At a press conference on Tuesday, December 22, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Mgr. Fouad Twal, delivered his annual Christmas message at a press conference.
He began his message by acknowledging several realities: that the Palestinians still do not have their own state, that the status of Jerusalem is still disputed, and that Israelis live in great fear.
Nevertheless, the Patriarch recognized the encouraging signs of the past year: the partial freezing of settlements, the generosity of the international community, the visit of the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, the construction projects of the Latin patriarchate, the convocation of a synod for the Middle East, and the beatification of Sister Marie Alphonsine.
However, the Patriarch continued to say, the most desired Christmas gift remains peace.
When asked by journalists if he wasn’t tired of waiting, he responded, “If I as the Patriarch lose hope, how can I pass it on to others? We do not have the right to grow weary, to lose faith, or to give up.” The journalists asked questions about various issues such as the negotiations between the Holy See and the State of Israel, the situation in Gaza, and the Christians in that region. “Christians there,” the Pope said emphatically. “do not constitute a ghetto that should get special treatment. Their situation is no different from that of the population at large. They are suffering under the same conditions.”
A number of questions were about the results of the Holy Father’s visit. The Patriarch replied that the spiritual and pastoral benefits of the visit were and continue to be many, but that the visit did not bring about any concrete political changes in the region.
Political issues led the journalists to ask the Patriarch about the exodus of Christians that is still going on. “Above all, we should help make them aware of the importance of being here, of their testimony here,” the Patriarch replied. “Their presence here is part of a mission, a vocation, and every mission comes with difficulties.
“On the other hand,” he added. “After sixty years of conflict with no prospects of peace, I understand their decision to emigrate, but what I tell them is, ‘You may find everything you desire elsewhere, but you won’t find another Holy Land; you won’t find your roots, which are here and only here.’ As Christians, we should be aware of that privilege.” Concerning the convocation of the synod for the Middle East, the Patriarch said, “The Holy Father made that decision after seeing all the problems in Jerusalem – the divisions and the separations. He knows the situation. It’s still difficult to tell what we can gain from the synod but we are going to give it our all and ask all of our communities to invest in it.” After the press conference, Mgt. Giacinto Boutros Marcuzzo took the floor and talked to the press about the recent archeological discoveries made in Nazareth, at the site of the future “Centre Marie de Nazareth” being built by the French Community of the Chemin Neuf.
“At Christmastime, we think of Bethlehem, of course, but we should not forget that Bethlehem has a sister city: Nazareth, the city of the Incarnation, where the Sacred Family lived for about thirty years. Last week, something interesting was discovered near the basilica of the Franciscan friars. It’s not something we could call extraordinarily new, but it is beautiful and interesting, and it confirmed what we already knew by adding to and completing the Biblical and historical information we already possess.” At the location of the former school of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Apparition, where the Marian center is being built by the Community of the Chemin Neuf, the remains of a very old house were found during construction. The house dates back to the time of Jesus, although some parts were added during the Roman, Byzantine, and Mameluke periods. The discovery is interesting because so far, no other house from the time of Jesus has been discovered in Nazareth, although many other things have been, especially grottos such as the Grotto of the Annunciation, of course. Many objects, such as ceramics, from everyday life were discovered there. But the question is why this particular house was conserved and preserved. In any case, its location in the ancient village of Nazareth was central. Today, it is located 100 meters away from the Basilica of the Annunciation and the Grotto of Saint Joseph, 100 meters away from the synagogue, and approximately 100 meters from St. Joseph’s Tomb. On Monday, a press conference on the same topic took place in Nazareth. On the same day, Father Eugenio Alliata from the Studium Biblicum was expected to meet with Father Frédéric Manns.
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He began his message by acknowledging several realities: that the Palestinians still do not have their own state, that the status of Jerusalem is still disputed, and that Israelis live in great fear.
Nevertheless, the Patriarch recognized the encouraging signs of the past year: the partial freezing of settlements, the generosity of the international community, the visit of the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, the construction projects of the Latin patriarchate, the convocation of a synod for the Middle East, and the beatification of Sister Marie Alphonsine.
However, the Patriarch continued to say, the most desired Christmas gift remains peace.
When asked by journalists if he wasn’t tired of waiting, he responded, “If I as the Patriarch lose hope, how can I pass it on to others? We do not have the right to grow weary, to lose faith, or to give up.” The journalists asked questions about various issues such as the negotiations between the Holy See and the State of Israel, the situation in Gaza, and the Christians in that region. “Christians there,” the Pope said emphatically. “do not constitute a ghetto that should get special treatment. Their situation is no different from that of the population at large. They are suffering under the same conditions.”
A number of questions were about the results of the Holy Father’s visit. The Patriarch replied that the spiritual and pastoral benefits of the visit were and continue to be many, but that the visit did not bring about any concrete political changes in the region.
Political issues led the journalists to ask the Patriarch about the exodus of Christians that is still going on. “Above all, we should help make them aware of the importance of being here, of their testimony here,” the Patriarch replied. “Their presence here is part of a mission, a vocation, and every mission comes with difficulties.
“On the other hand,” he added. “After sixty years of conflict with no prospects of peace, I understand their decision to emigrate, but what I tell them is, ‘You may find everything you desire elsewhere, but you won’t find another Holy Land; you won’t find your roots, which are here and only here.’ As Christians, we should be aware of that privilege.” Concerning the convocation of the synod for the Middle East, the Patriarch said, “The Holy Father made that decision after seeing all the problems in Jerusalem – the divisions and the separations. He knows the situation. It’s still difficult to tell what we can gain from the synod but we are going to give it our all and ask all of our communities to invest in it.” After the press conference, Mgt. Giacinto Boutros Marcuzzo took the floor and talked to the press about the recent archeological discoveries made in Nazareth, at the site of the future “Centre Marie de Nazareth” being built by the French Community of the Chemin Neuf.
“At Christmastime, we think of Bethlehem, of course, but we should not forget that Bethlehem has a sister city: Nazareth, the city of the Incarnation, where the Sacred Family lived for about thirty years. Last week, something interesting was discovered near the basilica of the Franciscan friars. It’s not something we could call extraordinarily new, but it is beautiful and interesting, and it confirmed what we already knew by adding to and completing the Biblical and historical information we already possess.” At the location of the former school of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Apparition, where the Marian center is being built by the Community of the Chemin Neuf, the remains of a very old house were found during construction. The house dates back to the time of Jesus, although some parts were added during the Roman, Byzantine, and Mameluke periods. The discovery is interesting because so far, no other house from the time of Jesus has been discovered in Nazareth, although many other things have been, especially grottos such as the Grotto of the Annunciation, of course. Many objects, such as ceramics, from everyday life were discovered there. But the question is why this particular house was conserved and preserved. In any case, its location in the ancient village of Nazareth was central. Today, it is located 100 meters away from the Basilica of the Annunciation and the Grotto of Saint Joseph, 100 meters away from the synagogue, and approximately 100 meters from St. Joseph’s Tomb. On Monday, a press conference on the same topic took place in Nazareth. On the same day, Father Eugenio Alliata from the Studium Biblicum was expected to meet with Father Frédéric Manns.
Mab