to other houses of the Custody, after which major renovation work was started and the new premises were adapted for educational purposes. A fine and especially useful job has been done, to help give opportunities for girls’ education which is decisive for the future of this country.
Everybody gathered together again around refreshments and compliments were extended, in the presence of the Spanish Consul, for the attention and effort, the real solidarity, the sober, targeted and successful use of the aid that Spain offered for the social promotion of this Land.
Schools are to the fore in this effort because culture is knowledge, the possibility of autonomous improvement, of becoming emancipated from situations of extreme poverty and acquiring the capacity to responsibly assume projects of freedom, which is a hope for a better future.
IB