On Thursday, Aug. 14 and Friday, Aug. 15, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary was celebrated in Jerusalem. The vigil took place, on Thursday night, in the Garden of Olives adjacent to the Basilica of Agony (Gethsemane), and then continued with the celebration of the Solemn Mass, on Friday morning, presided over by the Custos of the Holy Land, Br. Francesco Ielpo. The vigil in the night In the garden next to the Basilica of Gethsemane, […]
The Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land has released a "Message to the Faithful of the Holy Land" on the occasion of the opening of the Holy Year 2025 (text attached). “The theme chosen by Pope Francis is: Pilgrims of Hope. For us, Catholics of the Holy Land, hope, precisely in these times, is especially necessary, and the Holy Father, in the Bull of Indiction for the Ordinary Jubilee, reminded us that hope does not disappoint.” “If we […]
As every November 17, 2025, a solemn celebration took place in honor of the memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, patroness of the Secular Franciscan Order. The Mass was presided over by Fr. Francesco Ielpo, Custos of the Holy Land. For the first time, given the growing attendance in recent years, the Mass was celebrated in the Church of Saint Saviour. Casa Maria Bambina, managed by the Franciscan Sisters Daughters of Saint Elizabeth, is a point of reference for pilgrims, […]
The Apostolic Exhortation Nobis in Animo of His Holiness Paul VI, to the Episcopate, Clergy and Faithful throughout the world on the increased needs of the Church in the Holy Land, turns 50 years old. Already St. Paul took to heart the fate of the first Christians. The Apostle himself brought relief to the Holy City, seeing in the Collection a bond of unity between the new communities of believers and the original Church in Jerusalem. The manner in which […]
