From the first to the seventh of March, the bishops of the Swiss Episcopal Conference are on pilgrimage to the Holy Land. From Bethlehem to the Galilee by way of Jerusalem, the Swiss bishops want to demonstrate their solidarity with the Christians of the Holy Land, but also to express their compassion for the two peoples since, "the Israelis, the Palestinians and the peoples of the Middle East live in an on-going traumatic situation."
After Bethlehem, where they visited the Caritas Baby Hospital that is maintained largely thanks to the contributions of Swiss Christians, particularly at the Christmastime collection, they came to Jerusalem, where they first met with the Patriarch, His Beatitude Michel Sabbah, and then with the Custos of the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa. At their request, the latter presented a brief overview of the situation of Christians in the Holy Land. The bishops noted several differences between the picture presented by the Custos and the one they received from the mayor of Bethlehem.
According to Brother Pierbattista, the Christians of Bethlehem are no more than 8% of the population of the City of the Nativity. "But the mayor spoke to us of about thirty percent?"
"Statistics here are not an exact science. They vary according to the person who is presenting them. The mayor, a Christian, following the very law that governed his election, and who was elected by the Hamas votes that were the majority in Bethlehem, has to exclude from his calculations the population of the two refugee camps that, in fact, are located in the city’s territory. But what we Franciscans, who are in charge of the parish of Bethlehem, notice is that their numbers continue to decrease. And our statistics cause us to say that they are no more than 8%."
Such an affirmation could not but make a large impression on the bishops and reinforce them in their project. If fact, according to Father Joseph Roduit, abbot of the Abbey of Saint Maurice in Valois, "This pilgrimage is motivated by our concern desire to help the Christians of the Holy Land remain in their country because they are the guardians of these places. If they leave, then the country becomes distorted. By coming here, we wish to encourage pilgrimages here. For if pilgrims come, the local population can live through its commercial enterprises, the tourism industry, etc." A solidarity pilgrimage, in fact.
Moreover, the Swiss bishops gave a personal example: they lodged in Bethlehem, which too few groups have done since 2000.
If for some of the twelve bishops (of six dioceses) this pilgrimage was their first, most had already been here. It was even the 70th visit for Msgr. Pierre Bürcher, who last October was named bishop of Reykjavik (Iceland) by Pope Benedict XVI.
Nevertheless, this pilgrimage was a powerful experience of ever more necessary sensitization for all of them, which each of them will cause to echo in their respective dioceses.
MAB
After Bethlehem, where they visited the Caritas Baby Hospital that is maintained largely thanks to the contributions of Swiss Christians, particularly at the Christmastime collection, they came to Jerusalem, where they first met with the Patriarch, His Beatitude Michel Sabbah, and then with the Custos of the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa. At their request, the latter presented a brief overview of the situation of Christians in the Holy Land. The bishops noted several differences between the picture presented by the Custos and the one they received from the mayor of Bethlehem.
According to Brother Pierbattista, the Christians of Bethlehem are no more than 8% of the population of the City of the Nativity. "But the mayor spoke to us of about thirty percent?"
"Statistics here are not an exact science. They vary according to the person who is presenting them. The mayor, a Christian, following the very law that governed his election, and who was elected by the Hamas votes that were the majority in Bethlehem, has to exclude from his calculations the population of the two refugee camps that, in fact, are located in the city’s territory. But what we Franciscans, who are in charge of the parish of Bethlehem, notice is that their numbers continue to decrease. And our statistics cause us to say that they are no more than 8%."
Such an affirmation could not but make a large impression on the bishops and reinforce them in their project. If fact, according to Father Joseph Roduit, abbot of the Abbey of Saint Maurice in Valois, "This pilgrimage is motivated by our concern desire to help the Christians of the Holy Land remain in their country because they are the guardians of these places. If they leave, then the country becomes distorted. By coming here, we wish to encourage pilgrimages here. For if pilgrims come, the local population can live through its commercial enterprises, the tourism industry, etc." A solidarity pilgrimage, in fact.
Moreover, the Swiss bishops gave a personal example: they lodged in Bethlehem, which too few groups have done since 2000.
If for some of the twelve bishops (of six dioceses) this pilgrimage was their first, most had already been here. It was even the 70th visit for Msgr. Pierre Bürcher, who last October was named bishop of Reykjavik (Iceland) by Pope Benedict XVI.
Nevertheless, this pilgrimage was a powerful experience of ever more necessary sensitization for all of them, which each of them will cause to echo in their respective dioceses.
MAB